Note: this webpage is
somewhat dated and is in the process of be upgraded. Please check that
information is still accurate.
This is a collection of recommendations extracted from the eList community, green for positive :-) and brown
for negative :-( , saved and organized so that you can find the name
when you need it. The format is by category (i.e., "plumber",
"gardener", etc.), followed by the recommended vendors, and the name
of the person who have recommended them. If you have a question about the
service a specific vendor provides, you can often click on the highlighted name
to email those who gave the recommendations. The webpage is also a site for
local services to announce their availability (e.g., babysitters, house-cleaners,
etc.): those names are listed for free, along with contact information, but
might or might not be followed by community endorsements.
If you wish to recommend your
favorite plumber, florist, restaurant, or whatever, please indicate your
approval to quote here by including the phrase "okay to quote" in
your posted recommendation. I will only post recommendations from those who are
willing to stand behind their recommendations: if I'm not granted permission to
include a "mailto:" link, I generally won't post the recommendation. Remember, this service is only useful if it has
"content", so please send in your recommendations!
Also, check out our community
calendar here on the WGNA website. Email information and I will update the page
periodically with dates/times, locations, and contact information.
These are recommendations
of individual eList subscribers, and do not represent
an endorsement by the Willow Glen Neighborhood Association.
Rick Bernard, International Center for Integrated
Medicine, 1314 Lincoln Ave. Ste. 2F
(Upstairs -aboved Signed and Sealed), 408-291-0179
Great guy, knows his stuff, knows Chinese medicine as well, processes
insurance. 3/28/04
Air Conditioning:
Knoll Systems (see the ad in the Yellow Pages)
My brother in law and I both used and were very happy with their work and
price. They did a great job and made efforts to find the most innocuous
place for the outside unit. , 7/3/03
OC McDonald on San Carlos
They installed a furnace, air conditioning, removed the existing asbestos
ducting, and installed modern ducts. Very professional, and they stand
behind their work. I am very happy with the result. 5/18/06
SupremeAir, 408-376-0406
Very happy with their customer service, price and work. 5/181/06
Airport Transportation:
Yellow Cab driver, Ken. 408-420-2639
Ken and his wife confirm your pickup, are always early, and very friendly
and courteous. 12-21-04
Joann
Landers 408-835-2424
We used her several times over the course of time, she was consistently
early; pickup from house or airport (and at the airport she comes inside
and helps with the luggage). 6/30/06
Appliance Repair:
Andre Appliance
Service #408-371-8084; Mark Andre
Just last week I had my washing machine worked on.....it's over 10 years
old. He also worked on my gas stove (in the past). I have never had a problem
with what he's repaired. His house call service charge is $48.00. I highly
recommend him. ~DeniseR 2/25/04 :-) I second the recommendation for Andre's Repair.
He and his dad have serviced appliances for me over the years. ~EvelynL
2/25/04 :-) He does good work on appliances. Ive had him
for 25 years and hes still going strong. His father used to work with
him, now hes retired. 2/26/04 :-) Wholeheartedly endorse. 6/22/04
Norway Appliance
Service, John Aiken @ 408 374-3357
Was recommended to me by a neighbor. John inspected my refrigerator and
advised me not to waste money on a repair. Seemed very knowledgeable and
was honest. , 3/19/04
Mike Katz with Cool Kat Appliance Repair 408-410-6193
Great at making an appointment very soon after I called him, and as soon
as the part came in, he arranged the second visit to install it. 9/5/04
Ser-Tech Electronics
Repair, 1427 Branham Lane, 267-3288
He will never do the work without telling your costs, relative cost to
replace, options either! 1-28-05 :-) I agree with Deb about Ser-Tech. Norm is his
name. They're at Branham and Jarvis, right by the 7/11. He's the best and
very reasonable. 1-28-05
Paul Choate at West Coast Svcs 408-559-6170
Is very good. 11 May 2005
Appliance
Experts, 408-294-2698
did good work for us from time to time. 8/31/06
Willow Glen
Appliance Service,
408-298-1569
Abe is the owner and does all the repairs. He has fixed every type of
appliance for us and we were always completely satisfied. He is reliable
and does a great job and usually is available same day. 8/31/06
All Gas
Appliance, 510-393-4281
a year later I'm still very happy with the work he did on my stove. 9/30/06
Appraiser:
Rapid Reports 408.588.0000 http://www.rapid-reports.com
Great to work with each time we needed an appraisal. 5-2-05
Steve Riley, 408-267-9612
He knows this area well. He is not only licensed, but certified, as well.
