Campbell

The stage for a cast of musically inclined bohemians, laptop-toting grad students, fast-talking dot-com biz nerds, and other colorful locals.

Mexican food in a vegetable-forward style with traditional ingredients such as beans, corn, and nopales. Most dishes are made in-house from fresh ingredients – even the tortilla chips. Good options for people on lower-carb diets.

Go there for breakfast. Gluten-free options.

Excellent Indian food.

Mexican fast food you could build a hacienda out of - that's a compliment, by the way.

Pub serving excellent fresh local craft beer. Has a nice outdoor patio. Bring your own food.

A Tuscan-style retreat. Smoke-free hotel with a pool and jacuzzi, fitness center and 24 hour business center. Free Wi-Fi, continental breakfast, newspaper delivery and parking. Restaurants and grocery store nearby in the Pruneyard. Near VTA bus routes 61 and 26. Half-mile walk to the VTA Green line light rail station.

Includes full kitchen. The larger upstairs suites can accommodate up to five people, including two cribs. Easy walk to an upscale grocery store and the Bascom & Curtner bus stop for VTA bus route 61, which runs from Good Samaritan Hospital through downtown San Jose. Smaller suites at ground level are wheelchair-accessible.

Rooms with kitchenettes. Includes parking for two vehicles. Next door to Campbell Park, with playgrounds and basketball courts, and the Los Gatos Creek Trail for exercise. On VTA bus route 26.

All suites have a fully equipped kitchen. You can find freshly made cookies in the lobby, a fitness center and a library. On VTA bus route 56, which runs west to the Westgate shopping malls and then north to Lockheed Martin in Sunnyvale.

The local upscale shopping center. Has restaurants, a Trader Joe's grocery store, and a cinema.

Eat dinner at the dine-in movie multiplex.

An excellent record shop featuring hard to find new and used CDs, DVDs, clothing, etc. If for some reason you can't find it there, try Streetlight Records up Bascom Avenue to the north.

This branch of San Jose's best used book store opened in 2004. The original store is still in business on the Alameda. This location has a little of everything, including several resident cats. Good sci-fi selection, but much more, too.