San Bruno is a suburb with a small commercial district/downtown but it punches way above it's weight class for public transport options. The BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) system stops here and will take you down to SFO airport, up into San Francisco, across the bridge to Oakland (and the Oakland Airport) or Berkeley, or all the way around the bay and down to towns in the east bay including Dublin/Pleasanton, Fremont and even North San Jose. You can also take the Caltrain stop from San Bruno down the peninsula to Redwood City, Palo Alto, San Jose and even down to Gilroy. There’s really no better suburb to live if you want to avoid driving around the Bay Area traffic. Oh, and if you do want to drive you’re right on the edges of 101 and 280, the two major freeways in the area. Finally, and to many the best part, you’re just a mile from SFO, the major Bay Area airport. 


Public Transportation

The Best Thing About San Bruno?

If you live a mile or two from an airport you’re going to hear the planes. Most residents seem to have gotten used to it, or know about it when they move in, or live on the western side of the city and don't hear it as much, but just good to know going in that planes taking off make some noise. 


Airport Racket

The Worst Thing About San Bruno?

San Bruno is an interesting, maybe even quirky place. Mostly thought of as a suburb but with a fair number of apartment/condo complexes to supplement the single family homes it has a mix of young professionals/couples and families. 

This diverse mix of locals share a funky downtown running along El Camino and San Mateo Avenue. The boutique mom-and-pop offerings include [**Kava Bar**](http://www.kavabarsanbruno.com/)), a cool spot serving Fiji’s national drink, Neelan Pacific Market and Fiji Market, family-owned markets offering international spices and foods. There are also truly one-of-a-kind shops including: a Hula dance school, [**Paradise Hooka Lounge**](https://paradisehookahlounge.com/), martial arts centers and any number of other non-chain experiences that make San Bruno feel like an old-school downtown neighborhood. 

There are of course plenty of suburban lifestyle happenings here. The outdoor experiences available are pretty amazing given the suburban settings. You have the Santa Cruz Mountains bordering the western edge of town, and a half dozen more wonderful outdoor parks and hiking trails inside the neighborhood borders. Raising the kiddos here means you'll get as much outdoor play as your heart desires and all the common little league sports happen within the parks and rec system San Bruno offers. 

Lifestyle of San Bruno

The San Bruno Elementary School District scores lower than the districts south of San Bruno with a B- on [**niche.com**](https://www.niche.com/k12/d/san-mateo-union-high-school-district-ca/). Depending on the neighborhood however you can find a school that bumps up into the B+’s so just keep an eye on that if you’re watching the school scores. At the high school level San Bruno is part of the San Mateo Union High School District which jumps to an A+ on [**niche.com**](https://www.niche.com/k12/d/san-mateo-union-high-school-district-ca/). Peninsula and Capuchino are the two public high schools in the city with Capuchino the higher performer in part due to their IB and AP offerings and in part due to the diversity of students and supportive administration. 


Schools in San Bruno

We like the quirk of San Bruno. It’s quiet (notwithstanding the airport) relative to other bigger neighbors but has a diverse population in all the ways that's possible: age, race/ethnicity, etc., and that diversity is supported by local restaurants and shops that come from a diverse community of quirky shopkeepers. If you’re looking for cookie-cutter, posher neighborhoods then you can find them. If you’re looking for something with more flavor, put San Bruno on your list. 


The Cool Quirk

Why You Should Move Here Now?

San Bruno’s downtown district is not a classic suburban/town “downtown” with a grassy square and community events happening every Saturday. Instead it centers around the commercial district between Huntington Ave and El Camino Real. As noted in the lifestyle section it’s filled with cool restaurants, boutique shops, a Hookah Lounge and even a 105-year old casino, [**Artichoke Joe’s**](https://artichokejoes.com/). There are plenty of apartment and condo options in the neighborhood, along with some single-family homes, but it’s truly ideal for young professionals or couples who want to be right on the BART and Caltrain station lines for commuting to work or play and have a few options for nights out when you want to stay local. 


Families/Young Professionals/DINKs

Downtown

Portola Highlands is a small, secluded neighborhood in San Bruno’s western hills that is much beloved by locals who appreciate how the homes often back up to the protected open spaces on the hills. The area has one street entrance via Sneath Lane that circles the neighborhood and gives it a private vibe, particularly when combined with the elevated position of the homes. 

The homes in Portola Highlands were mostly built in the 1960’s, which means they are larger than those on the flats of San Bruno (typically 2,000 sq ft+), and they also sit on bigger lots, meaning the kiddos have more room to play, and you have more room to breathe the fresh mountain-ish air. Another bonus for locals –  the highest rated district school, Portola Elementary, is right in the neighborhood. 


Families

Portola Highlands

Mills Park is one of San Bruno’s first neighborhoods. Built for the most part at the end of WWII it is known for modest, one-story homes that were intended as starter homes for returning GI’s and other middle class couples and families looking to escape the city. Since then many have been bought and expanded on the typically 5,000 sq ft lots. 

Locals appreciate Mills Park for its proximity to downtown, which it borders to the east, and the 280 freeway, which it borders to the west. The blocks here wind along nice curving, quiet streets so even though you’re a walk to the restaurants and shops of downtown, you also get a nice quiet, suburban feel. [**Grundy Park**](https://www.sanbruno.ca.gov/Facilities/Facility/Details/Grundy-Park-14 ) is smack dab in the middle of the neighborhood so the kiddos have a great big open grass area to run around, along with a nice playground and picnic areas for the whole family. 

