
Ask HN: What do geeks in Palo Alto do on weekend nights? - vishaldpatel
How do you (or do you) socialize? What do _most_ do?<p>Yes I realize that geeks are normal people too. But lets not kid ourselves... they aren't.
======
rcoder
I lived in Palo Alto for a couple of years, and basically just didn't go out
(weekend or otherwise) after 8pm unless one of my friends with a car wanted to
drive to San Francisco for the night. Caltrain is fine during the day on
weekends (e.g., for shopping and dinner outings) but shuts down far too early
to really do bars/clubs/concerts in the city and still get home. (BART has
similar issues, if you're trying to get in and out of east bay.)

The upside is that the city is only 40 minutes away; the downside is that SF
tends to be kind of a black hole for culture, sucking everything cool into the
city limits and leaving the south bay with all the strip malls, supermarkets,
and car dealerships.

If you're going to school or working a startup, it can be survivable. There
are enough coffee shops, cafes, and restaurants around downtown Palo Alto to
let you pass a lazy Sunday afternoon pleasantly enough, and the occasional
trip to SF by car (or by train, with a hotel stay in the middle) helps to
alleviate the boredom.

~~~
jaredsohn
>(BART has similar issues, if you're trying to get in and out of east bay.)

Fortunately, the AC Transit 8xx bus lines run from the Transbay Terminal in
the city along East Bay BART routes after BART shuts down and leave every hour
(and every half hour for awhile on weekend nights.)

There are SamTrans buses that take you between the city and Palo Alto after
Caltrain shuts down but they leave every hour and take a couple of hours for
the trip.

------
dotBen
Here's a different perspective to show the grass isn't greener on the other-
side:

I've lived in San Francisco for 4.5yrs and sometimes I feel lost for
interesting places to hang out in the evenings here in The City.

I'm not really interested in the pretentious hipster scene bars of Mission, I
don't like the LA-wannabe scene of Marina and most of SoMa's clubs cater for
East Bay bridge and tunnel crowd _(before you think I'm being snobby I find
the East Bay crowd unfriendly to city living folks, and all of the violet
situations I've witnessed in clubs/bars have been from East Bay types. We're
not talking Berkeley types but the more 'heavier' Oakland/Freemont/Hayward
scene)_.

And everything closes at 2am (although granted, that's a CA-wide policy).

I guess I say all of the above with the disclosure that I'm a native of
London, a 24/7 city with more bars and clubs than you could visit in a year.

~~~
variety
If you need NYC/London/LA/Moscow/Mexico City/etc -style megacity sense of
scale and/or civilized drinking hours to stay sane then you'll _never_ be
happy in SF. But if you can deal with its boutique dimensions (and the cold),
then the problem may simply be that you're hanging out in the wrong
neighborhoods.

The "real" SF resides pretty much in the Tenderloin - Nob Bill - Chinatown -
City Lights triangle these days, I find. There are also pockets of
civilization out in the "lost" neighborhoods: Cafe Du Mond; the Rite Spot;
Amnesia on Valencia; and (yes) the Utah Bar, as well as a few others too cool
to name here.

But the main thing is that wherever you go, there you, umm, are. Ultimately
you have to _decide_ to be happy with your surroundings -- or decide to change
them.

I think in SF/Oakland/Alameda it's pretty easy to concentrate on the
positives. The South Bay and the Peninsula are pretty much lost causes,
though.

------
nspiegelberg
Despite the facade of University Avenue, Palo Alto is a pretty tame suburban
atmosphere. I tend to drive or Caltrain out to San Fran if I want to do
something on the weekend.

Then again, if you have someone to hang with, all these awesome Open Space
Preserves makes for great hiking/biking. My favorite is Astradero just because
its a 5 min drive from my house.

------
sep
I bet that in some startups, the following answer applies: "The same thing we
do every night, Pinky - try to take over the world!"

------
garply
Code. Sometimes under the influence.

------
neilk
Beats me. I had to leave the South Bay because it was driving me insane.

I worked on an acquired events-related startup, and when we lived in the South
Bay, none of us went to any events.

