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    Foster City Library

    3.7 (109 reviews)
    Special Hours Closed

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    Bonnie G.

    On a rainy day, all I wanted to do was curl up to a good book, so thank goodness for the Foster City Library. Left my in-laws and sat in a comfy chair for an hour or two reading The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. Loved the quiet and quaintness of this sweet little oasis. Thank you for the calm! 5 stars!!!!

    Inside
    Steven S.

    Although I live just outside Foster City in Los Prados (San Mateo), I have been coming to the Foster City Library for years. The staff is super friendly and helpful. I've recently been bringing my son with me and we checked out his first book last week (one from the Percy Jackson series). In general, the Foster City Library is a great place to go when you need to bear down and study or just find a quiet place to read. The also have a couple of sections specifically dedicated to kids and teens. When I was growing up, they didn't allow you to bring coffee or drinks but beverages are now permitted so thats great news.

    Tuesday, April 30, 2019: dirty stall with paper on toilet and floor.
    Stephanie W.

    I went here Tuesday, April 30, 2019 for about three hours in the afternoon. I wanted to do some work on my laptop. I used to come here a lot in 2013, but hadn't been here since. What I like is they have a huge desk section near the middle left end as you enter where there are like 12 work spaces attached to each other, with a light running in between the two rows of desks,and electrical receptacles at each one. Usually you see people working on laptops here. Of course, they never get 12 people, as the spaces are close enough to each other where people generally don't take the seat in between others. So six people is more common. There are also genuine carrels with outlets on the back left wall, but it is cramped back there. Some of the Yelp reviews have said the wifi is terrible here and it is noisy, but I have found it always to be fairly quiet and the wifi strong and reliable. In my time there Tuesday, there was one instance for about two or three minutes where I had no signal, but then it quickly resumed by itself. At least there was no password and you didn't have to log back into the wifi every two hours like you have to at some libraries. The desk chairs can also be a little uncomfortable, since the ones without arms have four prongs sticking put from the seat where the arms should attach, and these can be a little painful to sit on after a while. I used to bring my own thick cushion with me when I came a lot in 2013 for this very reason. What I don't like about this place is they allow people to eat their lunches and snacks here. The woman next to me took out a tuna salad sandwich, and the whole area then smelled like tuna fish. This also happened in 2013 when I saw a different woman unpack her lunch from rubber containers and begin to eat. The restroom was dirty, at least the big handicapped stall. There was also caution tape around the first stall. There are also no paper towels here; they use those XLERATOR hand dryers instead. At least there wasn't a potty training ladder here like last time. I do realize kids need to get potty trained, but some things are better done at home. Just like my friend who had diabetes needed to inject himself with insulin: he told me he does that at home rather than the restroom at the gym since people don't need to be exposed to that thing. I had complained about the potty training ladder in 2013, but the librarian blew me off. There was also an incident with a developmentally disabled adult patron here in 2013. He had a breakdown, and ended up tearing the rear-view mirror off of his car and then went outside in the parking lot throwing a temper tantrum. I was scared and watched my car from afar since he was going ballistic. Police were called (who took 15 minutes to get here, even though they were in a building in the same complex) and they surrounded him by the lobby entrance. It was funny, since he said to the officers in a childlike tone: "if you smack me, I'll smack you". Eventually, they called his mother who came and took custody of him. This library also seems to have a disproportionate number of audio books and DVD's. I guess people are too lazy to read a book and want to take the easy way out? We never had such things in my day. I will leave three stars due to the cleanliness of the restroom, attitude by some of the librarians, and people eating food everywhere. I wish I could leave 3.5 stars.

    Asshole parking
    Charlie B.

    this is a super cool little library just watch out for horrible drivers taking up MORE than one space for a car, yes, a car, not a limo!

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    3 months ago

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    1 year ago

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    10 months ago

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    2 years ago

    Very well maintained. Friendly, supportive and helpful staff. Definitely one of the Best Libraries in the County.

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    1 year ago

    I 3d printed there and made a super cool knife. Diego helped me and walked me through the step by step proc

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    3 years ago

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    7 years ago

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    6 years ago

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    4 years ago

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    12 years ago

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    3 years ago

    A great place to read all those books you have been meaning to catch up on. Well organized

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    6 years ago

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    13 years ago

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    13 years ago

    This is a nice public library. It's spacious. It seems to have a nice selection of media to choose from.

