B Street Books

A must when you’re in San Mateo. This bookstore is a mini labyrinth of books; my kids are enjoying it.

I noticed this bookstore a few months ago and was hoping to visit it sometime but haven’t had a chance. I have been looking for a book recently and remembered this place and thought I would give them a call and see if they had it on hand by chance.
I called in and tried to ask for the book I was looking for and was put «on hold». I say ‘on hold’ only because they just put the receiver down and left.
While «on hold» I was going through the reviews on Unilocal,and sadly the customer service was the pain point of this place according to other Unilocalers and to my dismay is the topic of my review. I was on the call for 8 minutes and 21 seconds before getting the good olé hang up. Heard a conversation about some TV show and a bunch of packaging tape being used.
I decided not to give them a call back and gave them a generous 3 stars just because I may go there in person and hope to have a better experience. I will update this review for better or for worse if I do indeed visit the store in person.

A quaint little book store with a solid selection of art and photography books at low prices (many under $ 8). Look in the back room’s shelves. Also, they have a surprisingly large selection of books on transportation (for you train and airplane fanatics out there). Love how they open late, and there are a few comfy chairs to sit and read at your leisure. So glad I found this little gem of a place!

I found out about this treasure when on a stroll in the downtown last year with my wife. We now look for excuses to go there all the time:-)
I love the setup, the smell, the feel of slightly used paper that may have transpired to countless brains and souls!
On our most recent of the visits (last night), Lou (pardon me if I got your name wrong) told us about a proposal that underwent there this Christmas eve. What a wonderful place to start your married life at:-)
I wrote a simple tale to capture what I remembered here:
Happy holidays all, and hope this store will be there for generations to cherish!

Customer service is decent, the only issue is selling books at this store, the book store employee buys books for much less than their actual market value, I do not recommend selling your used books here

Cool place! Vast selection of books and decent prices. Nice staff too.

I came to this bookstore expecting to not really find anything and just browse for fun but I was pleasantly surprised by their collection.
Everything is organized by genre which is nice and the price is written on the first page in the top right corner. They had a big selection and I used amazon to find the best rated books in the genres I liked, but I did see lots of familiar titles.
I got a pretty good deal on my books (a few dollars cheaper than online). The prices are reasonable (ones in worse condition = slightly cheaper), but I’d still suggest checking amazon to compare. But with that said it’s nice to help recycle people’s old books. The owner was helpful and friendly — I’d recommend this place to anyone looking for inexpensive books. There’s also some seats inside in case you want to read while you’re there :)

Came in on a Saturday night looking for some nonfiction/​history books to buy. The girl working that night was very helpful and was kind enough to help me on what I was looking for. Great selection on used books on every subject. Definitely would come back up again if I’m in the neighborhood again.

This is a very well organized used book store. My girl and I came in around closing time (we didn’t know when the store closed) and the people running the store let us browse without rushing us. SOO thoughful! I found some great deals. Most of the books are 50% cheaper than what you would pay at a new book store, if not more. Parking in downtown San Mateo is pretty easy.

This is a good used books bookstore. Comfortable, a nice selection and right in the middle of downtown so easy to slip into before a movie or before or after a meal. Of course, one of the last few as time goes on so (I think) should be cherished as part of the city.
They are pretty straightforward on what they will buy (which they do during specific times in the week, not all times so you should call ahead). I have not actually sold any books to them but I’ve been around when they deal with buying books from people and haven’t heard any complaints or anything out of line. On the other side (for sale) they seem to be doing a good job of keeping their selection wide and varying — always worth another visit if I’m around.
It is certainly nice to pick up something you passed on (because of the high initial price) a year or three ago at a half or a quarter of the original cost. Digging is definitely part of the fun and you might come away empty — but there is always a chance of that real «find» (even if you kind of didn’t really even know what you were looking for)!

There’s a lady who works here who is a jerk. If she’s around, just leave. I’ve purchased kid books here now and then but I don’t intend on ever returning after today. I went with my kids this evening. There was a sign that is supposed to be place standing up on the sidewalk. The sign was poorly propped up in doors leaning against a bookcase and it fell and hit my daughter causing her to cry when she was hit on the shoulder. This lady jerk came over and moved it but made no eye contact and did not apologize for their failure to secure the sign. We left a stack of books that we intended on buying and do not plan on returning.
If you like jerks, you’ll like this place.

Good atmosphere, lots of selections, and comfy chairs to relax in if you want to preview some books. Great to see establishments like this still around in the age of Kindle. Books are reasonably priced and they accept credit card without minimums.