Although SF is tantalizingly close, it is always too much of a hassle when you
factor in transportation or parking.

~~~
rue
No specific knowledge of this area yet, but in a similar situation elsewhere
I/we just grabbed a hotel room in the city for a night or two.

------
acabal
Nothing. That's why I left. Some folks like the SF nightlife scene but I
wasn't a big fan of that either. Too many hipsters. Plus it's impossible at
nights because of the lack of transport back to the south bay.

~~~
vishaldpatel
Okay, so where are you now and what do you do on weekend nights?

~~~
acabal
I travel the world. Three months ago I was in Brussels, for the last two
months I've been in Munich, now I'm in London, then I go to Chicago for
Christmas with the family. Munich is one of my favorite cities and the
atmosphere there soundly beats anything I've found in the states. London is,
well, London--there's a reason it's been one of the cultural capitals of the
western world for as long as it has been.

That's one of the perks of being a young, single web entrepreneur living in a
time of global English, wifi, and cheap airfare--I can live and work wherever
I want :)

Edit: for a map of some places I've been, check out my company's web site:
<http://turkeysandwichindustries.com>

~~~
wilhelm
I'm currently staying two months in Tokyo to visit friends and work on my own
software startup, and I think traveling around like like you do would be my
ideal lifestyle. (c:

May I ask how you're organizing the practicalities of accomodation and food,
and how much you're spending compared to at home?

~~~
acabal
It's all pretty easy. Every country seems to have their Craigslist equivalent
where you can find apartments to stay in for a short term (a month or two).
I've spent a lot of time in hostels in the past, which are a fun and cheap way
to live as well. If you're new to long-term traveling those would be a good
option to get you started because you meet lots of interesting people. But
after a while you kind of need your own space and living in a 20-bed dorm
stops cutting it, regardless of how cool the people there are.

Since I rent rooms in apartments they usually have their own kitchens. I cook
for myself or go out with friends to eat.

The rent varies greatly from place to place. I've been told by many that
Munich is the most expensive city in Germany. I rented a big room in a rather
small apartment in a great part of town (next to Ostbahnhof) for 150 euro a
week with one roommate That seems to be about the right price based on the
other offers I found. In Belgium, I lived in a small town just south of
Brussels. I rented a room from a retired couple who lived in a 3-story country
house with a huge, beautiful garden and massive kitchen for 100 euro per week.
They were frequently gone so I had the house to myself. In London there's a
website called Gumtree that's like Craigslist. I found a room for 160 pounds
per week. It was much harder finding a room in London than anywhere else
because everything is outrageously expensive and everyone seems to want a
minimum 6 month stay (I'm only here for 3 weeks).

In Belgium you can get a bottle of 12% Trappist for ~2 euro; in Germany a
liter of beer for ~6 euro and a pint for ~3 euro; in England a pint for ~3
pounds. Food at the grocery seemed cheapest in Germany, where I never found
myself spending more than 15 euro in one visit that would last me a few days
of eating well.

So, after you convert euros and pounds to dollars, you can see that it varies
a lot. In England in particular the conversion rate is killer--something like
1.6 dollars to a pound right now.

My advice would be if you really want to do some long term travel, just buy
your ticket and do it. It's really extremely easy to figure things out once
you arrive somewhere. You can email me at my username at ucla.edu if you want
any more info.

------
rflrob
I'm a big fan of Friday Night Waltz (<http://www.fridaynightwaltz.com/>),
which is cheap, fun, social, and darn good exercise too.

~~~
iloveyouocean
And for those people who feel their dancing skills are inadequate, one of the
best dance instructors in the country (Richard Powers) gives two hours of
introductory lessons before the dance. The atmosphere is very friendly and
welcoming.

------
kelnos
After wasting 6 years living in the peninsula and south bay, mainly because I
was afraid of the commute (I still work in Santa Clara), I moved up to SF a
couple months ago. Best decision I've made in recent memory.

I'm lucky in that my work schedule is flexible, so I get to/from the office in
35-45 minutes. Much better than the 2-hour train/light rail commute would be.

I agree with one of the other posters that the best places to hang out seem to
be in and around the Tenderloin, Nob Hill, etc. I do enjoy the Mission as
well, but that's a little farther for me, and I prefer to walk places when I
can. SoMa is kinda eh, North Beach is a wasteland, Marina... not so much.

