(includes Los Gatos, Menlo Park, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Portola Valley, Redwood City, San Jose, Santa Clara, Saratoga, Sunnyvale & Woodside)
BAKERIES, COFFEE, ICE CREAM, JUICE & TEA
●Amour Patisserie – 13 North Santa Cruz Avenue (Los Gatos); 408-402-3689; amourpatisserie.com.
●Coupa Cafe – 538 Ramona Street (Palo Alto); 650-322-6872; coupacafe.com; for coffee.
●Dolce Bella Chocolates & Cafe – Westgate West, 5325 Prospect Road (West San Jose); 408-446-4296; dolcebellachocolates.com; breakfast lunch and dinner; great cocoa.
●Fleur de Cocoa – 39 North Santa Cruz Avenue; 408-354-3574; fleurdecocoa.com; in addition to cocoa, try award-winning French mousse cakes, pastries, chocolates, sandwiches, petits-fours, etc.
●Hobee’s – 800 West Ahwanee Avenue (Sunnyvale); 408-524-3580; hobees.com; coffeeshop.
●Icing on Cake – 50 West Main Street (Los Gatos); 408-354-2464; icingonthecakebakery.com; amazing cupcakes.
●Los Gatos Coffee Roasting Co. – 101 West Main Street (Los Gatos); 408-354-1155; lgcrc.com; old-fashioned wooden floors and bar; each cup hand-crafted.
●Manresa Bread – 320 Village Lane; 408-354-4330; manresarestaurant.com; try spiced sourdough (studded with almonds, apricots, black pepper, cardamom, cloves & hazelnuts).
BARS & NIGHTCLUBS
●Antonio’s Nut House – 321 California Avenue (Palo Alto); 650-321-2550; antoniosnuthouse.com; low-key, neighborhood bar.
●Black Watch – 141 North Santa Cruz Avenue (Los Gatos); 408-354-2200; darkly-lit, Scottish bar; cash only.
●La Bodeguita del Medio – 463 California Avenue (Palo Alto); 650-326-7762; labodeguita.com; Cuban-style bar and restaurant; hand-rolled cigars.
●Madera – 2825 Sand Hill Road (Menlo Park, at Rosewood Sand Hill Hotel); 650-561-1500; rosewoodsandhill.com; indoor-outdoor bar-restaurant; hot-spot for venture capitalists.
HOTELS
●Avatar Hotel – 4200 Great America Parkway (Santa Clara); 408-235-8900 or 800-586-5691; jdvhotels.com; conference center modeled to look like garage.
●Cardinal Hotel – 235 Hamilton Avenue (Palo Alto); 650-323-5101; cardinalhotel.com; make sure to ask for room with private bathroom.
●Garden Court – 520 Cowper Street (Palo Alto); 650-322-9000; gardencourt.com; elegant and private.
●Hotel Keen – 425 High Street (Palo Alto); 650-327-2775; hotelkeen.com; for room with view other than bank building, ask for odd-numbered room on 3rd floor; particularly good is 302 (mini-suite with floor-to-ceiling windows at hotel front); inexpensive and innovative; almost no amenities (lobby tiny); also, bathroom separated from room by heavy curtain.
●Hotel Los Gatos – 210 East Main Street (Los Gatos); 408-335-1700; hotellosgatos.com; Mediterranean blended with California; reminiscent of private villa; pool, outdoor jacuzzi, tranquil patio areas; complimentary access to fitness club across street; Dio Deka, popular Michelin-rated restaurant located on property; try to get Room 129 (ok, so it has handicapped shower with no bath, but it also is enormous, opens onto the pool, and has a fireplace).
●Rosewood Sand Hill – 2825 Sand Hill Road (Menlo Park); 650-561-1500; rosewoodhotels.com/en/sandhill; 121 rooms and handful villas on 16-acre estate with stunning rose gardens overlooking hills.
●Toll House Hotel – 140 South Santa Cruz Avenue (Los Gatos); 408-395-7070 or 800-238-6111; larkspurhotels.com; charming-ish hotel near San Jose.
RESTAURANTS
●Alice’s Restaurant – 17288 Skyline Boulevard (Woodside); 650-851-0303; alicesrestaurant.com; family favorite; isolated, in mountains.
●Angelica’s Bistro – 863 Main Street (Redwood City); 650-365-3226; angelicasbistro.com; live jazz and crepes.
●Buck’s of Woodside – 3062 Woodside Road (Woodside); 650-851-8010; buckswoodside.com; breakfast and brunch place; famous for flapjacks.
●Coupa Cafe – 538 Ramona Street (Palo Alto); 650-322-6872; coupacafe.com.
●Dio Deka – 210 East Main Street (Los Gatos, at Hotel Los Gatos); 408-354-7700; diodeka.com; Greek food; Michelin-rated.