I dropped in B Street Books a few days ago to just browse around and enjoy the atmosphere of being in a bookstore again. While its not on the scale of the super-​sized book stores of pre-​Amazon days, it does have a fairly good collection. Also, I really enjoyed browsing in the back room which has, among other things, several shelves of old, hardcover classics.

I’m not one to rate/​review places at all, but my visit last night to B Street Books was not as joyous as I thought it’d be and after leaving I had set in mind that I needed to write this.
After searching for a locals book store, I found B Street books last night while my boyfriend and I were on our way to a movie. We bought our tickets early, and decided to head to the bookstore. We walked in minutes before closing, guessing it had to be 5:56, in very high spirits myself, and was «greeted» with a woman in her mid 30’s saying «uuugh I’m sorry I’m closing». She was hunched over the desk doing her paper, and didn’t bother to stand to talk to us, just stared at us from the counter.
My boyfriend apologized, tried dragging me out but I asked her if she could guess off the top of her head if she had 1984 by George Orwell. She groaned, mumbled some complaint under her breath and said «I’ll go check.» She walked and disappeared for a minute in a back room, came back, flopped the book on the counter and goes «yeah, we do. It’s…», rings item up, «$ 3.95». I go to pull my card out, and she informs me they have a $ 5 minimum, a rule I gladly would’ve worked with by running around the store and finding another, if not 3 more books I would’ve wanted. My boyfriend out $ 4 on the counter, and tells her to keep the change. She begins to realize she’s given us HORRIBLE customer service by his tone of voice indicating that we’re finally out of her hair. She begins apologizing, «I’m sorry, you don’t have to do that», telling her to keep 5 cents, «let me get your change.» We’re already out the door, and check their store hours before walking away.
Some important notes:
We left the bookstore at 6:02.
They close at 6.
We walked in before she was supposed to be closing.
My boyfriend and I have always worked in customer service. I understand it’s not always the easiest job, so bearing that knowledge I always try to be patient, reasonable, and as kind as possible to those working in the same industry. When I say she was not pleased to have my extra sale, she acted as if it was a HUGE task, she over exaggerated her movements and her tone of voice, it seemed to be the most strenuous thing she’d done all day. We were both pretty bummed out that her attitude was the start of our evening.
On the same customer service topic, I’ve stayed opened well past closing multiple times by 20 – 30 minutes, and a couple times even an hour if a customer comes in before closing and looks like they’ll buy something (it is important to add that I’ll shut the doors at closing and help said customer one on one). That extra sale has sometimes helped reached the stores daily goal, my personal goal, as well as getting closer the stores weekly and monthly goal.
My one star is, not only because I don’t have a no star option, because the store itself was spotless and tidy. In closing, the books don’t always have to be organized, granted it’d be nice if they were, but as long as they’re up off the floor that counts for something. Plus it gives the workers something to do on slow days.
Unfortunately, and overall, as cute as this little place was, I’ll be sure to return on a day when she’s not working, if I even return at all. There’s tons of potential for the store, but with the attitude I encountered last night, I’m betting this place won’t last much longer — especially reading recent reviews.

Great place to stop in and search for some books you’ve always told yourself you wanted to read but never gotten around to it. Nice selection of children’s books– have you seen how expensive children’s books are AND how fast they grow out of them! Anyway, prices are reasonable and there are comfy chairs to sit and comb through the books while making a decision on which ones to buy.

Skip this lousy bookstore… Smug owners… crummy books… dingy and messy. Employees who would rather not be there. There are so many better used bookstores out there. Do yourself a favor and skip this one. Overpriced for the quality of books and people.

Quite impressed with the neatness of the bookstore, how comfortable it is, and the great selection. I would have stayed longer (or actually purchased something) but I’ve been buying too many books lately.
Sometimes I just like to browse through interesting topics and peruse them for awhile. I have never been in another book store more accommodating for that. There are nice, poofy, and extremely comfortable chairs to sit on – with great views of downtown San Mateo.
Surprised at first how lax they are about bringing in your backpack (most bookstores I know in Berkeley make sure you check yours in) — but thieves be warned — there are wireless security cameras everywhere! (One of them probably took a photo of me taking a photo of the chillout area)
I would say it’s just as large as your average used book store, or maybe a little bigger. It’s super easy to find stuff because everything is so clean. I’m used to my bookstores feeling lived-​in with piles and piles of aging paperbacks everywhere, but B Street Books is just like a new Barnes & Nobles.
That may or may not appeal to you, but it sure made finding what I needed easier.
Really cool! Check out the signed copies of books, including Twlight from Stephanie Meyer ($ 99.99) and George R.R. Martin (a $ 199.99 copy of «Storm for Crows») Browsed through their fictional titles and even new copies are very competitively well-​priced: colored me impressed indeed.
A+++ Will definitely make a return trip

