Make this resource work for us!

Submit your own "BEST OF" to be posted here. Include the name of the business, address and phone (very important!!), and a brief comment or two about your experience with them.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

ANNUAL HOLIDAY COOKIE EXCHANGE! Yes, the date's been set so get out your fav recipes and start buying butter and sugar! The date is THURSDAY, DECEMBER 19 at the Weeks-Gildea home, 12045 Heather Down Drive. Though this is traditionally an event attended by few if any men, in recent years we've had some wonderful cookies by the likes of Craig Kennedy and Garry Scholz! GO GUYS! If you bake'em, then you're invited! Check back here for more details to come...

Looking for the best pizza in the area? The best drycleaner? The most economical printer? A fine jeweler?

Scroll down our list alphabetical list. (Restaurant recommendations are at the end.)

We can help each other -- and the local economy -- by recommending businesses that have served us well. Don't stop with just one or two recommendations -- feel free to send your family's entire "best of" list! We'll make a category for every entry as necessary. Check back often to see how our list is growing!!

AIR CONDITIONING & HEATING  

M.E. Flow, Inc.
703-689-1700
Excellent service used by several neighbors this year as our furnaces all reach their effective lifespans. Not inexpensive, but reliable and quality materials. submitted by: Donna Scholz

AVON COSMETICS

Elise Cutler

703-925-0303

Elise is our very own neighborhood Avon lady!  You can contact her by phone or email at EliseAvon@aol.com .  Ask her to see a catalog and she'll bring along some free samples of current Avon products for you to try!

BUILDING CONTRACTORS

RJ Contractors, Sterling.
703-444-1226
Middle-of-the-road; nothing fancy, but good, solid, craftsmanship; Ken is great to work with.
submitted by Karen McDonald

DECK CLEANING AND STAINING

Amigos Wood Care, Vienna.
703-242-0018
A bit on the expensive side, but excellent work -- neat, high-quality, and the best product available. Jose Vasquez takes his work very seriously, and it's worth the time to meet with him and hear his recommendations for your situation.
submitted by Annette Gildea

HOUSE CLEANING

Yolanda Bernal, Herndon.
703-724-4354
Yolanda came highly recommended, and we've been very pleased right from the start. She's thorough and dependable, and also a real joy to know.
submitted by Annette Gildea
Dependable, conscientious, thorough. I've recommended her to lots of people, and from what I can tell everyone has been very happy with her work.
submitted by Karen McDonald

JEWELER

Aspen Jewelers, Centerville Road (Clocktower Common, south of toll rd), Herndon.
703-713-6882
Contemporary designs without being "way out there;" very fairly priced.
submitted by Karen McDonald

LAWN MOWING

Patrick Fitgerald
703-200-8736
UMHOA Resident 15 years old, moving for four years. Mowing $20-$30 per lawn. Also does mulching, gutter cleaning, and leaf removal.
submitted by Donna Scholz

PAINTING

Warren Tibbs, Herndon.
703-242-1441
Easy to work with, careful, cleans up well!
submitted by Karen McDonald
We've had Warren strip wallpaper and paint the nursery and our LR/DR; I'd have him back, he does nice, neat work for a fair price.
submitted by Annette Gildea

PLUMBING

Dinsmore Plumbing, Alexandria
703-971-2806
Great work and fantastic prices compared to many others.
submitted by Donna Scholz

TREE CUTTING & STUMP REMOVAL

Harold McPeak, Culpepper
1-800-215-1873
Good teamwork, fascinating to watch in action, extremely competitive prices.
submitted by Garry Scholz

WOOD FLOORS

Advance Flooring, Sterling.
703-925-0888
Carl Craig is the business manager; his brother Jeff does the installation work. They are a thorough, quality team.
submitted by Annette Gildea

WINDOW WASHING

Virginia Window Cleaners
703-354-5000
I always ask for Hans and Debbie, a husband and wife team. They do a thorough job on everything, inside and out -- including garage windows, and those tiny basement windows.
submitted by Susan Walker

RESTAURANTS

BURGERS and CHILI
Hard Times Cafe, 428 Elden Street (Kmart shopping center), Herndon.
703-318-8941
Hearty, inexpensive meals and really good beer. This is a great place to take kids; the staff is friendly and very welcoming of little people, and it's fun to spend a bit of time after dinner shooting some pool in the Cue Club (connected to Hard Times).
submitted by Annette Gildea

MEXICAN
Teocalli Tamale, 336 Elden Street (Kmart shopping center), Herndon.
703-904-9336
This is a small, individually-owned Mexican restaurant with all fresh food and yummy spices. They'll also customize anything, and are accustomed to picky vegetarians! The owner, Chris, is very friendly and eager to get his new business off the ground. He's even got two TVs hooked up.
submitted by Debbie Katz
Anita's New Mexican, 701 Elden Street, Herndon.
703-481-1441
Excellent service, excellent prices, yummy dependable food.
submitted by Karen McDonald

PIZZA
Milanos Pizza and Subs, 1015 Dranesville Rd. (at Rte.7), Herndon.
703-444-5554
And now they DELIVER! Some really different pizza varieties including seafood white pizza, really good spinach pizza, and some interesting combo deals. Better by far than the big chain pizza places. Our family favorite is the deep dish Primavera Pizza.
submitted by Annette Gildea