Birder’s Garden

This morning my 5 year-​old and I painted and assembled a small wooden bird feeder kit. And with that, I finally had a reason to visit Birder’s Garden, a business that I’ve known about for years. We stopped by shortly after lunch to get some bird feed. We walked in and were welcomed by birdhouses and feeders of all shapes and sizes. A nice woman showed us to the bulk bird feed and recommended sunflower seeds, so we bought a prepackaged 5 pound bag and a hook for attaching the feeder to a tree branch.
Wandered around the store for a bit longer, it’s got lots of bird guidebooks and cute bird-​related decorations. Maybe we’ll come back to pick up a hummingbird feeder at some point soon. Or maybe even another feeder, since we now have 4.75 pounds of bird seed hanging out in our garage. Overall this is a really cute shop, and I can’t think of any other place to go if you’re looking to welcome some birds into your yard.

Extensive selection of everything you need for backyard bird feeding. Excellent service with a not-​always smile, but always well meaning for our local birds. Prices are competitive and the feeder service they perform is fast and reasonable.

The birds in my yard eat nothing but their seeds! Even though its more expensive than amazon seed, the variety and number of birds their seeds attract, far outweighs the price difference.

Walked in to buy some bird seed. Got to the counter with my bag and noted an online sale announcement I received from her store for 15 per cent off. She said her computer was down that day and therefore she could not give me the discount for that reason. I countered that 15 per cent off a round number — this bill was about $ 30 — was a simple matter of taking off 4.50, or 0.15 times 30. She got quite huffy and said no, it could not be done that way. So for the sake of peace and future buys, I paid the full amount and said I would take a rain check on the sale. A few months later, I bought something else there and reminded her at the cash counter that she owed me 4.50 credit on the earlier purchase. She rudely and loudly said «you did not come here that month, and that was not the month I had the sale» — in other words, I was lying. I told her she had a great selection and decent prices, but in view of this treatment that our trading with her was at an end, as I was a multi-​year customer and did not deserve to be treated that way.

I adore this store! They stock everything you need to attract birds to your yard — birdbaths, bird feeders, seed, identifier cards, window decals (to keep birds from hitting your windows) and even nesting material. They will clean feeders for $!0 (sometimes they offer it up for free). A real treasure! I feel so fortunate to have this store in town.

PROS —
— The whole store is focused JUST for birds
— Great selection of food and accessories
— Exceptional customer service and very knowledgeable
CONS —
— Closed Mondays
— Location is on busy El Camino Real
SUMMARY —
A fantastic place for all your birding needs. Great selection of products coupled with great service makes for a winning business. I wouldn’t waste your time going to a regular pet chain store as they are more focused towards Cats, Dogs, Fish.
If you go here (Birder’s Garden), which I highly recommend, beware of their ferocious store pup!

High quality CA seed, fair prices, and good selection. Worth driving a little out of the way to support this shop.

Admittedly, I’m a little bit of a bird nerd. I like to take care of my neighborhood birdie buddies. When I am running low on supplies, I stop in here.
They have everything. Bulk seeds. Bagged seeds. Suet cakes. Seed cakes. Seed wreaths. Jay-​proof feeders. Squirrel-​proof feeders. Hummingbird feeders. Oriole feeders. Utilitarian bird houses. Decorative bird houses. Nyger socks for birds. Socks for humans with birds on them. Cards with birds on them. Candles (for humans, not for birds — perhaps made of beeswax, and then they could make a clever «birds and bees» connection). And a lot of things for which I did not know the purpose, but found intriguing nonetheless.
OK, you’ve probably had enough of my Seussian rundown of their product line. But seriously, for a relatively small shop, they have a large selection of items. And, I’ve personally found the service friendly and knowledgable.
Bottom line: You wanna be the place all the cool birds hang out… get your supplies here.
And oh yeah, they carry items for squirrels. Why you’d want to encourage squirrels is beyond me, but hey, different strokes.

A great place to start birding. I didn’t know how to start, but they got me off on the right foot and enjoying birds. Fair prices, nice feeders, and great deals for loyal customers.

my personal experience at this store has always been great. the staff is professional and knowledgeable. have been going here for years and the online web store is very good for a local business. she carries optics, books, feeders, custom no-​waste seed mixes for patios, nesting, just about anything needed for birding needs is in this great cozy store. bonnie has been running the whole show great for quite awhile. prices for no-​waste seed is very competitive.

I stopped in here just passing by and I noticed all the terrific supplies for those of us who either backyard bird, feed the birds, or are birders. Everything from feed (suet to self-​serve, bulk, thistle seeds and many premium seed mixes), to nesting supplies, they have it here. And there was a taller, older woman (sorry did not get her name, but she was not the owner) who was so very helpful to us when we were trying to located a Shepard’s Hook to hang our feeder from.
I did note that issue with the a woman that Josh G. and H B. noted in their reviews; barely on the edge of civility, she was clearly either bored or unable to make any really positive impression on me. She was the first person who met me, with little enthusiasm, and I learned later that she was the owner. I saw that attitude and what the other reviewers experienced.
I like to support locally owned and operated stores because it is good for the local economy, but when going through the trouble of packing the store with such obviously great things, it makes little sense to show little or no pride in the wares. In this case, she had another person in the shop who remained on his cellphone, watching an apparently important game, who might have been an employee but did not appear to act like one in any way. Maybe he just liked to hang out there as a friend. Not sure.
So one out of three people in the shop were great, and that is sad because this shop needs to be about service and pride in the wonderful store items.
Nonetheless, birders are generally great, giving people and I will probably going back to check Birder’s Garden out again and see how service remains.