First off, let me say that I am incredibly sad and conflicted in giving this establishment such a low rating. Also, my negative review is SOLELY because of the horrendous customer service I have received on more than one occasion, and not the actual products they provide.
I am an avid reader, and strongly prefer shopping at independently owned bookstores rather than larger corporations such as Barnes and Noble or Borders. I was so excited and happy to see that B Street Books has been open so long, and is so centrally located in downtown San Mateo. Their ambiance is great, the music is lighthearted, and their selection is extensive. Purely based on the environment, it’s pretty much everything you could ask for from a small bookshop.
HOWEVER, the first time I went into this store the woman who works at the front desk (Caucasian woman, around the age of 35 – 45 with mid-​length brown hair) was incredibly rude when I entered the store. I said Hi in a friendly way and she looked directly at me and didn’t respond. The older man who was also behind the counter (out of pity or guilt) responded to my greeting with a brief Hi.
That’s fine, not everyone has to be friendly, and it wasn’t my first time with bad customer service. I paid for two books and left, with no thank you from the staff.
The reason why I was compelled to write this review is because of my 2^nd visit to this store.
I had just gotten done eating lunch at B st. and Vine, and had time to walk around town, as it was WINE WALK (where people walk around to various stores and sample wine while they walk IN the stores). B Street Books was an active participant in this wine walk.
I had leftovers in a box in my hand when I walked in. I always try to adhere to bookstores’ rules regarding food, so I nicely asked if I should keep the box at the counter or if it was OK to walk around with it.
The same rude woman behind the counter scowled at me, turned her back, and dismissively said «Yeah, if you don’t drop it… please.» Which is a bit rude, but that’s fine. I turned the corner where I was out of sight, and heard her say loudly to the other gentleman behind the counter «Especially if its CHINESE food… UGH».
I am a person of Asian descent, and while of course I can’t be SURE that this was meant to be racist (I mean, sure Chinese food would be smelly if it was dropped in a store), but it sure felt offensive to me.
She acted as if I was bringing in an open container of blood red staining liquid, and running around the store like a tipsy idiot — which, BY THE WAY is pretty much what you’re signing up for by participating in the WINE WALK where patrons are INVITED to come into the store with their open wine glasses.
Anyway, take this information as you will. I am so sad to give this wonderful place a negative review, but the horrific customer service needs to be dealt with.
FOR SHAME B Street Books!

One word to describe the service here– UNTRUSTING. I came in here to sell some books that I had originally bought from USF. The owner looks through the stack of books and says «we don’t buy textbooks because they don’t sell». Well that’s totally understandable so I thought, «ok, no biggie»
However, all of the books were novels (mostly history novels because I am a History major), and there was ONE textbook which I originally purchased for $ 170. The owner offered to buy 3 of my books for a total of $ 3, which included the $ 170 TEXTBOOK after he said «we don’t buy textbooks.» Funny how he offers to buy the ONLY TEXTBOOK I brought in after he says they don’t buy textbooks. He offered me $ 1.50 for a TEXTBOOK that I originally bought for $ 170.
What I don’t like is his initial disclaimer that they don’t buy textbooks because they don’t sell, yet he offered to buy my $ 170 TEXTBOOK for $ 1.50. Absolutely ridiculous and totally untrusting. He probably wanted to pocket that money for himself off Amazon or something. Totally misleading. Do NOT bring textbooks to sell here because I guarantee you will be conned.
**8/​19/​2014: I received a message, most likely from an employee, asking if I’m aware of how businesses work. Wow. Misleading and condescending.

It is nice to have some where to bring your unwanted books. I have never bought anything here, only brought books to sell.
He now has specific hours that you can drop your books off, the bummer is that he doesn’t look through them on the spot, you have to come back several hours later to see what he wants to buy and what he doesn’t. This also sord of sucks when you have several heavy bags, because parking in downtown is not easy, so you have to haul them to the store, then come back and try to find parking again to pick up the ones he doesn’t want. I would say on average, I have gotten 5% of the purchase price for my books, ie a book that cost $ 12, I got about .50 cents. For me, it wasn’t really about the buy back money, we were just trying to find these books a good home for those who still read off paper.