@Don Winslow posted:Not much where I live in the San Francisco bay area. As a young man (16 years old) I worked at a great store in San Mateo called "Trains Nothing But Trains", but the owner Bart Austin passed away a number a years ago and the store did not survive long after his passing. We got a lot of hobby greats in there including John Allen and Neil Young, both of whom I met personally. Also, Bart had been friends with Gordon Varney (before my time).
Until recently we had Talbots which handled a fair amount of Lionel, but they closed shortly before the Covid shutdowns. I miss both stores and their employees greatly - I've lost count of the times Talbot's helped me out. I do think Talbot's "fibbed" once - they told my wife I had ordered something which I hadn't and she paid for it and brought it home. They were spot on, because I would have bought the item in a heartbeat and when my wife presented it to me at the end of a busy work day I was thrilled.
The Bay Area of California was once a hot bed of train stores. (Much the same in SoCal, including San Diego, as well).
The ones in SanFran proper were always pricey - as in often "over-list". Trains Nothing But Trains in San Mateo was an outstanding store with just about everything in/for O Gauge. The owner was a bit grumpy, but that wasn't uncommon with train shops. There was the Engine House in Sunnyvale, housed in old Quonset huts as I remember, that had more Lionel trains than I ever saw anywhere even to this day. The owner? Yep. A qualified grump as well. 
My all-time Bay Area train shop was Schmidty's in Santa Clara. The owner was a joyful guy, pleasant and knowledgeable. He worked at the Sunnyvale Lockheed plant as his real job, and managed the train shop in the afternoons and on weekends. He always had a pot of coffee for the trainheads and a deal for this young (at the time) operator/collector each time I walked in. Hank Schmidt was the guy ... he introduced me to TCA and TTOS and was my sponsor for both organizations. Hank passed in the late '70s.
There was also the Red Caboose (?) in Redwood City. Interesting chap who ran/owned the store.
Hard to believe Talbot's closed - leaving almost nothing on the SF Peninsula.
All gone. Sadly.
