Ryan "Yank" K.'s Profile

I recently needed to replace my water heater, and with Thanksgiving only a couple days away I needed to do it FAST.  After calling around to several places for blind quotes, I spoke with Bill Dempster at Dempster plumbing.  He quoted a good price, without monkeying around at all.

I was still hoping to find a better price, so I made more calls and even had one person come by to do an in person, formal quote.  Not only was it more, it was almost two and a half times more.  And it was all add-ons like "new flexline", "new TMP", "new ball valve", etc.  When I told him about the better quote he assured me that there was no way it would hold up once the plumber showed up and saw my setup.

Long story short, I nervously called Dempster back to see if I should expect add'l costs and was assured that I had nothing to worry about.  When the guys showed up I was pleasantly surprised to see that EVERYTHING the other plumber suggested would be extra ... was included.  They also did a great job positioning the unit better than it had been, and cleaned up quickly.  

All in all a fantastic experience.

Good service from a guy that I can trust.  Been taking our cars to Chris for more than 10 years.

98 Golf
96 Celica
06 Passat

He specializes in German, but had no problems with the wife's older Celica when we brought it in.  She's now driving the Golf, which is still running strong after 13 years.

Prices are fair, and assessments are honest, which is really all you can ask for from a mechanic.  

The only problem is that he is usually swamped, so make your appointments EARLY.

Wow, so much hate.  It makes me wonder what people were expecting when they decided to visit.  Here's what you need to know about the Campbell Hooters.

Food is great sports bar fare.  You can get the wings breaded or not, and in a variety of flavors.  I don't like that they charge extra for blue cheese or celery, but I can live with it.  Just don't be surprised when you see those charges on your bill.

Tons of seating and tons of big TVs, which make it a great spot to go for any sporting event.  They also show PPV fights and don't charge a cover, but get there early if you want a seat.

They have great Happy Hour and beer specials.  Drinks and apps are half-price.  I'd like it if the weekday HH extended a little after 6, but they make up for it with late night HH from 10-close 7 nights a week.  There really isn't a better place to go for a beer and snack after 10.  They also offer a variety of beer specials on NFL days once the season starts.  

People here seem obsessed with harping on the girls.  Some are gorgeous, others are not, and sure...a lot of the patrons are there just to stare.  But for the most part they are friendly and while I wouldn't mind if they wore a little more (so people would judge me less for going) I don't think it should be that big a deal.  

They have great HH prices, sell beer by the pitcher (shockingly rare nowadays), have tons of TVs, and a lot of food to snack on.  GIrls or not, it covers the bases I care about for a sports bar.

It's a fun little neighborhood place, just a little outside of the downtown area.  Overall the place is kind of small, with a bunch of tables all clustered together.  Seems to be perfect for some post softball boozing on a weekend afternoon.  

Staff is very nice, and food seems to be above average.  They charge a reasonable cover for PPV sporting events, but with free alternatives nearby I think I'd be more inclined to give them a shot if they only enforce the cover if your tab is below $20 or so.

Definitely worth checking out if you want a change of pace from the downtown area.

This place is HUGE.  They claim to be the biggest Hooters in the world, and they're probably right.  Tons of seating.  Went there before a Mavs game and the place was filled with people getting in some wings and beer before the game.  Only a few blocks from the American Airlines Arena, they offer shuttle service on game nights.

Food was exactly what you would expect from Hooters.  Girls were nice, and there were so many.  Good place to watch or prepare for a game.

This store makes me think that Yelp really needs a 2.5 star rating.  I would give this place 5 stars for pricing, and 0 stars for everything else.  Don't bother asking anyone for help unless it is to do a price match.  In many cases you can get them to skip the call if you come in at 8am when the other places aren't open yet to take the call.  Just show them an ad and they will match.  Do the same later in the day and they may make you wait while they call.

Could be the worst service of any Home Depot in the South Bay.  If you have a special order don't be surprised if you will be left standing at the service desk for 10-20 minutes while people stand around doing nothing other than finding every way possible not to make eye contact.  If you feel comfortable demanding attention you should be ok.

Some of the specialty department people really do know their stuff, but it is hit or miss.  Sometimes you will just want to push them out of the way and run the computer yourself.  It couldn't possibly take any longer than watching them fumble around.  

In one case I actually had a girl in the flooring department start to help me and then take a call midstream and leave me standing there for 10 minutes while she tried (unsuccessfully) to help the caller.  After leaving me there all that time, she finished with the call and then proceeded to tell me that she couldn't really help me but I could instead wait for the guy she called over to help the caller instead.

UPDATE: 1/15/09 - I was in the other day and had a much better experience this time around.  It made me realize that I should probably clarify my frustration a little.  My issues were all stemming from experiences with the "experts" working the flooring and counters/cabinets departments.  They just never seem to be very "expert."  The people working in or around the other departments are usually much more helpful and will almost always walk you to wherever your desired part/tool is.

If you are looking for a quality meal without really going overboard on the price, this place delivers.  There are better steakhouses around, but I'll take the Campbell Outback over most steak joints in the area (especially Forbes Mill in LG - nice place but not nearly worth the price).  

Bloomin' Onion or Cheese Fries are great starters (though you should ask for the 1/2 order on the fries...it is off menu and is cheaper but still HUGE).  The Victoria's Filet is awesome, but the best value on the menu is the Outback Special.  Like most steakhouses they cook on the rare side, so listen close to your server when they tell you that a Med Rare will be "Red and Warm" and the medium will be "Pink with a touch of Red in the middle".  It is about one temp off of most places you probably have been to.

Staff is great and they are very fast with the service.  One of the best around in terms of getting you in and out.

This place could be my least favorite place in all of the south bay...but is surely the last place in the Campbell/LG area that I would ever want to visit.  There are some great people working there, but it doesn't solve the lousy decor, the annoying music, the overpriced drinks, the lack of ANYTHING on draft, and the abundance of shiny shirts and snooty people.

The beer is good and the bar is lively...but there are some other things you will need to consider.  Service can be VERY slow.  I don't think it is the servers' fault...but more so that the place just runs slow.  For this reason it can be dangerous for a work lunch because you could find that you have been there for an hour before your food comes.  

Food is good, but nothing spectacular. My friends and I always enjoy adding the side salad to the entree.