HIGH TIMES: The 10 Best Marijuana Dispensaries in Los Angeles
Exhale Med Center
West Hollywood
A comfortable shop with super friendly budtenders
Navigate to Exhale Med Center through a small outdoor plaza to the friendly lobby decked out with fish tanks, then inside where you’ll meet some of the nicest dispensary staff members in LA headed up by budtender Chris Joynt. Exhale carries a wide selection, serving as the city’s flagship store for Bloom products and stocking other popular brands like Foria and Kiva. You’ll find a fair amount of CBD products and plenty of clones should you want to grow your own Banana Kush or Girl Scout Cookies. Customers are welcome to make use of the in-store rosin press to squeeze hash oil out of their newly purchased flower. The shop’s decor is simple and crisp and the laid-back vibes help to make buying cannabis seem as natural as stopping by the market for a bottle of red.
Sean Cooley/ High Times
San Benito: Hollister’s first dispensary opens
Interest is high in the first dispensary to open in Hollister city limits, as Genesis Marketplace opened four weeks ago at 1802 Shelton Drive and has seen a steady flow of customers excited to have a nearby shop offering cannabis edibles, tinctures and flowers without driving dozens of miles. General manager Chris Joynt said the community is really excited and has welcomed customers from as far away as Santa Cruz. Operating alongside Genesis Grow Corp. under its parent company, Higher Level, the dispensary employs about 12 people, many from Hollister, and promotes an open, friendly “marketplace” atmosphere to move beyond the stigma attached to the word “dispensary,” saying, “We want everyone to live a happy, healthy life.” After the Hollister City Council voted June 3 to allow recreational cannabis sales, the city projected higher revenues, imposing a 5 percent local tax while the state collects excise and sales taxes. Joynt called working with the city “fantastic,” said Genesis plans to integrate into the community with events and a grand opening celebration, and noted the business has been scoring high ratings on Weedmaps.
VULTURE: Highly Recommended: Entertainment Suggestions From Marijuana Dispensary Employees
In the states where marijuana is legal, dispensaries employ budtenders — weed sommeliers who can recommend strains based on the kind of high you want, what activities you might be doing while stoned, or any physical or mental conditions you’re looking to treat. Given that they’re so good at offering pot tips, we wondered what cultural recommendations they might have for stoners. We asked the employees of two shops, Blum in Oakland, and the Exhale Med Center in Los Angeles, to give us their favorite music, movies, TV, books, and activities to experience while high.
Chris Joynt (Budtender at Exhale)
As a teenager, Pink Floyd’s Piper at the Gates of Dawn opened up a world of imagination for me. Floyd did amazing stuff later on with Dark Side of the Moon and everything, but Syd Barrett had a childlike nostalgia that cannabis always brings back for me. Side tip: If you’re listening to this album with headphones, try taking one ear out to get a whole different experience.