This barns is our favorite one in the area. Always enjoy reading our books and picking up our magazines from here.

Very big store, staff is friendly by the checkout, very under staff...On a weekday they had 1 person working checkout in such a huge store, they have a coffee store Inside if you buy a nice book you can enjoy while sipping on coffee....But not recommended now with covid19.... Future ref.... It so big though that it can get confusing where the category of books are a d it has second floor

What a wonderful place to buy a book. Full of color and wonder.Two story’s filled with a million stories for and one who loves to read or just look at illustrations.My kids absolutely loved the store. As good as a trip to the zoo, or and amusement park !

A lot of book selections. Good prices. Big store up and down.

Me and my friend were going to go purchase some manga at this store and we were lining up to go checkout, the lady at the other side that was helping the other person checkout in front of us just walked away when we said hello, and seemed to ignore us, we didnt think much of it so we went to another line that she moved to. She scanned the books and before checking out, me and my friend were adding up the prices of our manga, and we were planning to only spend under $100, but then the lady said $180 dollars, we got so confused and removed one book from our purchase, and then the lady said around 85 dollars, and then we got even more confused. While we were thinking which books to remove from our purchase, she was very impatient with us. Once we grabbed our books are about to leave, the lady aggressively nudged me and gave me the receipt that we forgot to take, I said sorry for forgetting it, and she just ignored me and walked away. Overall, very bad costumer service.

Books good. Go buy

Huge selection of books. Dozen of bookshelves with space exploration books. Nice and cosy cafe with tadty coffee and snacks. Very big books for kids and toys department. Love it.

I miss this place, so glad to be back, place was redecorated and books are categories abs located different, but I still enjoyed myself.

I love this Barnes and Nobles! It’s two stories and has a great selection of books. I like the location too.

The best book store in San Mateo . I love looking around in here.

Ordered a medium roast coffee, and later felt a rapid heart rate which lasted for six. hours. Could be the barista on duty put something a little extra in it?I didnt request any shots of espresso or anything like that.Could be considered criminal if I had a heart condition.

Great store with a Starbucks. My son loves the toy section.

Plenty of useful books. Store has Starbucks which is my favorite coffee shop. Most importantly, good customer service

Very large with lots of books. Great deals too and good cookies.

Great! bought 2 books. did not go in to buy anthing, really! thats a clue folks

A perfect place to read a book, let you toddler play and grab a Starbucks coffee. Perfect place for a mom to have a good time for her kid and herself.

Friendly workers, the store is organized and a great location...

They remodeled. Much better since the buyout. Fiction moved to the first floor and hot product is clustered together. The virus hurts as we used to buy a book or magazine and sit down with a cup of coffee and read in a conducive environment. Waiting to get chairs and benches back.

Wonderful to see a book store ake it with all the forces in our culture against it..Well stocked, nice places for all age groups, treats to eat and more.Encourage all to keep hold a book in your hand stores open..

Information; and just about really ALL info, freely available right at our fingertips with a click of the mouse, touch of a screen, may it be mobile or tablet, most of us no longer, or rarely seek the company of a good ole book.I am just as big of a supporter of the internet and all its great many little cousins, as the next person. I still like going to a book store or the library, checking out colorful book covers and flipping through the pages, reading about the author, etc.I generally purchase 2 books and I know that the same material could be read on my kindle or the nook, or any PC....but I LOVE holding the book, turning the pages, the smell of freshly printed material, setting the evening quiet mode for old fashion reading time.And my eyes do not seem nearly as tired, as an additional bonus.Reading and educating one self is always beneficial, no matter how the reading is done. But I believe, a little diversity cant hurt, ...!It also doesnt hurt to put that thing down once in a while, and stop living your live as if it was an arcade game!We are not characters in a game who dont have needs of the body and mind. We are also not restricted to live in a box. ( Unless thats your thing).So think out of the box, get out of YOUR box, in whatever shape or form it comes, and go out there, to the Library or your neighborhood Barnes & Nobles; and buy yourself a book that you are going to read, starting TODAY!Love the place, the great many catagories for entertainment or extending your knowledge. They have other little goodies as well, and Coffee! I always find the place very peaceful!!!All smiles and all thumbs up!!!