Families/DINKs

Mills Park

Huntington Park is one of San Bruno’s first “suburban” neighborhoods, with homes built just prior and just after WWII. It is the most southern of the San Bruno neighborhoods and that is a huge plus if you’re looking to avoid some of the fog you get in the more northern and western areas. Don’t underestimate the importance of micro-climates along the coast of Northern California!

Another huge bonus to Huntington Park is the presence of the city’s most beloved green spaces, [**San Bruno Park**](https://www.sanbruno.ca.gov/Facilities/Facility/Details/City-Park-3) and [**Junipero Serra County Park**](https://www.smcgov.org/parks/junipero-serra-park). No other neighborhood offers as much green space within walking distance. With that you also get a short walk to the El Camino commercial district and [**Parkside**](https://www.sbpsd.org/o/pis), San Bruno’s only public middle school, is in the neighborhood. 


Huntington Park

Crestmoor is on the western edge of San Bruno and much beloved for how it runs alongside the base of the Santa Cruz Mountains and a walk from San Andreas Lake reservoir. If you’re looking for a suburban neighborhood that gives you direct access to some of the most beautiful land in the country then put Crestmoor on your list. In addition to the mountains you also have Buckeye and Crestmoor Canyon Parks in the neighborhood so you really can’t do better for an outdoor lifestyle than Crestmoor.  Crestmoor Canyon/Crestmoor Canyon Park are in particular pretty amazing, with over 76 acres of wooded hiking trails and play spaces for families. 


Crestmoor

San Bruno

**Question about San Bruno

Hello, my wife and I are considering moving to San Bruno in the next month or so. We found an apartment we like, but I am nervous about the neighborhood. I didn't grow up in a city so I am pretty paranoid about this kind of thing.

The location is between El Camino Real and the 101, on 5th Street just north of San Bruno Ave E.**

Answer: Alright, guess I'll give it a go. I've lived in San Bruno for a while right in the heart of the Avenues, right next to Belle Air Elementary School. The area may seem sketchy at times but it's perfectly safe. You'll have some neighborhood kids and illegal fireworks go off every now and then but it isn't that bad.

Parking sucks balls though and San Bruno is know as Trench Town for narrows streets so driving in that area might be a bit annoying. The walk from 5th Ave all the way to Bart isn't bad at all, I'll be much safer (I'd like to think) once they finish development of the apartment complex in front of the caltrain station.

You got Tanforan Mall so there's always plenty of people around in case of anything. Police Station is literally next to Bart. Any issues, SBPD will respond pretty quick. They are pretty nice officers although there's plenty of youngsters I don't recognize.

San Mateo Ave is pretty good in terms of food so there's much to explore if you like dining out close by. There's also San Bruno Park (Crystal Springs) which is about a mile up west and it's really pretty around this time of the year. There's also the reservoir next to Skyline Blvd so take your honey for a nice walk around the lake, or if your feeling adventurous go all the way past Skyline and do the Sweeny Ridge hike. You can see Pacifica and The Bay from there.

I think that's all I can think of for now. Any questions let me know. San Bruno is nice but it isn't Paradise. Although am very fond of it.


**San Bruno vs Millbrae?**

If possible, look for something around the Mills Park neighborhood (between Bayhill Shopping Center on San Bruno Avenue and San Bruno Park on Crystal Springs). I would not recommend the eastern side of El Camino Real (downtown San Bruno) - houses are much older and crowded together.

Parts of San Bruno can get very foggy, especially the hills. The parts that aren't foggy are windy. This is good - it blows the fumes and some of the noise from the airport out to San Leandro.

The houses in San Bruno tend to be smaller and somewhat older than most of the houses in Millbrae, although once you get up into the hills, there aren't as many differences. The price difference between a home in the flatlands of San Bruno vs. the flatlands of Millbrae is something I never understood.

Millbrae has slightly better weather and a better reputation, but both San Bruno and Millbrae are fine places. Capuchino High School isn't as good a school as Mills High School but has an International Baccalaureate program which is quite good. Parkside Junior High in San Bruno is awful - thank God it's only two years. Most of the elementary schools (with the possible exception of Allen Elementary School) are good.

Millbrae has a more extensive Asian population, mostly Chinese. San Bruno has a more mixed population, with a large Fijian/Samoan population, some Palestinians, and a larger Hispanic population than Millbrae. You'll also find many Italian and Irish heritage, plus of course whatever mixes these groups come up with.

I remember reading a while back that San Bruno has more San Francisco police and firefighters living there than any other city outside of San Francisco, but I couldn't find a citation to back that up.

Both have extensive sports programs, both football/soccer and baseball. San Bruno has the Posey Parade, a children-only parade held the first weekend in June each year since 1941. San Bruno has the better teams, but Millbrae spends more.

Downtown San Bruno has Mexicana Produce, one of my favorite produce stores; Aji-Ichi, a good Japanese restaurant; Taqueria San Bruno, a very good taqueria; and the Shops at Tanforan, a mall.

Downtown Millbrae has a Kohls department store, Shanghai Dumpling, Hong Kong Flower Lounge, Lai Lai (the old fashioned American Chinese restaurant), 18 Mile House, and a more invigorated downtown.

Source: I lived in San Bruno for 22 years, wife grew up in Millbrae. I'd be happy to have my kids grow up in either location.

**Thinking of Moving to San Bruno , California? Watch This First! |San Bruno Neighborhood Guide**

San Bruno, California

Little Italy

Looklyloo Score: 83

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