25 Stores That Made the Old Yakima Mall Totally Awesome

There is something about bringing up the old Yakima Mall that grabs locals right in the feels. The Yakima Mall was around back in the day long before the invention of online shopping and shopping strips. It was the center hub where the town went to eat, shop, and play. The mall closed back in the early 2000s, so we've been missing the mall for over twenty years!

Several members of the Yakima Memories group on Facebook will tell you how much they miss that mall and wish that downtown Yakima was still pretty much the sole thriving heartbeat of the city.

The Smells, the Sounds, the Style

Most memories shared harken back to the time of the 80s and 90s, when you could smell cinnamon rolls, cigarettes, burgers, and pizza in the hallways of the Yakima Mall. Youngsters loved going there to play video games and buying music cassette tapes while their parents shopped 'til they dropped, and everybody got their fashion looks from the four department stores that were in the mall.

The 80s and 90s was quite a time to be alive! Photo Credit: TRIN WA on Usnplash

Here are the old downtown mall stores that Yakima locals miss the most:

The Jolly Joker Arcade (smelled like Mrs. Field's Cookies)

Burger Chef

Mean Machine (smelled like cigarettes)

JC Penney's

"There was a burger place that had the gimmick of having the food delivered to you at your table on a model train." - Carlos Mendez, Yakima Memories on Facebook

The Underground

The Green Apple

The Bon Marche and The Cascade Room for food

Jed's

Mervyn's

McDonald's

Sbarro's upstairs in the food court

Sam Goody's

Who remembers shopping at K-B Toys in the Yakima Mall?

Tim Boyle/Getty Images

Footlocker

Hallmark

Hole N One Donuts

Frozen Yogurt Co.

Fashion Direction

Market Place Deli

Orange Julius

Trattoria Russo Italian restaurant

The Pub/Mort’s Pub

Dos Primos

"Marketplace Deli, they made the best homemade pies, OR The Bon upstairs, I still have never found a better chicken salad sandwich!!!" - Linda L. - Yakima Memories on Facebook

somebody on tiktok really misses the yakima mall

@dozerbob It has been a long 20 years since we saw you last old friend . Yakima,WA downtown mall #Meme #MemeCut #CapCut #yakima #yakimamall #yakimadowntown #downtownyakima #yakimacitycouncil #yakimawa #yakimawashington #yakimawashingtoncheck #palmspringsofwashington #malls #abandoned #abandonedmall #vacantmall #vacantspaces #easternwashington #appreciateyou #fyp #fypシ゚viral #washingtonstate ♬ original sound - Dozerbob

What store do YOU miss most? Now, take a look at this OLD commercial from the Yakima Mall. Do you remember seeing this on your TV in 1994?

Vintage Yakima Mall Commercial Leaves Locals Feeling VERY Nostalgic

Let's hop in the "way back machine" and time travel to the year 1994 for this vintage Christmas commercial for the old Yakima Mall in downtown Yakima, Washington! #nostalgia

These are the words to the full commercial.

Gallery Credit: Reesha Cosby