I like this place for pokemon cards! They have a bunch of individual packs along with sets. Pricing…read morewas good or comparable to tcg. They don't have a contract with bandai yet so I got the one piece cards elsewhere else. They also have a ton of magic cards upfront. This is definitely one of the larger and newer stores in the peninsula. The staff here are super nice and patient, esp when I couldn't make up my mind on what to grab.

Stumbled across this card shop after getting dinner in San Carlos and picked up a few cards for a…read morepretty reasonable price. The shop was clean and organized, and the staff was friendly. Definitely coming back for more cards in the future.

the staff is amazing, the collection of paint, minis and books is great. I recommend the store. I…read moreplay D&D with my son and friends and I can get advise and materials no problem. if you are new or advanced you can find a store for you here. Great job !!

I called in to place preorders on a couple of MTG x FF decks on Feb 19th and whoever picked up the…read morecall said they would write down my name and orders for when they set up the pre-order list up. Everything cool, right? Well, it turns out, no. I came in today since I was in the area to double check if I was on the list and was not. They completely forgot to add me in and the list was so long, it was highly unlikely I would get the decks I pre-ordered. They told me it would be best to go to another shop to order and was not at all apologetic about the mishap. In fact, there were no apologies made. I really wanted to support a local card shop but the lack of accountability and the poor customer service makes it very difficult to do so. I won't be back.

If you like anime blind boxes, figures, Gundam, and plushies this place will be heaven! The store…read moreis on the smaller side but still stuffed to the brim with so much merchandise. They had a lot of popular series such as: Hunter x Hunter, Sakamoto Days, Dan Dan Dan, Haikyu, Blue Lock etc. I got two Sakamoto Days blind boxes and they were $11-$13 each which I expected. They have a lot of tsum tsums and small figures in the blind boxes. Also +1000 stars for having Ace Attorney displayed on their return policy! I suspect I will be dropping a lot of money over the months at this store. I really like cute blind boxes and they had a lot of them that I would have been happy with getting any of the choices on the box!

I'm here to give a shout out to Akiba HQ for bringing an interesting store to downtown San Mateo…read morethat isnt another boba tea shop or noodle restaurant. They've been open since the summer, but I don't I notice them getting much foot traffic, probably due to lack of visibility, parking, or publicity. Tucked along 3rd Ave & Railroad Ave, fans of Japanese anime, gundam, manga, die cast, models, and figurines will find their heavenly spot. This store is jam packed with lots of toys & collectibles & cute display figures, ranging from robots, to monsters to buxom Japanese girls reminiscent of the Akihabara prefecture in downtown Tokyo. They have pre-made figurines, build & paint yourself models, plushies, cards, charms, candies, and keychains. They also sell the necessary quality paints, brushes, and tools to build & perfect your own models. The layout of the store is nice, with one side holding most of the kits available, alongside with nice displays of accessories, toys, model building supplies, a counter, and candy & souvenirs. The other side of the store is like a Japanese anime/manga museum & display! It is one continuous LONG showcase that is well lit, clean, and organized, if some of the most amazing figurines thst you can build (and/or buy). Lots of eye candy here thst I cannot even describe in words, so I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. This store is fun, whether you are into collecting, building, or, just like me, browsing, learning, and gawking. Some reminded me of my childhood watching action cartoons & reading comic books. Others just wowed me with their attention to detail, design, and colors. It is indeed like a candy store here, but the candy is Japanese figurines. I plan to go back soon to buy some kits to see if I can recall & relive my childhood and build up some nice models. Downtown San Mateo is having some sort of retail resurgence for stores other than food or drink, and Akiba HQ, alongside with Nakoko, Clawsome, and Fanloli are leading the charge. With the departure of Talbots and B Street Books, it's nice to have another type of retail store here to browse, shop, and relive memories (or make new ones) in between dinner, movies, and bar hopping. Akiba HQ also has locations in Hayward & Davis, but we are lucky to get one here in San Mateo! Now, you don't have to go to Japantown or Tokyo to get your figurine fix, it's literally right here all in one, tiny, jam-packed store!

