Ram S.

Luxor Hotel & Casino

Luxor is a bad hotel with a fancy lobby. We went there because my daughter was learning about Egypt and being forced to stay in Vegas (on the way to Bryce Canyon).
First, the mood was spoilt by too many posters of scantily clad women advertising "Fantasy". That's Vegas, so no fault of Luxor.
The design is such the hotel now stinks of cigarette smoke. I have stayed in other hotels. The stench of smoke leaves you once you get into the hotel accomodations (at least in the MGM Grand, Mirage, Venetian). Not here. Bedroom was stinking to high heaven.
Place was not clean and paint was peeling.
Overall a very depressing experience. It really resembles an ancient mausoleum in smell, condition and gloominess.

PROS: None
CONS: smoke, quality, and shows

La Baguette French Bakery

Lines are long at lunch time or otherwise, but despite my dislike to visit malls, I find myself dropping in to visit this bakery. Choice is excellent and cakes and sandwiches are very very good. If you are fan of marzipan based cakes, they have one that is just for you. All in all, a guide to Palo alto bakeries must include this one as top of the list.

PROS: very delicious
CONS: long lines

Counts toward Terman Middle School fundraiser!

Palo Alto Baking Company

This is an excellent bakery that is in a very convenient location. Nothing like having a good lunch at the nearby restaurants of California Ave., and then stopping by for a snack. Or you can have one of their many excellent sandwiches.

I particularly recommend their Princess Cake and Cherry Bomb. They have very good brioches as well. I was very disappointed when they discontinued their petit fours. Those teeny tiny cakes were the right size for a diet concious person. If they continued to provide it, I will hike up their rating by a notch.

PROS: convenient location, excellent service, extremely delectable treats
CONS: selection is reducing to mundane: danish etc.

Counts toward Terman Middle School fundraiser!

Piazza's Deli

I am very lucky to reside next to this grocery store. Quality of the produce, meats and wine are outstanding. They have a great salad bar: macaroni and cheese delicious, chicken curry, tomato bisque, ooo la la! Their cheese selection is better than Whole Foods. A visit to Piazza is never sufficient without a boatload of snacks (labelled junk food : honey roasted chipotle peanuts mmm!). Staff is very helpful. Their selection of pasta sauces and organic foods is great.

PROS: great grocery store, neighborhood store, staff
CONS: not 24 hours

Excluded from Terman Middle School fundraiser because the number of reviews for this business exceeds the payable review maximum.

Il Fornaio Cucina Italiana

This restaurant has a great reputation and has a wide selection. Ambience is good as the up-and-coming and the young and restless as well as the wealthy and aged show up. But I am not a great fan of their food. I think it is mediocre. More hype than substance.

PROS: good ambience, great place to take a client or a loved one on a date
CONS: so-so food

California Pizza Kitchen

I have been visiting this restaurant for about 15 years now. It is an outstanding restaurant. Great for the family: even the fussiest kid has eaten their cheese pizza without a complaint. Staff is normally very good. It is CROWDED on Friday and Saturday evenings. Do not expect same level of service on those two days.

PROS: pizza is awesome, servce is great
CONS: crowded on friday and sat evenings and no reservations

Excluded from Terman Middle School fundraiser because chain store reviews are ineligible.

Id Tech Camps

After numerous id tech camps for my son, I would certainly dub this as expensive and the roi to be very weak. The only camp I could even think as reasonable was the stop-action movie with Lego toys. The quality of the instructors is weak for the more advanced programming classes such as the ones on robotics. Since parents are looking for ways to keep the kids busy, this camp is always crowded. But I was very disappointed in most of them.

PROS: keeps the kids busy in summer in a safe environment
CONS: expensive, does not teach much

Counts toward Terman Middle School fundraiser!

Bike Connection

I have bought two bikes from this shop on El Camino, near Page Mill. Their bikes are not the cheapest and you will be tempted to look at Wal-Mart (if you are the wallet concious type such as me). But the bikes they have is of excellent quality. One of the bikes had a scratch. I noticed it after I bought the bike. When I took it back to the shop and showed it to the folks, they gave me a discount immediately. The quality of the bikes is good and the service is outstanding. I have been a repeat customer ever since my first experience.

PROS: great bikes, knowledgeable and great staff
CONS: expensive

Counts toward Terman Middle School fundraiser!

Watercourse Way

Watercourse Way is a warm and relaxing spa. It is not a snooty joint where you feel initmidated by some dazzling looking specimens. I was given a certificate for a massage by my wife. After some long weeks of hectic work, this was the perfect gift. Bless her heart! I was given a wonderful massage. I slept through half of it and felt so good when I woke up. The masseuse was friendly but not overly so, considerate without being chatty. The massage was worth 10x the price.

PROS: warm, relaxing, classy
CONS: seemed to be under construction

Counts toward Terman Middle School fundraiser!

Cardinal Barber Shop

This is an established business, run by two elderly gentlemen. Very nice guys. It is not expensive. Haircut is of good quality. The crowds are not huge and so you can walk in without an appointment and walk out soon. The only thing I have against them is that they use a razor to clean the hair on the neck and around the ears. Not good and not sanitary. If not for that I would give them 4 stars at least.

PROS: quick and clean haircut
CONS: use of a razor

Counts toward Terman Middle School fundraiser!