The store is very spacious with all categories of books. Before the pandemic, it has an in-house cafe and seats that we can preview any book comfortably.

My favorite place. Always good service, always a good selection. A great store.

Great Staff, Awesome Service !Glad they still sell books these days

Great place lots of selection of books and movies dvds. Blu rays. Iove shopping here customer service is a great treat too they make you feel special.

Really big and had a nice selection but didn’t have the books I wanted:(

Staff is very kind and if they dont have an answer, theyll do their best to look it up and get you the answer. Starbucks inside there was just okay, but the lady was super friendly.

Its really different,, very clean

This place has a sign out advertising Starbucks but when I went to pay with the Starbucks App they wouldnt accept it and and pointed to a tiny sign that no one would ever notice about how they cant honor the app or Starbucks gift cards.... Even the target I was in the other day accepted the app. Very odd policy choice for an industry that could use all the foot traffic they can get.

2 floors, plenty of seating, a great multimedia area with vinyls and Criterion Collection movies, a spacious cafe area with enough seating. Kids section is large and tucked away upstairs (which seems safer than other store layouts Ive seen in other B&Ns). Great gift, journal, and stationary section, massive magazine selection, and theres always fun things like blind date with a book where you pick a gift wrapped book selected by the store employees/book lovers. The staff are always friendly, the bathroom is in decent shape considering its location and heavy use, and even when the store is busy, I dont feel crowded. Introvert heaven. This is my favorite B&N on the peninsula.

Even though COVID-19 has ruined much of the fun of going out. This place reopening despite short hours and no cafe or chairs..still offers a ni e get away from the usual woes. Like the browsing of books available and choosing after a short preview to get a feel for the story

Do you need a gift for your mom? They have it. Do you need a gift for your child? They have it. And the prices are good. I thought it would have been expensive, but it wasnt. I liked the science section, and the room upstairs, with the Harry Potter stuff. Very, very nice. If I will ever come back to California, I will go there again.

Great selection of marked down books

This is my FAVORITE Barnes and Noble... Outstanding staff shout out to Mike and Anna (night crew). Thank you guys so much for going out of your way to help me. Merry Christmas, Guys! Thanks again...

Just like any other Barnes and Noble.

They were great vary helpfull

Always a great experience staff super nice

The atmosphere here was great, but the prices are pretty steep.

I went looking for a Birthaday gift for my nephew, he is 5 years old and they had a great selection of science toys, minerals, telescopes and microphones for kids.

Great selection and good prices!

This is the best place to go to when you want to look for a new book. My daughter and I bring along our books after searching for one and purchase a few treats from the Starbucks inside the store.It is always maintained well, I love the coziness of this place, the limitless choices of genres,books, magazines and other special items that are not books but toys on the 2nd floor. It is actually one of our gems.When we do come here we always find something we really like whether it be a bookmark, a notebook on sale, some new releases and it is just endless. You can really feel like you are in worlds away, tucked away from the outside noise.

Its chill. I rarely give out 5 stars. Its probably just the pandemic thing, but the energy here feels dead. Hard to hold it against them cuz of whats going on right now, but they are somewhat helpful and just reorganised the inside layout so its a little different now. The Starbucks is no longer open here which i was dissapointed to see. I love coffee and books. All together good experience though.

Excellent book store. May be one among the few big brands which didnt become the victim of all things digital. Really liked their collection of books. Friendly staff. No nudging. Ample space available to sit and read books. The categorization of childrens books are great. Easy to navigate and locate. Starbucks inside the book store is a big add-on. Games and toys section is a big heartwarming thing. Looking at the toys in person and choosing them is a big experience which was missing ever since toysrus has closed. A big thanks to the company for persisting in this fast moving economy.

Great book store with a cafe inside. I love their selection of books and also they have some pretty cool toys!

We love coming here. Kids are is nice and even have toys. Cafe area is also good. Spaces are well maintained all except for the bathroom...the womens bathroom is gross.

