Pacific Avenue: Brown

Excellent sandal. It's by far the easiest minimalist sandal to adjust. The leather is soft, yet feels expensive. The soles are soft, yet supportive with a bit of give and even a tiny bit of "spring" from the midsole.

A minimalist sandal with a midsole and outsole is just thoughtful and a sign of quality.

You actually can slip these on! For me, it took a bit to get truly used to it. Although, I prefer slipping them on now, from time to time, the ankle strap won't pop up, as my hindfoot will interfere with the ankle strap itself. Like I said, I'm getting used to it, I got the technique down that it works most of the time, and the rest of the times, the sandal is on, and I lift my foot up to pull up the ankle strap. Still simple.

I've only gone on short road runs. About 3km or so (maybe less), each time. So far, I haven't had an issue with the sandal slipping or shifting under my feet, nor have I had an issue with the ankle strap whatsoever. Because the ankle straps stay erect, the straps won't suddenly start to slip down the heel while running (and it's the same reason why the Pac Aves are slip-ons, too). The Pacific Avenues hold up for shorter distance road running (at least). I haven't tried them out on a trail, but I wouldn't be surprised if they also hold up well for running level 1 (easy) trails. I also wouldn't be surprised if the Pac Aves hold up for longer distance road running (like a half marathon).

Walking or standing on concrete, tiled, vinyl, or hardwood floors all day, everyday is easy to do in these sandals.

We'll see how the elastic will hold up over time, especially from stretching it over and over again from slipping them on, the elastic might actually wear out quicker. I'm not sure, we'll see.

I don't touch the Velcro since adjusting it, so I'm not worried about that. I should also bring up, the leather strapping hides the Velcro so well, it's just a beautiful looking, and great feeling sandal.

So far, it's an excellent sandal. Again, these are just my initial thoughts. There's some more things I want to bring up, but I'll wait to say these things in a longer review.

They've already become my go-to footwear for everything.. except for work (sometimes).

Thank you Josh. Thank you Shamma sandals.

its always a pleasure buying from Shamma Sandals, the products are always high quality and worth their price! I really live the Pacific avenue model but i do wish that the top of the sandal was a bit more forward but other than that, they’re great! I cant wait to use them all summer next year

The sandals are very heavy and overpriced. If you live outside the USA, I don’t recommend buying anything because between shipping costs, taxes, and return fees, it will end up costing as much as the sandals themselves. I ordered the recommended size for a 27 cm foot according to the website’s sizing chart (size 10.5), but they turned out to be way too big.

This is my second pair of Shammas - my first were the Elite Maximus with the leather footbed. I love those sandals for the customization of the elite lacing system and the comfort of the leather footbed. But these Pacific Avenue Browns are just luxurious with the all-leather feel I would describe it as as my elite maximus being a toyota 4runner and my pacific avenue browns are a lexus SUV. Different use cases, both just great quality sandals. For reference, I live in a big city, so walking around concrete most of the day. No brand has quality close to this. Tried Bedrock, too stiff, those are just sitting in my closet.

The quality is rock solid with these sandals. The leather feels and looks great, the stitching is nice. I enjoy the ease of stepping into the sandals and can wear them for hours without the clammy feeling all synthetic sandals create within minutes. They were comfortable immediately, but are gradually breaking in. That little bit of elastic that allows the front to "self adjust" is brilliantly simple and totally works.

It's interesting to me that the brand seems to almost be making a sacrifice of their values to make such a "thick" flip flop styled sandal...at least the way they talk about the model. But this is a fantastic sandal by any standard, is totally flexible and in my opinion provides just the right balance of feedback and protection. For reference, I walk mostly on concrete sidewalks with occasional "off road" side tracks. I feel like I'm barefoot in terms of mechanics, but protected and even a little spoiled with the excellent leather footbed. I am enjoying a return to "barefoot" footwear after some time away from it, and the Pacific Avenue sandals are star of the show.

If I could change anything, I would maybe take that thickest middle layer of foam in the footbed--which is very very firm--and give it just a touch more give. These would be transcendently comfortable with a hint of softness and wouldn't lose their minimal appeal. As it is, they are only really excellent. LOL.

I think I saw a communication recently indicating this sandal might be leaving the catalog? I hope I'm wrong. If true, then grab these while you can!