I came to California Avenue hardware with an unusual request: a small piece of astroturf 3 ft by…read more6ft. The store does carry packages of astroturf but they were 4 ft by 6ft. While I could have made do with that, Michael kindly cut it for me himself to the perfect 3ft by 6ft! That's real service!

Let's see if we can drown out that one-star review and make this a five-star page again. Because…read moreit should be. Because this is a five-star place. And it's a hardware store, not an auto parts store. Not a sushi restaurant. Not a coffee shop. I've frequented this establishment a dozen times and have had a consistently satisfying experience. They've always had what I was looking for and have always been super pleasant. Variety of small tools, hardware, and housewares as well. If you're on the Avenue and have a minute take a tour and see how they're stocked. Definitely should be the first stop for locals or local businesses. Break the big box habit and give the locals a try. You'll be glad you did!

Awful place to go! Will never go again! Workers are not friendly or eager to help!…read more Called to get an items and the guy said it's available and we have it but 'I do t have time to get them for you to put on hold' , so I had to drive to the store! Parking is a nightmare! The guy i first saw told me to go to the front desk not welling to assist at all! Then the same guy was called to find the item but some one else from the store came and went to fetch! I thought why is this guy did not just help me at the first place? They have some kind of Command in line? The place had few workers but no one really care to assist me! I am trying to purchase an over $100 stuff and came few miles away to get it but they don't seem to care! Then the guy came back and told me they don't have what I want ! The online is wrong! I think he is just stupid and did not find it!!! Completely waste of my time! Not sure what is wrong with Menlo Park stores! I have repeat bad experiences in a month so I guess i will not return to this town to do any purchases! Where is the old fashion service?? It's gone !! Or maybe now a day ' service' is an unknown thing!!! I will just go to home depot or Amazon. Instead! Store like ace should review their service , if Amazon or home depot monopolised the market , this will be a good reason! I got better service at home depot cone to think of it!!!

I needed some flare fittings that are not commonly stocked at big box stores. Acehardware.com told…read moreme that Menlo Park Hardware had six of them in stock today so I put an order in for pick up to make sure I didn't have to dig through a disorganized rack for half an hour to find them when I got there. Less than 20 seconds after my order confirmation email I got an order cancellation email full of broken links to files on someone's hard drive. No explanation, just "Your order has been cancelled. Bye." I contacted customer service to see what the issue was and they gruffly told me that my payment was rejected and that I'd need to call my bank. I called Discover and they said no one had even attempted to charge my card for anything in the last 48 hours. Basically, Ace is full of it. McMaster-Carr overnighted the fittings to me for $13. Same card and everything. The next time you see some local hardware store owner crying on the news about how everyone shops at Amazon now try and remember it's likely because they stopped attempting to provide anything their customers needed a very long time ago. There's dozens of small-time hardware stores in San Rafael, none of them have the lowest prices on anything and all of them are packed with customers because they actually try.

I came in here looking to purchase a single 2.5mm hex wrench. However, the hex wrenches were only…read moresold as sets so I ordered the one I needed on Amazon. However, I was surprise to see a rather large freezer near the check out area. Upon looking into it, low and behold, there were frozen pies in it. On impulse, I picked up the Caramel Apple one for $18.95. Verdict: It was delicious. Who would have thought that, right?

Trying to get a semblance of customer service here is practically non existent…read more I needed a key copied and was told to go to some counter and ring a bell for service. I waited 15 minutes before giving up and asking the cashiers who were standing around scrolling TikTok if they could make a key copy for me. Nope. Apparently they don't know how to make keys.. Clearly management here doesn't believe in cross training. How hard is it to train people to make key copies?!

What a gem of a hardware store! Very friendly and helpful customer service. They had exactly what…read morewe needed and even met us behind the store to directly load the 100 pounds of cement we needed. Since 1983!

I called ahead this morning to confirm they had a specific concrete mix in stock. They assured me…read morethey had 60 lb bags. I drove over specifically to support a small business, only to be told by the store manager that they actually had zero stock until Monday. Mistakes happen, but the manager's attitude was completely unacceptable. He wasn't apologetic at all, ignored me mid-conversation, and just started helping someone else. A larger store would have at least tried to solve the problem or offer a solution. I won't be coming back.