And he's a former bank staff appraiser who really knows his stuff. 5/17/06
Banker's
Appraisal, Tom Feasby,
408-723-4164
He is very conscientious, has a great understanding of the real estate
market, and is very reasonable in cost. 5/18/06
Architect/Designer:
A B R Engineers, 1261 Lincoln Avenue, Suite 105, 408-280-7227
Not only were they fast, efficient and respectful to keeping the look and
feel of our home, but they have helped field questions throughout the
building process on "last minute" thoughts we have had on
changes. 9/15/04
Marvin Bamburg
Architects, 1176 Lincoln,
408-297-0288
Very experienced in remodels of historic and older homes - Marvin is very
easy to talk with. 9/15/04
Rhoads House Architectural http://www.rhoadshouse.com, 165 S. Murphy Ave., #B,
Sunnyvale 408-739-6789
He designed our house addition, and we loved working with him. 9/19/04 :-) He's very creative, and comes up with great ideas
for how best to use the space you have available (or are adding) 2-20-05
Dan Winklebeck at Cornerstone Limited in Campbell, 408-370-3366, http://www.CornerstoneLimited.com
Used on several of my projects and have been very satisfied. 2-21-05
Mike Abler, West Designs 408 295-8179
He has repeatedly gone over and beyond for us as we go through our
remodel. 8/3/05
Jan Kuhlmannhttp://www.jankuhlmann.com
She's wonderful from start (space planning, color choices, etc.) to
finish. 8/3/05
Lynn Miller L.J. Miller Residential Design 408-254-3911
Hands down. 8/3/05
Michael Abler of West
Designs. 295-8179
He has worked on several Willow Glen homes with wonderful
results; including mine! 12-5-05
Tom Dack - Structural Engineer - 510-793-1130
510-894-3130 3/27/06
Baby sitting:
Valerie Brazelton, age 15 years old and very responsible, several
years experience. She will be a sophmore in the fall at Del Mar high
school. We have lived in Willow Glen for 25 years, on Keesling Ave. across
from Three Flames. 6/17/03
Jaymee Senigaglia, 408-561-5716; email address:
lavendericegrl@aol.com
age 16 and have 5 years of babysitting experience with children of all
ages, including infants under 3 months. I am CPR and first aid certified
for all ages. I am looking to fill as much of my time with babysitting as
possible including weeknights and weekends. I always pick up messages and
respond quickly as well as emails. My prices are very reasonable. 8/11/03
Bakery:
Aki's on Meridian
They made my wedding cake (Tiramisou!) and I was really happy with
it.Unlike other wedding services I have experienced, their service, and
cake, was delivered without a hitch. :) They do sampling too. 1/26/04
Kitten's Cakes. Phone: 408-251-4516.
Juanita Wagner did our cake and she was the only baker who could/would
make the cake look exactly the way we wanted it...at about 40% of the
price of the more well-known bakeries. She is a well-kept secret in the
bay area. ~RSK 1/26/04
Dick's Bakery, on Meridian at Hamilton (near the Goodwill)
most excellent "Burnt Almond Chocolate" cake: my personal
favorite for birthdays! 2/10/04
Flower Flour on Willow.
They do a nice job and have a Euro flair. They are also very personable...
I agree Aki's is good too. ~Kathleen 1/27/04
Cake Recommendation
Summary:
Aki's, San Jose 7
Flour/Flower, Willow Glen 7
Dick's, San Jose 6
Icing on the Cake, Los Gatos 5
Prolific Oven, Saratoga 2
Greenlee's, San Jose 2
Cake Expressions, San Jose 1
Cosentino's, San Jose 1
PW Supermarket, San Jose 1
Cold Stone 1
Costco 1 9-19-05
Bathroom Remodeling / Refinish:
Dariusz Szatowski 408-821-5087 (Derek)
We can highly recommend Derek for both major and minor bathroom remodels.
