Cinépolis Luxury Cinemas San Mateo - (Near San Mateo, CA)

3 /5 Lei Navasca: Located inside Hillsdale Shopping Center, I assumed the parking area we used connected directly to the theater. It didn’t. Not a huge deal...unless you’re arriving on a rainy day. We didn’t pre-purchase our tickets since we weren’t sure which showing we’d make, and there are extra fees when buying online. The ticket kiosks were essentially computers with touchscreen monitors, and they were FRUSTRATING to use. I eventually gave up and bought our tickets from the bartender instead. I also forgot to give my membership number, so I contacted customer service (a day later or something) through their website. It took a bit of time, but they were very nice, helpful, and knowledgeable. We haven’t been to a movie theater in a while, and I was surprised there wasn’t a traditional walk-up concession stand, WHAT?! No one stopped us as we walked toward the auditorium, but you don’t get far. Staff were stationed at the doors checking tickets. FUDGE. Maybe I wanted to change movies halfway through! (Kidding.) As for seating, I was a little disappointed. I was hoping for heated seats. The chairs do recline, though, and if you like your movie buddy, the middle armrest lifts. There are QR codes to order snacks, which I found a bit annoying since I prefer to have my snacks before going in. Or maybe I’m just showing my age. It was strange receiving a reusable/steel(?) bowl for popcorn, and even stranger when someone I didn’t realize was a server dropped off my check. FYI: once you sign it, leave it there. I made the mistake of taking mine with me, thinking someone would collect it as we exited, nope. Dont worry, we found a worker and handed out receipt to them. On the plus side, the bathrooms were clean. Overall, it didn’t leave a strong enough impression for me to want to come back, but if I’m already in the area, I’d consider it.

1 /5 Yuru Cao: I had a disappointing experience at this theatre. How fancy the theatre adjustable sofas could be, how terrible their services are provided. We ordered food at around 11:23, but the food just never got delivered. I stepped out at 12:10 (almost close to the movie ending) just to notice my food tray has been sitting on their desk the entire time- completely cold. I ended up “enjoy” the cold fries and cold food in a movie theatre that claims to offer a premium in-seat dining experience. This theatre has absolutely no idea what is the bare minimum for a true “luxury” experience.

5 /5 Judy Margaret Chen: Good experience. We purchased tickets at the second row last minutes, but were still able to enjoy the movie. Great chair recliner. My husband said he could have slept on it. They also serve and deliver food and drinks in the theater, but it would take some time. Nevertheless, we really enjoyed our movie night out.

3 /5 Lynn Eglan: I took my parents here so they could experience a luxury cinema theater as they call it... It was our first time here.   Parking was a little hard to figure out.   Outside going in the entrance was smaller than anticipated.  My mom is in a wheelchair.  We tried to take the elevator to the second floor but the button didnt work.  We pressed it multiple times, and it didnt go down.  I rode the escalator up and had to ride the elevator down to get my mom in.   There was not an employee in sight to ask for help. We get to the second floor, and there isnt a ticket booth.  Instead, you go to a kiosk to purchase a ticket with your credit card.  The second floor is huge and has a lot of sunlight streaming in.  There is a bar, seating area, and a small concession stand.  We proceeded to walk to the cinema theater # on the ticket.  No one checked our tickets. I seated my parents in their seating area, and we pushed the button to order food.  The guy who took our order was nice.   I told him I was sitting in the row above them.  A few minutes later, he had our food out.  First, the snacks and then the drinks. 1.  Truffle parmesan popcorn:  This was surprisingly delicious, and I couldnt stop eating it.   Something about holding it in a metal bowl while watching the movie made it so much more comfortable. 2.  Chips & dips:  My parents enjoyed this and loved that we were able to easily pack leftovers to take home.   The queso dip was different slightly fancy compared to the traditional cheese dip.  Kind of wished it came with a side of jalapeños. 3.  Southern Peach Tea:  It was minty and sweet, didnt get much of the peach tea, lemon, or bourbon.  It was mostly ice. 4.  Dirty strawberry guava soda:  My mom enjoyed this, but it was overly sweet to me.   Didnt taste much of the soda While watching the movie, the leg part of my recliner seat was busted.   I scooted down to the seat next to me, and the table was busted.  Not even level to hold food.  Im happy the theater wasnt packed while I played goldilocks switching chairs. Overall, the experience was ok.   The only bonus my parents felt this place had was the reclining chairs.   Other than that, my parents preferred the newer theater closer to home.

1 /5 Daniel Tiano: Ive been to this theater many times over the past year and had a 5+ star experience every time up until last night for a single reason: They got rid of paper menus and replaced them with QR codes. This is a rampant, pervasive trend that should have ceased when the Covid public health emergency ended in 2023. I can see the argument for restaurants- cost savings, able to change the menu without having to reprint, easier for wait staff (I think?), and integration with point of service payments, to name a few. These dont outweigh the downsides for the diner of having to fiddle with a phone at a dinner table, but I can at least see why a restaurant might consider QR code menus. But a luxury movie theater with food service?? QR code menus make absolutely no sense for several reasons. The most obvious issue is that using a QR code menu is completely antithetical to the first rule of going to a movie theater: turning your phone off and putting it away. If I want to order food during the movie, nothing will ruin the experience more than taking my phone out and staring at the screen. Not just for me, but the moviegoers around me as well. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the paper menus that Cinepolis used to have. I would look at the menu using the light from the movie screen, press the service button on the seat, and order- simple as that. Furthermore, these paper menus were well done and visually pleasing. The next issue with these QR menus is that the internet at Cinepolis is non-functional. Yes, there is a guest wifi network, and yes, I can connect to it. But it does not connect to the internet or bring me to any portal to connect. It just doesnt work. So, I have to rely on cell service, which is poor inside the theater. The internet connection issues alone add probably 3-5 minutes to the food ordering process. Put another way, it distracts me from the movie for an additional 3-5 minutes. Next, not everyone owns a smartphone. One should not have to purchase a several hundred dollar device with an internet plan to order food off a menu. Finally, the user interface in the QR menu is awful. Of course, this is ubiquitous with pretty much all QR menus. I dont want to have to navigate back and forth between menus and scroll up and down just to look at drinks. Its just clunky, and again, the last thing I want to be doing at a movie theater or restaurant is fiddle with my phone. Glancing at a paper menu is infinitely more intuitive and familiar, and cannot be beat by a QR menu. Also, 2 unrelated issues- First, what happened to the BBQ chicken pizza?? That was my favorite menu item and it wasnt on the menu. Next, we ordered a starter to share and 2 entrees. One entree came out first, followed by the starter, followed by the next entree, each separated by about 5 minutes. If anything, the starter should arrive first, followed by the entrees simultaneously. A quality dining experience justifies an extra few dollars per movie ticket, which I was happy to pay to watch a movie at Cinepolis. I can get over the lack of the BBQ pizza and service issue on this one visit. But, as minor as it may seem, the QR code menus are irredeemable. This is absolutely a 5-star theater, but this issue warrants a 1-star review. Fortunately, there is an easy remedy. You already have the paper menus printed, and the QR code stickers at each seat. Why cant the menu simply be left on the desk next to each seat, as it used to be? This gives the moviegoer the option to either use the paper menu and service button, or the QR code. Cinepolis management, I urge you to correct this mistake, or at least help your patrons understand why the paper menus are no longer used. If I learn of the reason for the QR menus and think its justifiable, or the paper menus are reimplemented, I will happily revise this review to 5 stars.