I’ve shopped here several times over several years and it is always the same. The owner and/​or clerk is rude, snappy, condescending and generally unfriendly. They can never answer questions about birding or bird feeding nor do they show an interest in doing so. I have given them many chances, but now I go in to look at what I want then go buy somewhere else. If you hate your job so much, please leave it to someone who will have enthusiasm for the products and an interest in helping customers. I try to always shop local independent shops even if it is more expensive, but not if the owners are rude.

Excellent source for all things wild bird and the bird enthusist. Bonnie is very knowledgeable and has a bounty of information on wild bird rehabs in the area. She has helped point me in the right direction on two wild birds I found in distress and in need of help.

Bonnie was sweet, and her little shop was too!
we were given a little lesson on who comes to what seed, and we shopped accordingly.
I will now have happy birds in my garden, and we’ll see how the squirrels like the new feeder too.
I think that if you are looking for some nice birdy and gardeny things, you should stop in.
She even has the nicest wind chimes… I want the big one!
update — 9−29−10
I have LOTS OF BIRDS here now! wooohooo do the birds Unilocal about who has good seed and a stocked feeder? I bet they gave me five stars!

A great little store with a great selection of bird watching & feeding accessories. I found this place while looking for a specific kind of bird feeder for my sister. No one at the bigger hardware stores had even heard of what I was talking about, but Birder’s had three in stock. They had lots of different field guides, as well as several styles of feed on hand. If you are looking for high-​quality hobbyist stuff, stop here first.

Awesome store! I discovered birds when I moved to San Carlos and they are so peaceful to watch. I came to the store by a recommendation and I fell in love. I started with one feeder and now have four and I buy the seed every 2 weeks.
The staff is great! There is the owner who is very knowledgeable. Occasionally she may seem a little «busy» or quick, but she really is nice. And the young girl (maybe her daughter?) is absolutely pleasant and helpful. She has a little dog that does the opposite of bite, he rolls over for pets!
I definitely recommend this place. Stop going to pet stores for bird stuff, you will love this specialty store and the advice that is readily available.

If you like birds in your backyard this is the store for you! Wonderful local business with a great selection of feeders, books, accessories and some neat items like solar powered fountains for birdbaths.
Where Birder’s Garden really shines is their feed selection. A wide variety of feeds for area birds in 5 and 20lb. bags as well as in bulk so you can make your own blend. They carry seeds you don’t often find like safflower. The price is comparable to other bulk bags but is really a savings when you consider the quality of BG’s seed. I found out the hard way that if you use inferior seed the birds scatter the light seeds all over your deck and lawn in order find the few plump seeds.
The staff is nice, knowledgable and helpful. Truly patient — the woman answered a phone call from someone who was trying to identify a bird in her back yard. Oh, and the dog that someone said bites passed away and the new dog is nice.

The store has everything you would need to start backyard birdfeeding. However the owner was a bit snippy with me when I asked her about lens cap covers for binoculars. She said she just throws hers away and insisted that Eagle Optics has gone out of business. Frankly, having a decade of ornithology experience, and knowing numerous professional ornithologists – both statements made her sound stupid. As a research biologist, you make sure your optics are protected because you may find yourself in rugged conditions. She’s probably used to urban birding. Whatever. Nice store though.

Who could imagine there would be a local shop that sells everything related to birds in your garden and that this shop would be so crowded on a Saturday morning.
We wanted a bird feeder for our garden so we decided to check the place out. The helpful staff was very knowledgeable about which type of feeder with which kind of seed mix was appropriate for which type of bird. Who knew there was so many factors?
We left with a nice copper bird feeder with a seed blend for the birds of the area and a hummingbird feeder.

This is a great store for all your birding needs. Locally owned and operated, the staff is ALWAYS extremely friendly and helpful. I have purchased at least 5 different bird feeders, seed, poles and outdoor decorations from them.
They have many different types of seeds in bulk that you can either purchase in 5# bags they have packaged, or you can scoop your own and purchase less if you like. They have occasional specials that they will mail to you (if you’re on their mailing list) where you can purchase a 20# bag at a 20% discount. The also have a special seed custom blend/​mix created by the owner that I always purchase.
They have an amazing selection of bird feeders and gifts. From bird baths, bird houses, humming bird feeders, squirrel resistant feeders, books, squirrel food, and garden accessories. I love this store but I also am really appreciative of the informative staff. As young as most of them are, they are good kids with a very positive and helpful attitude. You can go in there knowing nothing about birds and come out a lot more informed. AND I found out today that they will clean your bird feeders free of charge! That is one dirty job. Love Love Love this store!