A piece of heaven for book lovers like me.. Staffs were friendly and welcoming. Had a great selection of books and were all well maintained. Also got various categories for everyone.

It was large and had some good books. I was also happy with the movie selection. I went there for the Criterion sale, it was worth it. I would suggest fixing up the bathroom a bit. I would also suggest adding a few more places to sit and read. But overall the staff were helpful amd I found what I was looking for.

One of the last big bookstores. Now that Toys R Us is gone, this is actually where my kids love coming as a toy store. They love it here even more than Talbots Toy land. They have a great selection of modern mainstream as well as unique toys. Lots of educational toys and activities as well. Plus there are a ton of books. I hope B&N embraces this trend and continues to put more effort into their toy section. I guess money talks on that one. There is also a Starbucks in here, so grab a drink while your kids are being sensory overloaded.

Great place to get books Magazines and toys. I love how clean and well organized this store is, me and my son can spend hours searching and exploring for our new books. There is a lot of places to sit down and read, best of all they have a coffee store.Parking is plenty available and the store is right at the mall.

They have a great selection of books,games,greeting cards. They also carry some upscale gifts by various designers, very reasonable, especially when there is a sale.If you browse the sale tables and items,you can find some amazing bargains.Sales associates are helpful and friendly.They also have a Starbucks located in the back of the store,where they sell various gifts,including godiva chocolates. Great local place for a last minute gift

Its a great book store and not many brick and mortar places left. Theres a Starbucks inside, and my writing friends meet there every other week. Support them so it doesnt disappear.

I am definitely biased in this review because I love books and bookstores so I love barnes and noble.This location is great. Spacious and the lay out is not so confusing.You can take your time browsing through the store and not feel pressured to purchase anything.Just holding a book in your hands and flipping through the pages is still such a treat.I highly recommend visiting a bookstore like B&N!

Good books. Very help full. Love seeing the books before buying them. Good prices.

Had a massive selection of books. Staffs were approachable and very helpful. The books were properly categorized and arranged. Had the book that I was looking for thanks.

Friendly staffs always willing to help. It is also a clean place to enjoy reading

Pros: Great selection of books, a nice little cafe (good for drinks and some pastries, not food, not even like light bites), and a surprisingly good selection of quality board games and puzzles.Cons: very limited seating, even at the cafe; power outlets are scarce to nonexistent (honestly Ive been here very many times and cant remember EVER finding a power outlet); bathrooms could do with more upkeep

I had work to do and I didnt want to go to Starbucks as its too loud. The coffee shop here was pleasant. That said, the wifi was very slow.

Great book store. I was looking for a journal. They had many choices, loved the one I bought for a gift. Even had a pen to match.

Courteous service. Big selection.

Good selection of books and store cleanly kept. Staff is very pushy about selling memberships, when we said we were going to pass the person responded with so youre never going to buy books here again? in an off putting manner

Regular Barnes and Nobles. Nothing bad, nothing particularly good. Big book store. A bit more toys now.

I love this location. Its big, spacious and well light. Lots of natural light which is important to me.Theres a small Starbucks to get your coffee fix of the day.Lots of variety and book selection which I like, and well organized. The stuff is usually young, but friendly.

Fairly good selection of books at retail prices. Some house brand-name books are available at good discounts. Nice place to get together with friends for coffee. Tends to be crowded on weekends.

We really like this Barnes and nobles. They have alot of spots to sit and read and my kids love story time.

Support a local bookstore! Well, OK, its a big national chain but compared with Amazon at least it has a presence here in San Mateo. I love books, and I love to browse books. So this is a fabulous place to do that in our fair city. Support the bookstore community.

Large store with a great selection. Employees are helpful and knowledgeable. Definitely recommend a visit here!

Not many brick and mortar bookstores left. Great place to find a new book to read. They have everything and the store is pretty big.

Clean store, helpful staff.

Two stories of literal awesome. Or is it literary awesome. If only there was a book I could buy at some kind of store that had the definitions of words in it...