Electronics and hobby stores are becoming more and more rare. It's unfair to compare with the days…read moreof Radio Shack, Circuit City or even Fry's because they just don't exist, and their demise has been for reasons most shoppers can figure out - especially whose who review places like Jameco and then say "I'll just go to Amazon next time." One less sale to a brick and mortar store. One less interaction with a human who can answer a question IRL and IRT. One missed opportunity to see and touch product for yourself. Sure you might get a sour reply. Or an agent who doesn't know a picofarad from a PC board. You might also get damaged deliveries from Amazon. Sure the return process is relatively painless, but the time spent is less productive than hammering out whatever issue it is with the store. I bought two Arduino kits from Amazon. One was damaged and couldn't be used so I searched for replacements and looked at Jameco. Their site yielded pages of replacements and alternatives. Between the selection and the descriptions, I was able to what I was looking for a a few things I didn't know I needed. Kind of like browsing at Fry's. Yes, they have minimum quantity purchases for many items. Yes, your browsing is going to be mostly online. When I went to pick up my items, the display area was basically the lobby. The person at the desk could answer some questions and "a guy in the back" could provide more detail. This is what it takes to maintain a physical retail presence for many specialty shops these days. I learned of Anchor from someone else, and I'll visit that store one day. But it's twice as far from me as Jameco, and Jameco delivered what I needed.

The storefront is well-made and I had no issues with the purchasing process. However, they waited…read moremultiple days to ship out my order, and now it will not arrive on time. Do not rely on the online store if you need something fast.

This store is located at a great Plaza, you can shop and grab coffee nearby. They have food spots…read moreas well and a big ole target and there is plenty of parking . The store is well organized and they have good customer service.

Had an awful experience here will probably never go to Hobby Lobby again. I was waiting in a very…read morevery slow line and there was a second line that had 5x more people but was moving faster. The manager opened a second line and said next person, pointing to the longer line and I tried to go too and she basically told me no and that the line I was in was going to be done soon (it wasnt). I didnt fight it because I happened to not be in a rush. She was super rude for no reason at all. Interesting that other recent reviews also point out the rude manager

How the hell do you work at anime store and know nothing about Naruto one of the most basic animes…read moreever I basically came there asking about some Naruto product and I guess I was interrupting a conversation with one of the coworkers two friends by the cash register tried to explain what I was looking for and honestly, I think they were making up excuses just to go back to the conversation

If you like Funko Pops, this is your place…read more Seems to have a lot of stuffed animals, Gunko Pops, and high-end weirder Japanese builds with robots that I've never heard of or weird Anime builds. It's better than having an empty space, but this place is pricey, and there was only one associate when I went. She was at the counter, so don't expect much help here.

Super pleasant owner, Tony, who showed me around his shop. Great selection of sports memorabilia…read moreis available at all price points. Highly recommended. I hope to shop here again soon.

Had them frame some autographed jerseys to put in my Man Cave / Gym. The prices were competitive…read moreand they sat down with me to choose background colors, frame options, and materials. Took them only a week or so and the end product looks great. I will 100% be coming back to them for any future jersey framing needs.

The service is grate everyone is kind and helpful. There is a lot of variety like jerseys, Pokémon…read morecards, sport cards,and Funko pops. The value is amazing especially the 50 Cent cards.

I've gone to Lefty's twice this week (and have called them three times) just for Yugioh Rarity…read moreCollection V (such a great set btw). On Monday, I called to reserve a box of RA05, and the older gentleman there was kind enough to hold it for me. Came by and bought it, and was in and out of the door. I actually pulled the overframe Super Polymerization. I felt so good about pulling that, I called them again the next day to reserve another box. The lady that picked up let me know they were running low on RA05, but let me know I'd be able to purchase it before the end of the day as she reserved it for me. Sick. So I came by, got the box and six loose booster packs... and pulled a Starlight overframe Shooting Quasar Dragon. I gave the box to my homie, and he wasn't so lucky with his pulls, unfortunately. I haven't been to Lefty's since 2022 (when The Grand Creators and Ghosts from the Past 2 were out), but I intend on returning for new YGO releases. Love their vibe and the pricing on RA05 was pretty fair. I plan to be back again!