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    Ask the Community - Foster City Library

    Review Highlights - Foster City Library

    Although I live just outside Foster City in Los Prados (San Mateo), I have been coming to the Foster City Library for years.

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    San Mateo County Pride Center - One of their resource walls.

    San Mateo County Pride Center

    3.0(4 reviews)
    2.7 mi

    I am beyond furious at this center. My LGBTQ child matters... but not to THIS organization…read moreapparently. They strung us along all summer when my child needed services. Finally set something up after 3 months of waiting on their waiting list for 9/1. My daughter was SO happy to finally speak with someone. The therapist she was assigned to cancelled last minute, saying that she had "things come up" and wouldn't be able to see her and gave us resources to help find a therapist. She was devastated. We waited 3 months for THIS? Now I'm at ground zero with a depressed, vulnerable child who needs a professional NOW! They are so unprofessional!!! Do NOT use them. They'll string you along like they did to us!

    This place was an unexpected surprise find on one of my walks during lunch. All the staff are very…read morefriendly and welcoming, offering you quick tours or lovely conversation. They have a great lounge area and a well-stocked resource nook for those who are looking to get more LGBTQIA+ knowledge or just chill out and browse the web for a bit. They also have a wall full of flyers detailing the wide range of all their events, resources, workshops for any young, old, questioning, out and proud, curious, community-seeking individual. (or a straight ally maybe looking to volunteer? hint...) This center is pretty new having been open since this June, so if you're reading this please help spread the word, and drop by the center sometime if you can, because it's really quite lovely and a looong overdue addition to the San Mateo area.

    Photos
    San Mateo County Pride Center - Back entrance.

    Back entrance.

    San Mateo County Pride Center - Street entrance.

    Street entrance.

    San Mateo County Pride Center - Sign visible from El Camino North & 11th Ave.

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    Sign visible from El Camino North & 11th Ave.

    Sei Boku Bonsai Kai - JAPANESE BLACK PINE (pinus thunbergii) by Jerry Carpenter, Years in Training: 50

    Sei Boku Bonsai Kai

    5.0(2 reviews)
    2.8 mi

    I have been a member and volunteer for the last few years. A fun, informative community to learn a…read morenew hobby or reinforce your interest in bonsai.

    I'm so glad we were able to attend Sei Boku Bonsai Kai's, 36th annual show. It is a two-day event…read more(June 1-2, 2019), located at the San Mateo Garden Center (Beresfored Park). We attended the afternoon demonstration led by Steve Iwaki & Jerry Carpenter. They demonstrated how to properly wire and train a tree trunk for your bonsai as well as trimming. As a novice bonsai, we found their demonstration very educational! During the event, I met one of the volunteers who shared that Sei Boku Bonsai Kai was founded by a dedicated late nurseryman, Bob Kato way back in 1983. Since then, SBBK has been educating and training the public the joys of the Japanese art of training trees in a pot. Did you know that Bonsai, (pronounced "bone-sigh") translates to "planted in a container?" If you are considering learning more about bonsai, SBBK holds a monthly meetings every 4th Wednesday of each month at the Beresford Center. These meetings features workshops, demonstrations and benefit drawings and many more. There is also a monthly workshops that is hands-on advice every 1st Tuesdays of each month. Here are more additional training SBBK offers: Beginners class Lending library books, periodicals, videos, tools, and a seasonal wiring. Club Field Trips Annual exhibitions Networking with members and master bonsai experts. Lastly, we are grateful that this organization exist because we learned so much today especially how to properly wire our trees in a pot. After the demonstration, we were lucky to find a beautiful Japanese Red Pine that was said to be about 15-20 years old. Before heading out, we stopped by at the "Dr. Bonsai" table and John "JT" Thompson was very kind and taught us the right way to care for our new tree. What a fun day we had. Cheers!

    Photos
    Sei Boku Bonsai Kai
    Sei Boku Bonsai Kai - DAIMYO OAK (quercus dentata) by Jerry Carpenter, Acorn was panted January 1960

    DAIMYO OAK (quercus dentata) by Jerry Carpenter, Acorn was panted January 1960

    Sei Boku Bonsai Kai - JAPANESE MALE SAIKEI (acer palmatum) by Gordon Deeg

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    JAPANESE MALE SAIKEI (acer palmatum) by Gordon Deeg

    Foster City Library - libraries - Updated June 2026

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