.Best of Silicon Valley—Editorial Picks

More Best of Silicon Valley Winners: Arts & Entertainment | Family & Pets | Health & Fitness | Services | Shopping

Best of Silicon Valley is all about what the readers of Metro Silicon Valley select as the best of the best people, places and things. But the editorial staff also likes to throw in a few favorites every year.

Best Place to Spark Interest in STEM Learning

Exploration Portal | Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose | 180 Woz Way, San Jose | https://www.cdm.org/

Dedicated to making it fun to learn since its doors opened in 1990, the Children’s Discovery Museum of San Jose added to its educational resources this year with the Exploration Portal, which opened in June. This 4,000-square-foot outdoor playground invites young visitors to gain an understanding of patterns and symmetry in nature from various activities, such as climbing on a honeycomb-shaped play structure, playing music on “Rocks that Sing” and opening and closing giant flowers to learn out solar power works.

The Exploration Portal also offers practical lessons in environmental science, demonstrating natural ways to remove pollution from rainwater using filters, replenish depleted groundwater, promote drought-tolerant plants for landscaping and use renewable wood resources. Entry to the Exploration Portal is included in the price of admission to the museum.

Best Way to Salute Movie History

Support Your Indie Movie Theater | cineluxtheatres.com | pruneyardcinemas.com | 3belowtheaters.com

“Don’t it always seem to go, you don’t know what you got ’til it’s gone.” Joni Mitchell’s words of wisdom may apply to paving paradise, but they’re equally apropos for many forms of human culture that can wither away from neglect. One such thing: independent movie theaters. In the wake of the loss of ShowPlace ICON movie theaters in July of this year, it’s time to take stock and cherish the indie theaters that continue to cater to cinephiles.

Starting out in 1966 with a single location in the city of Campbell, Cinelux has grown into a small chain with locations in Los Gatos, Campbell, San Jose, Morgan Hill and Gilroy, as well as three theaters in Santa Cruz County. Cinelux’s cushy seating is its primary draw, but there are also the enticements of food and drink, including local wines, craft beers and cocktails.

Campbell is also graced with Pruneyard Cinemas, a locally owned establishment dedicated to elevating the dinner-and-a-movie experience with innovative food and hand-crafted cocktails from the Cedar Room. In addition to current releases, classic movies are also shown in the Pruneyard’s Culinary Cinema series, and there are also live comedy shows (the next one scheduled for Nov. 15–16).

In downtown San Jose, 3Below Theaters & Cafe continues to mix live entertainment and cinematic offerings. Through Nov. 24, its live production of the comedic musical Emojiland continues, and there are movie times scheduled in December. But without support, we can lose these resources. Binge-watching The Diplomat may seem like enough most nights, but it can’t compare to the communal experience of watching a movie with a live audience. Realize what we’ve got before it’s gone.

Best Reason to Look Down, and Look Ahead

Local Color | localcolorsj.org

In May, several hundred volunteers joined together to paint the town—or at least a block of it. Titled “Threads Woven” and designed by muralist Jim Fonseca, aka Jimmy Paints, the mural adorns the ground along San Pedro between Santa Clara and St. John.

The project was organized by Local Color, but that’s not the only bright spot this nonprofit group has brought to downtown.

This year Local Color also began mounting art shows at noble workshop & gallery, a space located inside Arya San Jose, at 500 S. Almaden Blvd. Its third exhibit at the space kicks off with a reception from 5 to 9pm on Nov. 15. 

“This show is called Posted and it’s a celebration of posters—about the accessibility and impact of posters, their many uses,” says Brandon Roos, Local Color’s communications director. “We have a bunch of people from different disciplines that are bringing their own take on what the poster means to them and how they want to showcase their art in that medium.” 

The exhibit will be open Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays until Nov. 30. Roos says there will be prints for sale by the artists—including some smaller sizes: “We tried to create as affordable an option as possible.”

Roos says Local Color wants the gallery to serve not only as exhibit space but also be a place for artists to present workshops. “We want the space to be available to the artists to make their dreams a reality,” Roos says. “A lot of things hopefully in the works for this small space with big ideas.”

Best Canine Confab

Bark in the Park | William Street Park, 16th and William streets, downtown San Jose | barksanjose.org

This 25-year-old tradition is something to bark about. Reputedly the largest canine congregation in the United States, Bark in the Park draws about a thousand four-legged guests and their human entourages to William Street Park in downtown San Jose. Doggie delights include various contests (costumes, tail-wagging dog/owner look-alikes), demonstrations of doggo derring-do (Flyball, agility, sheep herding, K-9 skills), a misting tent, and vendors with dog-oriented do-dads, and pup-friendly munchies. And pooch parents will be pleased by low-cost vaccines and microchipping, training tips, a kids’ play area, food trucks, and beer and wine stations. Get there early to benefit from free samples and beat the heat. It’s the spot to snag a pair of dog shades—the epitome of canine cool.

Best Day to Know Your Way Around San Jose

Viva CalleSJ | 2025 Dates TBA | vivacallesj.org

Cars are king in the Santa Clara Valley, but they’re temporarily dethroned whenever Viva CalleSJ reclaims the streets. This community-centric event—inspired by similar open streets initiatives around the world—closes down major San Jose streets to car traffic so that these thoroughfares can be reclaimed by cyclists, skateboarders, runners, walkers and other human-powered mobile devices for a few precious hours.

Last year Viva CalleSJ events took place in April, June and September. Routes are different every year, but one certainty is that each event gives participants a chance to explore at a speed that allows for true appreciation of San Jose’s historic neighborhoods as they walk, bike, skate and cycle past sights they’d miss traveling at 35 miles an hour.

Viva CalleSJ is managed by the city’s Department of Parks, Recreation, and Neighborhood Services, with support provided by Silicon Valley Bicycle Coalition and grants from the Knight Foundation. And volunteers are welcome. To volunteer as an individual, or participate with a group in the Adopt-an-Intersection program, email vi*********@sa*******.gov .

Best Place to Stop Doomscrolling

Castle Rock State Park | parks.ca.gov

There’s a lot of talk in the wellness community about “forest bathing.” First studied in Japan, another heavily urbanized society where outdoor spaces are prized, the practice is known as Shinrin-yoku. The positive physical and mental benefits of forest bathing include lowering heart rate and blood pressure, decreasing stress levels, elevating one’s mood and even improving the immune system.

Any outdoor excursion free of digital devices can be beneficial, but the deep quiet and cooling air of redwood forests can be healing to overheated brains. Fortunately for denizens of Silicon Valley’s urban jungle, redwood groves can be found just above Los Gatos at Castle Rock State Park. For more information, read about the Sempervirens Fund’s Trails Rx program at sempervirens.org/trails-rx.

Best News for Spartans

San Jose State University’s U.S. Ranking | sjsu.edu

San Jose State University students, stand up tall and proud, and pat your pocketbooks with satisfaction. As the school year started in September, the 2025 Best Colleges in the U.S. rankings was released by the Wall Street Journal and College Pulse—and the downtown San Jose campus was rated the fourth-best public university in the nation and the 16th overall.

As SFGate pointed out in its coverage of the survey, San Jose State jumped 157 steps, going from 173rd last year to the 16th best college this year. And even better news: its graduates’ salaries ranked higher than any other California public school, settling into the No. 17 slot ahead of UC Berkeley (take that, Golden Bears). Overall, SJSU ranked No. 4 among all public universities in the state. 

The rankings survey the top 500 universities in the country, measuring how well each college does at encouraging students to graduate and achieve financial success, counterbalanced by student feedback on college life.