I think we spent a couple of hours at the local mattress store. I certainly don't think being Goldilocks for 40 minutes is being as difficult a consumer as you seem to think the store might have perceived it as. If anything, local stores are probably happy to have customers who clearly appreciate being able to try before you buy, rather than just a one-click "oh, I can return it anyway" mattress buyer.

Thankfully our favorite mattress was the cheapest one in the store (~$700 for a cal king)