Burlingame Terrace

Burlingame Terrace is yet another Burlingame neighborhood packed with homes from pre-WWII. Some of them date back to the WWI, actually.

These are not the large stately homes that you encounter in Easton Addition. These are smaller homes—a lot more in the Bungalow vein than in the Tudor manor vein. There are exceptions to this general rule. In the narrow lane of Willborough Road at Willborough Place, there are some really attractive cottage style homes with thatched roofs and French style windows with decorative wood shutters. They don’t have much by way of yards and the lane separating them from their across the street neighbors is barely wide enough for one car—but this does give the location a certain cozy feel.

Now, if this neighborhood were in Berkeley or Oakland across the Bay you could probably slice property prices in half, but because this is Burlingame, the median home price here is $1 million. This definitely seems excessive, even by Peninsula standards, but that is what it is.

Of course, there are huge differences between the East Bay and the Peninsula. One big difference is the schools. McKinley Elementary, Crocker Middle School and Burlingame High have API’s in the 7 to 10 range. This is an outstanding educational system that ranks amongst the best in the country.

The other difference, of course, is crime. In the last six months this neighborhood has only experienced about a dozen thefts and 3 assaults (mostly along Broadway where the restaurants and the CalTrain station are located). That is closer to what certain places in the East Bay experience in one week.

That said, this is not just a residential neighborhood. Along the five blocks that make up Broadway you will find a number of restaurants and stores.

There are about 3 Mediterranean places (the best of which is probably Mivan in my opinion); there are also 3 places you can get a good “American” meal (Broadway Grill being the best—it double as a nightspot where you can take in some live jazz on certain nights); a pair of Italian places (Café Figaro and Rocca); and about a dozen East Asian places (the best and most expensive being Coucou Japanese Cuisine).

Many of those restaurants make for good date spots, but if you just want to hang out with friends and have a beer, Behan’s Irish Pub should certainly be your destination.

You can also find your usual assortment of peripheral stores here from a clothing boutique, to a hair stylist (Supercuts) and a nail salon to a coin store and liquor store. It’s one of those very walkable old fashion lanes that is pleasant to visit, on one’s day off.

Overall, this is pretty nice area that has something for everyone—from commuting professionals to singles who like to have a neighborhood bar to frequent to families looking for great schools.

Unfortunately the prices will make sure only the very well-off can manage to settle here permanently.

Burlingame Terrace, also known as “the Terrace,” is a densely populated bayside community within walking distance of downtown Burlingame. In fact, it borders two main streets of downtown: El Camino Real and Broadway. The skinny street of Broadway is the district’s main commercial hub and provides mostly small-town shopping options (boutique stores, mildly chic restaurants, coffee joints and specialty stores). And for perspective residents, the area offers a mix between one and two-story homes with polished suburban aesthetics.

Burlingame Terrace’s residential quarters are nothing too special. They consist of a wide range of middle-class homes usually offering small, thin properties with shallow, but relatively well-maintained yards. They also lay ground to skinny driveways and hardly any garage space. The median house is priced between $750,000 to $1.2 million, while rents tend to average above $1,200/month. If you head towards Broadway, there are a handful of bland-looking, two-story apartment buildings with mildly attractive house fronts. But for better homes and a better living environment, look towards the northeastern corner of the neighborhood.

The subdivision spans less than 0.4 square miles and is bounded by El Camino Real to the south, Oak Grove Avenue to the east, California Drive to the north and Broadway to the north. For commuters, US Route 101 is a block north of the district and connects residents up and down the San Francisco peninsula. Also, the Broadway Caltrain anchors the northern edge of the community. Demographically speaking, the community’s total population is approaching 4,000 residents, most of whom are of white decent (asian and hispanic residents make up 15% and 10% respectively).