------
juiceandjuice
I just moved here in October and I don't really know anyone. The more I'm here
the more I wish I lived in SF. The ridiculous thing is that it takes me 25
minutes to get to work from where I live (the Willows in Menlo Park) to SLAC
because the intracity traffic is so SLOW.

Basically though, I think the bar scene here blows. It's cool that a lot of
the food places are open late on University though.

That being said, while I think long commutes generally suck the life out of
people, I'm seriously thinking about moving to Noe Valley or the Mission and
commuting on the 280.

Anyways, I'm up for doing stuff if anybody here wants to. I still don't really
know anyone in this area.

~~~
gnosis
25 minutes is not a long commute. I used to do 2 hour commutes, and knew
people whose commutes were even longer.

~~~
juiceandjuice
Well, 25 minutes isn't bad. The thing that sucks is that it's 25 minutes over
5 miles. If I'm going to be in my car for half an hour and living in a place I
don't really like, I might as well commute a bit longer and live in a place I
like better.

The fact that live music is pretty much non-existant in this area is sort of a
bummer as well.

------
wooster
* House parties - at peak, I was throwing a house party once a month.

* Hacker Dojo - almost always something interesting going on. Highly recommended.

* Bars - Rose & Crown or the Nut House.

* Watch a limited release film at Aquarius or CineArts.

* A lazy afternoon drinking wine at Vino Locale followed by dinner out at a nice restaurant.

* Board games, poker, or whatever with friends.

* Chill out by the pool at a friend's apartment complex.

etc.

------
dzlobin
This is something that has bugging me for some time; why is there such a lack
of nightlife in Palo Alto? Does anyone know what the latest allowed time for a
bar to be open?

Anyone interested in opening a hacker friendly bar that's open late and has
coffee/wifi during the day?

Edit: I'm actually quite serious. I have restaurant experience and it sure as
shit seems like its in need. Anyone at all interested should drop me a line!

~~~
ardit33
No girls. A bar full of dudes gets boring really fast. You go once, twice,
then you don't go there anymore.

Better just stay home and code and drink a beer. I meet my friends at coffee
places (Red Rock in MV., or Coupa Cafe in PA).

~~~
dzlobin
a fair point, but where the hell do the ~6,500 female stanford students go
every night/weekend?

------
nostrademons
Go play Starcraft or Rock Band with a bunch of friends from work.

------
jacoblyles
Go to tech parties where you stand around and drink with the same people you
code with during the week.

------
billmcneale
If you're single, you have flexible hours at your work and you want to meet
girls, move to San Francisco. Period.

Once you get married and have kid, move to the Peninsula and wonder how anyone
could ever enjoy living in the City.

All the single girls are either in SF or work for Google, so you know what to
do.

------
jarin
I'm glad you posted this, as I'm considering working at a startup in Palo
Alto. If I end up moving up there, I can say with near-certainty that at least
one geek in Palo Alto will be out drinking beers on weekend nights!

------
timcederman
On weekends on the peninsula there is still plenty to do. Catch up with folks
at their houses, go to bars/restaurants like Town and The Refuge. Go to
Rooster T Feathers in Mountain View for a comedy show. Pampas in downtown Palo
Alto has a great Friday night happy hour.

Other times I'll drive up to the city. When I lived in Mountain View I used to
occasionally get a hotel room in the financial district - $70 on Priceline for
a 4* hotel. Now I'm in San Carlos it's only a 20 minute drive to SOMA which is
great, or otherwise 40 min by train.

------
hunterjrj
Reading these posts it seems to me that there is a huge opportunity for an
entertainment-oriented entrepreneur in Palo Alto.

For Heavens sake, someone open up a bar for these guys and don't charge a
cover for women!

~~~
dtrizzle
Assuming you do charge a cover for men, this is a really good way to get sued.
See Angelucci v. Century Supper Club, 158 P.3d 718 (CA 2007) and
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ladies_night#California>

~~~
leif
"Ladies' nights in Illinois have been upheld under the anti-discrimination
provision of the Dram Shop Act.[11] The court determined that the discount was
intended to encourage women to attend the bar in greater numbers, rather than
to discourage attendance by males."