Although he is not a contractor his attention to detail and craftsmanship
are second to none. He takes pride in his work and is very fair with
pricing. ~David&Joanne 1/6/04
Rob Gamble of R & R Development, Phone: 723-8346
He renovated our bathrooms -- as well as most of our house -- and did
excellent work in a timely matter, coming in on budget. He has done
bathrooms and kitchens for several of our neighbors who also have been
pleased. Everyone who works for him, as well as Rob, takes pride in their
work and it's a pleasure to work with them. 1/6/04
Miracle Method (Tub refinish) 866-4898
They did a great job on an old clawfoot tub. 2-26-06
Willow Glen Books, 1330 Lincoln, 298-8141
Will order any book you want and you can pick it up at their store. 3-10-06 :-) They also have a thoughtful collection of
greeting cards--not your standard stuff. 3-11-06
Bookkeeping & Business Services:
Business Tax and
Bookkeeping, 891 Saratoga Ave., San
Jose, CA 95129; 408-252-6810, WWW.btbtax.com 5/27/03
Mary Kelly, 408-279-4860
I may be a bit biased, but my wife is an excellent bookkeeper, especially
for small businesses. She's done bookkeeping for over 20 years. She also
can handle many other organizational aspects of your business if you are
interested. She has her own computers systems and copies of the software
QuickBooks and MYOB. 8/27/03
Lori Adam, at Triage & Taxes; 408-568-7568;
She's a CPA, too. 8/27/03
Goodwill Industries;www.GoodwillSanJose.com
Right here in downtown San Jose, Goodwill has a business called Production
Resources that's a very underutilized resource! They can do big and small
jobs ... shredding, whatever! Check out the website which describes some
of the services they offer. 9/3/03
Hope: (www.hopeservices.org):
HOPE Rehabilitation Services -- a locally-based nonprofit organization
serving the community by helping people with mental retardation and other
developmental disabilities -- does production work of all types for
businesses of all sorts and sizes. Check out their website for details. 9/3/03
Shred It, 408-944-0900
Our District uses them about twice a year. 9/4/03
Wesley Fachner. 408-866-2001;
I highly recommend him for bookkeeping. 11/6/03
Butcher:
Willow Glen
Meats & Smoke House, 885
Delmas Ave.
It's conveniently close by and the service there was great, very friendly
and helpful. They have all kinds of meats, roasted turkey you have them
thinly slice, smoked salmon, and a huge selection of sausages. The prices
are pretty reasonable too. 10/13/06
Cabinet Maker/Carpentry:
Thatcher Woodworking. 358-2388
He excels at entertainment centers and puts in all the great gadgets and
cable management if you want it. 1-11-05 :-) We are a very happy customer of Steve Thatcher,
both for an entertainment center and complete kitchen cabinet replacement.
I highly recommend him. 1-11-05
Vince Fazio, 443 Menker Ave., SJ 95128. 408-291-0688 http://www.fazioswoodworks.com He's not cheap, but he does top-quality work. A real craftsman. 9/10/06 :-) Vince Fazio is a wonderful master carpenter who
specializes in cabinets. 1-3-06
South Bay Door, 510-656-1945
Do it yourself cabinets Was very pleased. 1-8-06
Bill Rankin, 408-893-6684
Bill was able to give us a reasonable quote and finish the work in just
two days, which was perfect for us. Bill did a fantastic job of minimizing
wasted baseboard and his workmanship is fantastic. 10/31/06
Camera Repair:
Kamera Korner. 560 S. Bascom & I-280 by SJ City College.
292-7468 4-25-05
Car Detailing:
Thorpe Auto Detailing, 740 Camdem Ave., Unit D, Campbell, CA 95008
408-370-3633
Have used him for over 10 years. Does a great job. 3-9-05 :-) I always feel like I'm getting a new car when I
get my car back from him. 3-9-05
Marc DeSorbo, "Details By Marc" 408-266-8746, Cell:
408-802-5125
He does fantastic work, is competatively priced and will come to you! 3-10-05
California Auto
Tinting and Polishing, 130 E.
Sunnyoaks Ave., Campbell. 408-370-9399
Their workmanship reflects pride in all that they do. 1-24-06
A.J.'s Auto
Detailing, 702 Coleman Avenue
@Taylor 408-947-1111
does an excellent job. They have what they call a "mini detail"
that is a very through cleaning inside and out, including good cleaning of
the wheels, for a moderate price. 3/14/06
Car Maintenance:
Jiffy Lube on Saratoga Ave. in Santa Clara :-( , 7/7/03