Cost Plus World Market

Cost Plus World Market, sometimes jokingly referred to as "Cost More Third World Market", is a chain import store in Davis. They sell many different types of wine, some of which are really cheap. They also sell ethnic food, basic furnishings, dishes, and otherwise decorative kitsch.

They are the only store in town that sells the popular papasan chairs. The only other way to get these highly-sought-after chairs in Davis is to search tirelessly through Dumpsters and garage sales.

They sell some of the spiciest hot sauces in town.

This location was previously a grocery store called State Market. The building was originally occupied by a Safeway supermarket. The entrance to the supermarket was originally inside of the mall facing Starbucks.

Controversies

• Some question the authenticity of their products.
• Some question how worldly they actually are, pointing out that they contribute to the destruction of the rainforest.

2007-06-28 15:33:44   Cost Plus is great - they have lots of fun foods, a great selection of affordable wines, and various things for the house, from plates and napkins to artwork and tables...you can pretty much find anything here - it may not be high quality, but it's interesting and relatively inexpensive. —AcMach

2007-08-22 16:58:06   definitely cost...plus though. Some of the prices are ridiculous! —ArianeMetz

2007-12-03 12:10:12   I like Cost Plus, haven't had any problems with em yet! I think their merchandise is very well priced and the quality is great as well! —UNA1475

2007-12-03 21:27:40   Very nicely furnished, and they have a ton of unique stuff. Though some stuff can be overpriced, some are really cheap. Stuffed animals were 50% off today! :D —EvelinaChang

2008-03-19 16:33:36   I love Cost Plus! I go about every once a week for assorted goods. They have new sales every week or so. Some things are indeed overpriced, but all in all, its a great place to go. —VTang

2008-05-28 21:45:00   sigh . . . can we just bulldoze this place and make a trader joes? swear. —chand3123k

• Even though Wold Market has nothing to do with Trader Joes moving into the U-Mall and nothing will be bulldozed for TJ's, if that were really the case, I'd say get rid of the Gottschalks over World Market any day. World Market is the best place to get European and Asian snacks and candy, and I really love going there. —SRB
• Gottschalk's. Out of business. The radiology building. Bulldozed. Just sayin'. —Flynn

2008-06-02 19:12:30   Agree. Would the papasans be missed that much if there was a TJ option here? —JamesWilk

2008-07-01 16:57:14   I really love this place....prices are pretty cheap if you look for the deals....I bought stemless wine glasses for 1.99 while at target they were much much more per glass. I also bought a tv cabinet and a behind the couch long table...both were priced reasonably and not just look good but have had held up through some rather iffy apartment moves. Sure....a trader joe's would be lovely....but why be pissy about having a place that mainly offers furnishings! Plus...there are few things I can't find at Nugget that trader joe's offers. —sdlexie

2009-03-03 11:38:43   Fun place and always an interesting selection of delicacies and flavors from around the world. One thing they need to fix is their patronizing and entirely arbitrary attitude to IDing customers. I've seen them ID people who were probably there when California became a State and, a moment later, they don't ID someone who didn't look old enough to drive (because apparently the cashier "knew" this person). Another time they asked for my ID and the lady in front of me in the line asked why they didn't ID her: she was furious when the cashier suggested it was because she looked over 40! —Mazzle

2009-06-08 19:10:26   I hereby predict that this store will go out of business within 8 months of Target's opening in Davis. Nonetheless, this is a great place to buy basic home necessities (especially kitchen stuff) if you're too lazy to drive to Woodland. —jsogul

• April 2010 - Still kicking. Two more months to go... As for 'home necessities, especially kitchen stuff', what's wrong with Ace Housewares? —Flynn
• It has been brought to my attention (Sept. 2011) that this place is still open despite my prediction. Good for them! Great wine selection, cool stuff to decorate your house with if you have a budget for such things. —jsogul

2010-01-21 20:51:12   two words - Cadbury Fingers!!! —LeeY

2010-02-22 22:02:40   world market has been having a way better beer (both singles/mix-and-match and 6-packs) selection than they did a couple years back. unfortunately they cut back on their gourmet chocolate selection though, so i don't have anywhere to get michel cluizel locally anymore. spice jars are cheap here, and occasionally they'll put out ads with coupons for $5 off $25 and send out good email offers if you're on the list (including $10 for your birthday to spend on anything). —MiranPark

2010-04-11 19:52:57   One thing this place has is a great selection of candy and sodas. Some esoterica, but if you love REAL SUGAR in your drinkables, this is the place in Davis. I haven't had Birch Beer in over a decade, and found some here. I may have actually said 'squee'. —Flynn

• psst...Nugget has Birch Beer..... —DonShor

2010-04-12 06:57:38   I just discovered that they carry Virgil's sodas...made with stevia and xylitol. I thought it couldn't get any better than "Zevia" for my soda selection but I was wrong! Sugar free and made with sweeteners that **so far** have no known bad side effects and plenty of good ones! —OliviaY

• Xylitol's a sugar alcohol, our bodies don't digest these that great...."As with most sugar alcohols, initial consumption can result in bloating, diarrhea, and flatulence, although generally rather less so than other sugar alcohols like sorbitol." So far, things like Stevia and Splenda seem to be pretty good in comparison though!
  • No we don't, but that's part of why they are low calorie sweeteners. Plus xylitol is non-cariogenic so it's good for your teeth.
• Xylitol is also highly poisonous to household pets. Just 3g (between 3 and 10 sticks of gum that use xylitol, for instance...) of the stuff is a fatal dose for a 65 pound dog, and it'd only take a tiny fraction of that for a cat.
  • Well you shouldn't be giving sodas to your pets!

2010-06-11 21:57:25   Today I discovered that they sell the infamous bacon chocolate bar! —MarioMeneses

2010-07-01 12:33:06   Love this shop, come here often for my English sweets and sauces. Staff have always been very friendly and professional - Nancy, in particular, was very helpful when I had to exchange a large item of furniture. —LizA

2011-02-16 11:46:44   I love World Market because I can find so many different food items there from different countries. I like the feel of the store as well, like the type of music they play and its an overall relaxing experience to shop there. the workers are very very kind and very helpful as well. The only issue i have are the prices, they are high, but it depends on what you are buying. Trader Joes being right next to it doesnt make it any better because they have lower prices at Trader Joes as well as international type foods. —Sandlot3

2011-03-28 19:39:16   I like the variety of different food and drinks you can get at Cost Plus (they have some especially cool different beers if you want to try something new), and I love their snacks/sweets sections because it had more than the typical chocolate bar or peanut butter cups. I've also found some cheap-but-nice kitchen/cookware here, and you can't go wrong with that. However, I tend to avoid the rugs, couches, and furniture-type things, as they are a bit expensive, and don't seem to be very high quality. —Morganna

2013-03-22 23:44:37   Has World Market started gathering birthdates when people buy alcohol? A 50+ year old family member bought wine there this week, was asked for ID(?), and the clerk manually input the birthdate into the computer(!). Has anyone else experienced this? —robinlaughlin