Third and Fourth Avenues form the spine of downtown San Mateo, running east-west through a compact walkable grid a few blocks from the Caltrain station. The neighbourhood has a strong Japanese American character — visible in the density of Japanese restaurants, the Japanese-language signage on some businesses, and the annual Obon festival held each August, one of the larger Buddhist memorial festivals in the Bay Area. Alongside this heritage sits a newer layer of wine bars, coffee shops, and California-cuisine restaurants that have arrived as the area has gentrified.
The blocks are genuinely pleasant to walk: storefronts stay occupied, independent businesses outnumber chains, and the scale is human. B Street, running parallel to the north, has a few more bars and later-night spots. The farmers market at Central Park on Saturday mornings is a short walk away.