●Dolce Bella Chocolates & Cafe – Westgate West, 5325 Prospect Road (West San Jose); 408-446-4296; dolcebellachocolates.com; breakfast lunch and dinner; great cocoa.
●Donato Enoteco – 1041 Middlefield Road (Redwood City); 650-701-1000; dontaoenoteca.com; grilled calamari and buckwheat pasta; lovely wrap-around patio.
●Flea Street Café – 3607 Alameda de las Pulgas (Menlo Park); 650-854-1226; cooleatz.com; California cuisine.
●Henry’s Hi-Life – 301 West Saint John Street (San Jose); 408-295-5414; henryshilife.com; barbecue & steaks; open since 1960.
●I Gatti – 25 East Main Street (Los Gatos); 408-399-5180; igattirestaurant.com; Italian.
●Gourmet Haus Staudt – 2615 Broadway (Redwood City); 650-364-9232; gourmethausstaudt.com; charming, informal pub where Apple employee left his iPhone prototype.
●Junoon – 150 University Avenue (Palo Alto); 650-329-9644; Junoon.com; Indian.
●Kanpai Sushi – 330 Lytton Avenue (Palo Alto); 650-325-2696; kanpaipaloalto.com; sushi chefs from Nobu.
●Kaygetsu – 325 Sharon Park Drive (Menlo Park); 650-234-1084; kaygetsu.com; great Japanese food; not cheap.
●Lisa’s Tea Treasures – 1175 Merrill Street (Menlo Park); 650-322-5544; lisasteamenlo.com; affordable afternoon tea.
●Lisa’s Tea Treasures – 377 Santana Row, #1145 (San Jose); lisasteatreasures.com; old English ambience with extensive tea array and gift shop.
●Mandaloun – 2021 Broadway Street (Redwood City); quirky cocktails and exotic appetizers; excellent.
●Manresa – 320 Village Lane (Los Gatos); 408-354-4330; manresarestaurant.com; American-European with emphasis on fresh ingredients.
●Martins West – 831 Main Street (Redwood City); 650-366-4366; martinswestgp.com; gastropub; cozy, brick-walled spot; try savory soda bread pudding.
●Old Port Lobster Shack – 851 Veterans Boulevard (Redwood City); 650-366-2400; oplobster.com; very authentic, east coast.
●Palacios – 115 North Santa Cruz Avenue (Los Gatos); 408-402-3811; palaciorestaurant.com; authentic, fresh, Mexican food.
●Purple Onion – 26 East Main Street (Los Gatos); 408-354-4125; purpleonionlg.com; charming destination for early and midday dining; beautiful patio and full range coffee drinks.
●Reposado – 236 Hamilton Avenue (Palo Alto); 650-833-3151; Mexican food in modern, stylish setting.
●St. Michael’s Alley – 140 Homer Avenue (Palo Alto); 650-326-2530; stmikes.com; 3 elegant dining areas with great bar; American fare.
●Sultana – 1149 El Camino Real (Menlo Park); 650-322-4343; patio; Turkish food.
●Trevese – 115 North Santa Cruz Avenue (Los Gatos); hulking Victorian mansion; 3 stars.
●Village Pub – 2967 Woodside Road; 650-851-9888; thevillagepub.net; lunch place; thick burgers and fries, or duck-&-lentil salad.
●Xanh – 110 Castro Street (Mountain View); 650-964-1888; xanhrestaurant.com; sprawling Vietnamese fusion restaurant with handsome patio and dining rooms bathed in blue and green lights; on weekends, bar-lounge turns into quasi-nightclub.
SERVICES
●Spa Los Gatos & Aqua Salon – 100 South Santa Cruz Avenue (Los Gatos); 408-354-5901 (spa) or 408-399-5282 (Rae Ann Caparelli); thespaoflosgatos.com (spa) or raeannbeautytips@aol.com (Rae Ann Caparelli); local spa with excellent colorist-hairstylist, Rae Ann.
SHOPPING
●Chocolate Dream Box – 710 Blossom Hill Road (Los Gatos); 408-356-2626; chocolatedreambox.com; chocolates.
●Infiniti Boutique – 120 West Main Street (Los Gatos); 408-399-7071; European accessories and clothes.
●Monique’s Chocolates – 539 Bryant Street (Palo Alto); 650-323-9669; moniqueschocolates.com; handmade chocolates & custom-to-order hot chocolate.
●Salt – 78 West Main Street (Los Gatos); 408-395-0800; shop-salt.com; women’s boutique.
SIGHTS & SITES
●Art Museum of Los Gatos – 4 Tait Avenue (Los Gatos); 408-354-2646; museumsoflosgatos.org; non-collecting museum that has 6-8 exhibits annually.
