taking a me day and just driving around, we stumbled across japanese gardens. parking was a little…read moreconfusing but we discovered it after having to go around one time. lol paid for parking .. not sure if anyone else did, but we sure did! you honestly won't be here that long because it is quite small. i love the huge koi pond! it was the spot that i stayed at the longest. you can see a few turtles swimming along side the koi's too. this teas so cute. i also really enjoyed the flower garden. if you love flowers and taking photos, you can be there for a while time. the tennis court was constantly being used which was nice to watch. when i'm in the area again, ill be sure to stop by.

i visited during the first day of fall (september 22nd, 2026), so there were no flowers. while it…read morewas mostly greenery, the place was still soo pretty! very clean and peaceful; perfect place to bring your kiddos (there were quite a few families here)! there are different attractions located around the garden (e.g. statues, buildings), each with fun historical info on a plaque. there are not many seating areas inside the actual garden; i found only one bench. there are no trash cans inside either. this place is really taken care of. i would visit again for a walk :)

I love this nursery for carrying plants and roses I can't get from other nursery's. I went to look…read moreonline my first time to order a rose I can't find near me.

They knew exactly what I described and showed me exactly where to find it. It's a pleasure dealing…read morewith locally-owned businesses rather than big box stores. The staff were clearly experienced and knowledgeable about the stock; how refreshing! Highest quality and highest possible rating!

Directions here were very easy to find, parking was very open with handicap spaces on an early…read moreMonday afternoon! I noticed they had outhouse style restrooms which were cleaned, stocked with toilet paper and hand sanitizer. The path down is slightly downhill, and is dirt paved. Wear shoes you definitely do not mind being covered in dirt. Maybe a three minute walk. There were people picnicking quietly for an afternoon date on the lawn with a blanket, that's a great idea. There is a large grass area for many families to enjoy together. Seeing it in person was really nice. Brought some teenage girls here who really enjoyed it. We enjoyed taking some pictures together. I definitely see why this area is used as a professional photography spot!! Will I come here again: if in the area and cooler weather absolutely for a gorgeous family style picnic!!

Pulgas Water Temple is definitely a unique little spot and the fact that it's completely free to…read morevisit is a huge plus. I can absolutely see why people stop here for photos and the dome and pool make for a very pretty setting. That being said, I spent maybe 10 minutes here before feeling like I had seen it all. There's not a lot to explore and my visit was made particularly less enjoyable by how crowded it was. There were at least three people doing elaborate professional photo shoots and dozens of what I can only describe as full-on Instagram productions happening around the area. It was noisy and there wasn't much room to move around and it really took away from what I imagine is a normally peaceful experience. I was here on a weekday afternoon as well so I'm not sure when a slower time might be to visit. I feel like I should preface this review with the fact that I stopped here immediately after spending the morning and early afternoon at Filoli, so in comparison it probably isn't helping me have a hugely favorable opinion of my experience here. There are also signs advising that no dogs are allowed, which I think is pretty ridiculous. This is definitely worth a quick stop if you're in the area, especially because parking is free and there's no admission fee. However, unless you are one of the people who are spread out on a blanket or carrying boxes of props for a full-on production, this is definitely not a place that you would spend very much time. For me it was an interesting, very quick, one time stop.

I saw Jose Avina Garden Service via Yelp. The Reviews are great so I called him up and he came…read moreover to our house to perform estimate of our front yard. He did an estimate on the same day in the afternoon. I was very pleased with his pricing and went ahead with Jose. There were two estimates as I am not sure if I can afford the landscaping work; one was to clean up then after it was clean up I shared with him the style I like which is low maintenance by adding small rocks as shown in the insert. I am pleased with his work and his team.

Jose's team did a very good job turning our front yard from a neglected jungle to a tidy and…read morepresentable automatically watered garden, and his prices are very reasonable.

San Mateo Central is located at Downtown San Mateo. It's cool that there's a park inside of a…read moredowntown since people may want to come here to relax and view some nature after a long walk in downtown, eating at restaurants, shopping, and doing other activities. They have areas like tennis fields, I think a baseball field, and especially gardens. It's quite rare to find a park that has gardens or maybe I don't often come to parks that do have them. I also like how nice the park is and how organized it looks. I also see that they're doing some construction including a children's playground which just started to be constructed over a year ago. Hopefully, there are going to be some improvements the next time I visit.

Fantastic spacious park, Japanese Garden koi pond , tennis and pickleball courts with gorgeous…read moretrees and grass everywhere! They're building a children's area, love love love! Walking distance to downtown, library, cafes, restaurants and shops! Plus, USPS, UPS, FedEx, everything is here. Parking everywhere -- to have a slice of greenery is the ultimate. This is a haven and refuge!