Illinois gets it. California doesn't. Way to be the state with the stick up
your butt again, CA.

~~~
ostso
> The court determined that the discount was intended to encourage women to
> attend the bar in greater numbers, rather than to discourage attendance by
> males.

Regardless of whether it should be legal or not, "positive discrimination" is
still discrimination.

~~~
ericd
Price discrimination is a very important part of marketing. It's everywhere,
necessary, and not evil.

------
daniel_levine
Go to the city. Go out in Palo Alto. Work. Play board games with friends.

~~~
mise
What's it like going out in Palo Alto?

~~~
_delirium
It depends on what you mean by going out. There isn't a lot of stuff, and
sparse offerings of typical "nightlife" type destinations (clubbing, live
music), but there are a decent number of bars if you're into sitting around
drinking beer and chatting. Rose & Crown has a good craft-beer selection.

Also, a bunch of random stuff happens at Stanford now and then, if you're into
things like <http://slork.stanford.edu/>

~~~
ssutch
2nded on the rose and crown.

------
neworbit
Work out. Network if there's the right events. Fairly regularly play games of
one sort or another (poker night, RPGs, and lately a reasonable amount of
Starcraft 2). Watch really dumb movies and have a couple drinks. I like to
take a day off a week and just do creative things; lately that's been
composing, remixing, and nanowrimo sorts of nonsense.

------
internet_meme
Antonio's Nut House on Cal Ave with friends.

------
nicelios
I see geeks at Rudy's Pub in downtown Palo Alto every time I'm there.

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tstyle
I lived and worked on University ave for 2.5 years. Every so often we'd walk
over to Nolas or Old pro, realize that it's still crowded and crappy, and go
back to the office and code.

------
epo
What do _most_ geeks do? Most probably don't socialize at all.

------
wicknicks
Three are more restaurants in Palo Alto/Mountain View than you can imagine. I
had a very good time trying different ones out (sometimes with people from
work).

~~~
updog
lol

------
harlowja
Join a club, go indoor rock climbing (see planet granite), do running, biking,
find something you are interested in @ meetup.com and go to there events.

------
zackattack
I grew up in Palo Alto. There's 3 options that come to mind:

* Happy Donuts on El Camino, which is open 24/7 and often is filled with geeks coding at all hours. Lots of people are happy to talk and socialize / be engaged in conversation.

* The downtown PA bar scene: Rose and Crown & Rudy's are probably the most geek-friendly. Old Pro is ok if you're also into sports. Blue Chalk & Nola can be good hangout spots but I wouldn't label either of them first choices.

* California Avenue has Antonio's Nut House. Lots of notable geeks can be seen there. I heard [redacted] was mobbed the last time he went in.

Going to San Francisco sucks unless you already know where you can sleep. I
recommend making friends with some local residents and crashing with them
after going out (with them). I actually met a dude on HN and we've been out
partying in SF a few times; I crashed on his couch a couple times and it's
been real sweet.

I also recommend Hacker Dojo, which is open late if you're a member, or 'til
10 if you're a guest, and they've been having some nighttime weekend talks
recently.

Finally, I recently moved back to the area after growing up here, and would
like to make some more friends, especially tech & business minded people.
Contact information is in my profile. I would love to buy you the drink of
your choice at any of the above-mentioned venues and hear about what you're
working on.

~~~
internet_meme
Blue Chalk is closed. =(

------
citizenkeys
palo alto doesnt even have a good movie theater. you gotta drive to mountain
view.

mountain view has the movie theater, which is basically next to google.
mountain view also castro street, with the red rock cafe, lots of good little
restaurants, and some night life.

~~~
ratsbane
Maybe not in the usual sense, but the Stanford Theater on University Ave is a
really neat place. They show old movies, mostly from the 30s and 40s, every
night.

<http://www.stanfordtheatre.org/stf/>

------
citizenkeys
I got another good tip:

Paul Graham's essay on "Where to See Silicon Valley" is a valuable primer for
anyone not familiar with the area. A must-read for anyone that wants to "get"
the area: <http://www.paulgraham.com/seesv.html>

The two tips I personally found the most useful:

* Red Rock is a great place to meet other people working on start-ups.

* Taking the 280 between Silicon Valley and San Francisco is infinitely more scenic than taking the 101. Plus, you can avoid the 101's frequent airport traffic.