Friendly staff, nice shopping environment, open and clean. Pleasant experience from entering to exiting.

Always nice to cruise through. Books, magazines, presents for all ages. Friendly Service.

Its one of the few places that still sells books. The people are nice and helpful, theres a Starbucks inside. I think we need to support one of the few remaining bookstores out there.

Large selection, friendly staff and a coffee shop

One of the oldest store in this constantly changing neighborhood. Nice and cozy with a variety of books for all ages. There are always people in this store giving it a very warm feel.

I love Barnes & Noble theyre open till 9 every day of the week they have a great selection you can go in there and just Lose Yourself they have Starbucks xcetera just a great place.

Didnt find anything, but itz always fun looking 4 a treasure!

A lot of room to sit and read. Prices are a bit higher than Amazons but their sale-offers are better. Will visit again soon. Highly recommended.

Great customer service. App book i really liked, couldnt find real book, ebook or ?? Only. I did HW on internet no real book existed. B. & N. Verified by phone they had real book, but they also held the book for me at the register so I can come in and buy it and it also turned out to be in The Bargain Books section so is on sale at a great price. Excellent customer service

I love books so of course this store is great. Even without my love of books this store is neat. Two levels you get get books, DVDs, Blu-ray, CDs, toys, a fun reading area for kids, Starbucks and a nice place to just be in.

Love all Barns and Nobles! Always find what I need there plus great options for gifts!

Prices are higher than their online site, but they have a great selection.

Large store with a great selection. I managed to search online for a book I wanted to gift a friend and head to the store and buy it.Only thing I wish is that Barnes & Noble take a lesson or two from Powells book store to improve their browsing experience.

Great book selection. Kids friendly + helpful staff.

Fantastic café experience.

Great customer service walking counter that says online pickup if you need help finding something you have to go to customer service and they have excellent customer service the guy not only looked it up on his system he walked me to where the section is I havent had that experience in a very long time with any place so absolutely I give this a 5-star rating

Books, books, more books, and a cafe. Our family comes here often. Sometimes we browse, sometimes we buy. The kids will do homework here before activities. The cafe is great for grabbing a beverage or snack. The kids hightail it upstairs to the kids section, while I tend to browse downstairs. The staff is friendly, but unobtrusive.

Physical books are still a thing! Great two story location with all your topical book related needs! Great place to grab a book and relax. Dont forget to buy a book for the road!

One of the few physical bookstores still around. Its a chain, but a solid instance of one. Great place to grab a coffee (+ sweet treat) and read a book.

Very great place with amazing customer support to help you!

Very clean store and everything is organized. There is paid parking connected to the store, but you can get it validated if you buy something from here.This location is close to a lot of other little shops as well as the movie theater and you can walk around.

This was a huge Barnes and Nobels but also in turn didnt have that many books. It had some of the greatest series that I enjoy but didnt have to many smaller time authors. This is probably due to limited space but I do dig the escalators to get around.

Very nice bookstore!

Good

I like to see the quality of illustrations and print when I buy books. The selection is decent and the staff is helpful. Good selection of magazines. Free parking too.

Very good

Went in to get summer workbooks for the kids. This location is our favorite. There are plenty of places to sit and the bathroom is always clean.

Wonderful bookstore. Great place to relax even if you do not plan to buy anything. Bargain section always has good ideas for presents.

Well organized with friendly staff. Buy a book and pick up a small discount. One overpriced coffee becomes slighty expensive coffee. Win.

Great place to buy and/or read books. The only downside is the coffe. Ive ordered maybe 5 different types of drinks by now and they messed up all of them except of simple drip :) it was either not strong at all (like almost no coffee - that was supposed to be a latte) or too much topping caramel that made the drink too sweet to the point where you cant enjoy it.Either way, bookstore is awesome. Hope theyll get better at making coffee in the café :D

Its your typical Barnes and Noble, I can get lost in here for a good hour+ if you let me. I stopped here occasionally when I had a few spare minutes when I lived in the area.

Good for last minute book and games shopping for Christmas!