We have had an excellent experience working with this company. This is the third landscaping…read morecompany we have worked with over our 4 years living here in San Mateo and we could not be happier. There are 3 big projects for which we contracted with Zarco Landscaping, because they continually performed above and beyond on the work. The first project was for a room that would flood when it rains. The team at Zarco quickly diagnosed the problem as poor gutter placement and cracks in concrete on the floor above, and they worked rapidly to connect a new sewer system and rebuild our concrete walkway. There has been no more flooding. The second project was to improve the terrain and usability of our backyard, which is on a hill that was very difficult to navigate. The Zarco team completely transformed the area, building stone steps and leveling the land with premium soil, mulch, and stone. Please see the attached photos (we wish we had before pictures, but it was all dirt and invasive plants before on a steep incline)! Lastly, our third project had to be done rapidly after the recent storms in the bay area. We needed three very large and dead trees removed that were at risk of falling on our house or the street. The Zarco team came the next day to remove all of the trees. Overall, the Zarco team has always delivered amazing service and treated us with respect. The prices are also very reasonable and competitive with quotes we received from other businesses. If you live in San Mateo or the Bay Area, we strongly recommend calling Zarco Landscaping for all of your outdoor needs!

Absolutely fantastic experience! He was efficient, hardworking, and incredibly friendly in…read morelandscaping our backyard - when he showed up, it was mostly a dirt lot with a few trees. He had a vision for grass, mulch, a pebble walkway to our office shed, and some plants around the perimeter. Exactly what we wanted for our budget and needs. He delivered professional results while staying within our budget--truly budget-friendly without cutting corners. Reliable, detail-oriented, and a pleasure to work with. There were a couple of miscommunications along the way, and we were impressed with how quickly and professionally he responded and went above and beyond to make sure we were happy. He even spotted some work done by other contractors that needed repairing and did the work. We plan to use Zarco Gardens for our future front yard project. Highly recommend!

A hidden delight! Roses galore, planted in circles and arc with benches surrounding the flowers and…read moreplants, a mini white gazebo and arresting scarlet sculpture on one side. Everything here absolutely lovely, a treat. It's a little hamlet of roses next to the Japanese Garden and inside the Central Park, which is turning out to have an embarrassment of riches. No dearth of seating, I sat on several of the benches and marveled at the sight: red and white, pink and yellow roses everywhere with beautiful bees hovering around them, plus lilac flowers on the perimeter, of which I don't know the name. I used to live in a house with a backyard full of bees and we have a mutual understanding: I don't 'bother' them and encroach and they don't sting me :-) It felt incredible to gaze out at this bevy, and a huge heartfelt filled with gratitude shout-out to all the volunteers who lend their knowledge and energy and green thumb, time and efforts in maintaining this wonder! :-)

It is so fun there! We went to the plant sale and it was so fun to poke around. Central Park in San…read moreMateo is gorgeous!

Our front yard and backyard (yes, we have both living in SF!) were soooo overgrown and in need of…read morelove. Our place is high maintenance, trees and bushes in the front, more trees and bushes in the back and shit ton of weeds. We solicited a half dozen quotes from a range of businesses in the 'landscaping' , 'tree trimming', etc. businesses. First pattern noticed is none of the businesses were super responsive. Maybe it was the season, maybe they were so busy, but I found it annoying to call/write two, sometimes thee times to get quotes. Mr. Nguyen is old school. They don't have a fancy website to take quotes. You have to call him. He comes over, and has to write up a quote. Then he goes more old school, and will actually deliver the quote, hand written in an envelope to your mailbox. His quote was very competitive for all the things we were asking them to do...quote to do the work was not the cheapest (which is always scary), and DEF not the most expensive (which was easily a $1k difference). He, and his mighty little crew are amazing. My hubs told me the wife brings a portable grill on the job site and makes hot meals for the crew at lunch. It's so old school and so efficient and we LOVED their work. They ended doing tree trimming for our neighbors to as an add on gig to ours... Shine on you crazy diamond, Mr. Nguyen! Great work!

Took he and his wife almost 5 hours to clean up our front yard. They did a great job. Arrived on…read moretime and charged a reasonable amount. I'll definitely use them again for my next trimming and cleanup job.

Always a good experience at this park with the kids. Big and spacious. A somewhat modern park with…read moredifferent kind of play structures for the kids to enjoy. There is also a fairly decent sized skate park as well where kids of all ages ride their bikes, scooters, and skateboards in. Bathrooms on site at the park are public as a reminder so dont expect that always to be the cleanest experience, but at least there is one. There are reservable picnic sites scattered around the park and I believe one large sheltered onr as well. We've hosted and attended parties at these locations and its always worked out.

Good size park with walking path on edge and grass in middle…read more Good place for a walk or walk the dog. Water fountains and restrooms. Parking along the street.

We celebrated my daughters quinceañera here last weekend. It was magical! The garden is beautiful…read more Booking: the booking process was quick and efficient I met with Mike he showed me the place and we rented the outdoor gazebo area. They reserved our spot and we signed the contract via email. I dropped off the check at their mail box. done! Set up: they sent me a diagram of the place I indicated where I wanted the tables and when I arrived the day of the event it was done as I requested, they were very kind and advised more tables and chairs in the closet and I can use as needed. The staff: super friendly and helpful I had a great time we couldn't ask for more! The pictures are amazing no need for a lot of decorating since the garden is beautiful. I highly recommend the San Mateo garden center it was the perfect place for us, affordable, beautiful and Mike and Sarah a pleasure. Lovely!

This place is so magical and beautiful! What a hidden gem!! My parents threw an engagement party…read morefor me and my fiancé there and we couldn't have asked for a better staff or place to have that event at. Everyone was so willing to work with my parents on setting up and getting everything ready. I should have had the wedding here too! What a great place!