Armando, The Legend…read more This review is not for Home Depot; it is for Armando, expert employee in the Plumbing Department of Home Depot in East Palo Alto: There is a humble and extremely knowledgeable man in the Plumbing Department of Home Depot East Palo Alto by the name of Armando. I've nicknamed him "Armando, The Legend." When I visited, he worked the evening shift up to closing time. Home Depot is getting a great deal by having him on staff; he's worth way more than whatever Home Depot is paying him. I've interacted with Armando a few times. Twice coming in before closing, I asked Armando how to get one pipe end to connect to another. Under these time-pressed circumstances, he asked me to wait a couple minutes for him to think before me and then get the pieces. Indeed, after just a couple minutes, he came back with four pieces - from the plethora of connectors/pieces on the shelves, one connecting to another. He said this should work. Indeed it did. I was amazed that he looked at my pictures and physical parts, and in his mind, determined exactly what pieces were needed, knew where they were in the aisle out of so many parts, and produced them perfectly. Also amazing, the next day, I came back with a request to modify the previous day's request, to add a connector within yesterday's contraption. I said, "I don't know if this is possible but this is what I am imagining..." Without skipping a beat, Armando inspiringly said with enthusiastic energy and authority, "Anything is possible. It's just a matter of figuring it out." Wow. It really makes you feel good to come in under stress and to have someone this competent rightfully put you completely at ease. He asked me to give him 30 seconds, and under that, he came back again with what turned out to be exactly what I imagined. He is an expert at his craft, too good to be working for Home Depot really. He is knowledgeable, fast, and helps with joy. I was so impressed, I've told my colleagues and family about him.

Very bad service from this store. I came in looking for a…read morespecific tool I did not know the name of - I have since found out it's called a gimlet. I asked an employee for advice in the Tools section. He pointed me to another tool that was not what I was looking for, and when I asked further questions he brushed me off completely. It felt like he only wanted to go back to being with his colleagues. I looked up and I came back to him with a picture of the tool, and was told that it did not exist (even though I was literally showing him a photo of it). It does seem like Home Depot does not sell this particular tool. However, his response was uncalled for. Was it because it was close to lunch break? Was it because I was a woman? I had also planned to ask about a power drill, but I will not be visiting this store anymore.

Small store but super knowledgeable staff that is helpful and professional. Don't hesitate to stop…read morein if you need anything. If they don't have it, they will tell you where to find it.

Over the years I fly to San Francisco and stay at my brother-in-law's home often spending numerous…read moredays carrying out handyman tasks around his yard and home! This year was no exception as he had a number on jobs on his 'to-do list'! #1 task- Replace the old wooden post metal mail box! Needless to say, he didn't get his new mail box to match the structure fitting that were there already! So, how do we solve the mismatch? He, now my not-so-favourite brother-in-law, says,'let go to Portola Valley Hardware as they always have a solution to my handyman problems'! We go to PVH and the friendly staffer at busy front counter cheerily says to go down Aisle 7 and I'll have Bob waiting to assist you! And there he was! Bob listened to our 'Mailbox' dilemma then offered a plan that efficiently put into action and solved our problem with a little custom carpentry and, voila, we left ecstatic that we could now complete installing the mailbox per his creative skill set! Thank you Bob and PVH staff for going way and beyond in ensuring you looked after our needs and sent us home totally satisfied! Hmm...what made my favourite -in-law most pleased and excited was that his bride was absolutely ecstatic at the awesome finished new mailbox! WELL DONE/5! Respectfully, Dave C. Kelowna, B,C. CANADA

The people who staff this family run business are the nicest, most helpful people you will ever…read morework with. They are closing this summer, so get your hardware, paint, kitchen accessories, and jamming supplies before it's too late.

I see that it's going out of business and that's unfortunate for their local customers. However,…read moreI've never cared for this hardware store. Of the few times I've went, what I was looking for was never in stock. Help was ok. I left wondering how they stay in business and that was 7 years ago! It's interesting because I've always found True Value Hardware stores disappointing. Orchard Hardware (now Ace) is my go to favorite.

We needed to build a customized handrail for an upstairs bedroom. I brought in a template to…read moreChris, their milling guy. We had to do several cuts to get it right because Chris wanted a perfect seam at the joint. Thank you Chris. Andy De Wild from San Carlos

Professional, courteous and dependable service, Item was cut and adjusted on the spot and was…read moredelivered in 1/2 an hour, as promised. Not so common these days. I was happy with the experience