●Computer History Museum – 1401 North Shoreline Boulevard (Mountain View); 650-810-1010; computerhistory.org.
●Filoli Estate – 88 Canada Road (Woodside); 650-364-8300; filoli.org; early 20th Century estate with lovely gardens and walking paths.
●Elizabeth Gamble Garden – 1431 Waverly Street (Palo Alto); 650-329-1356; near downtown; peaceful, small urban oasis.
●Google Garage – 232 Santa Margarita Avenue (Menlo Park); where Larry Page and Sergey Brin thought up Google (which really began in their dorm at Stanford).
●Los Gatos Historic Commercial District – Los Gatos (bounded by Elm Street [Old Town Parking Lot], Main Street, Los Gatos Creek, and North Santa Cruz Avenue); nps.gov/nr/travel/santaclara/los.htm; well-preserved Mission/Spanish Revival and Romanesque architecture from 1949-1975; 19 buildings across 50 acres.
●Los Gatos Mountain Trails – Los Gatos; discoverlosgatos.com; trails start downtown and branch into hills; leisurely hike, Scout Trail, starts just east of freeway overpass on East Main Street, offering charming shady creek-side groves leading up mountain.
●Hakone Gardens – 21000 Big Basin Way (Saratoga); 408-741-4994; hakone.com; popular wedding venue on 18 acres; oldest Japanese-style residential garden in Western Hemisphere; notable features include bamboo garden, Zen garden, strolling garden (Hill and Pond Garden), tea houses, and 19th Century Japanese home and storefront (replica).
●Highway 9 Loop – travels 35 miles from State Route 1, near Santa Cruz, to State Route 17 (Los Gatos), passing through San Lorenzo Valley and Saratoga Gap (Los Gatos & Saratoga); cahighways.org/009-016.html#009; winds through mountains.
●History Museum of Los Gatos – 75 Church Street (Los Gatos); 408-395-7375; museumsoflosgatos.org; at Forbes Mill Annex (previous flour-wheat storage facility built in 1855-1880, partially torn down in 1915; archival materials, objects, and photographs relating to greater Los Gatos’ civic, cultural, and industrial past; also ethnological and historical objects.
●HP Garage – 367 Addison Avenue (Palo Alto); where William Hewlett and David Packard made their first ‘puter in 1938-1939.
●Japanese Friendship Garden – 1300 Senter Road (San Jose); 408-271-6840; sanjoseca.gov/facilities.aspx?pagenum=31&RID=350&Page=detail.
●Jobs-Wozniak Garage – 2066 Crist Drive (Los Altos); where Steven Jobs and Steven Wozniak built their first ‘puter in 1976.
●Lomo Prieta Winery – 26985 Loma Prieta Way (Los Gatos); 408-353-2950; lomaprietawinery.com; tremendous view.
●Montalvo Arts Center & Gardens – 15400 Montalvo Road (Saratoga); 408-961-5800; montalvoarts.org; villa (1912) and estate encompassing 175 acres; gardens and untouched natural areas; 2 theaters, art gallery, historic Villa Montalvo, artist residency complex, & hiking trails through surrounding Redwood-studded hills.
●Regale Winery & Vineyard – 24040 Summit Road (Los Gatos); 408-353-2500; regalewine.com; beautiful Italian villa-style building; lovely landscaping includes fountains, outdoor fireplaces, bench walls for seating, olive orchard, vineyards, and bocce ball court.
●Rosicrucian-Egyptian Museum – 1660 Park Avenue (San Jose, at Naglee Avenue); 408-947-3635; egyptianmuseum.org.
●Uvas Canyon County Park – 8515 Croy Road (Morgan Hill, Santa Clara); 408-779-9232; sccgov.org/sites/parks/parkfinder/Pages/UvasCanyon.aspx; 1.133K wooded acres nestled in upper Uvas Canyon (on eastern side Santa Cruz Mountains); camping, hiking & picnicking; 6 miles of hiking trails including 1-mile Waterfall Loop that travels along Swanson Creek past many waterfalls.
●Vasona County Park – 333 Blossom Hill Road (San Jose); 408-356-2729; sccgov.org/sites/park; 151-acre park; hiking, picnics, recreation, and sports; Vasona Lake allows non-power boating year round and there are rowboats and paddleboats available to rent.
●Windy Hill Open Space Preserve – Portola Road (Portola Valley, Highway 280, exit Alpine Road in Portola Valley, south on Alpine Road about 2.9 miles to Portola Road (1st top sign), right on Portola Road, .8 miles to parking lot on road’s left side); 650-651-6900; openspace.org; 1,312 acres of grassland ridges and redwood forests, laced with hiking trails.
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