laine's baits in alviso, california

ah, come on!  you've all heard of alviso before, right?  i'll bet very few of you could point straight to it on a map.  i know i couldn't, but a good friend of mine called and invited me to lunch.  he likes this place called maria elena's in alviso.  it's actually just a 20 minute drive from my house.  we've been to maria elena's several times before and the food is always good!



well, another buddy had mentioned that there was a bait shop in alviso.  sure enough, the restaurant was crowded when we arrived and parking was hard.  i ended up driving around the block and saw a bait shop.



it's at the corner of hope and elizabeth, near and old abandoned cannery.



right across from the old china camp.





yup, laine's baits!  it's at 907 elizabeth street, alviso, ca 95002.  





i called the number and a guy answered right away, said he was working a block away and would be there in 5 minutes.





sonofagun, it's an old railroad car!



nice sturgeon!



looks they have crab feeds once in a while!





make a note.  closed monday and tuesday!



so norm shows up right away and let's me in!



bait in the frig!



nice assortment of the tackle that you would actually use for the area, mainly for stripers and sturgeon.









an amazing assortment of frozen bait.







snacks!



swag!



old photos!



and of course, live bait!







running a little low on mud suckers.



need a guide?  here you go!





other local services.  he even has my card here!



and that's out tour!  



go to google maps and look up 907 elizabeth street, alviso, ca 95002 and you can see the entire area.  or better yet, take a day off, go have lunch at maria elena's or vahl's for a really old fashioned italian dinner.   i wouldn't really plan on both, because there really isn't enough in alviso to keep you busy for the 6 hours that you'd need to work up an appetite between lunch and dinner, unless you like taking long walks!

gr8 review Alan.  that's a labor of love 4sure.  we need more mom n pops like that in this area/world

ah, they even have kayak rentals!!!!!!!

I didn't know there was a bait shop in Alviso. I work right next to Alviso and now I have a bait shop that I can go to right after work. Thanks Alan 

Thanks for the bait shop info.  I used to eat lunch at Maria Elena's all the time but never knew the bait shop is in the area.  Used to launch kayak from Alviso Marina County Park and paddle  5 miles to the mouth of the bay.  Tried trolling along the way but no luck!

Nice report. Pretty sure that was Tom Laine's shop and his wife from many years ago. He also had a shop in West Pittsburg, same set-up, striper's and sturgeon. He helped with United Anglers and California Striped Bass Association.  Very good man.
   Lots of history at Alviso...what did the China Camp plaque state? Thanks! Ron

this might be more legible.

Very cool. I know where Alviso is and if you can’t see it just follow your nose 

Didn’t know about the bait shop

Thx 

ROAD-TRIP !!!

I've been there a couple of times. decent store, folks aren't always in. One time I had to wait over 30 minutes for them to show up. Few blocks away from my boat mechanic though.

Thanks for the report. I really like a good mom and pop shop. Not to far from my house in Fremont. I’ll have to check them out.

Thanks for the report. I really like a good mom and pop shop. Not to far from my house in Fremont. I’ll have to check them out.

They have freshly made Tortilla chips and awesome Salsa!

Laine's is a great local bait shop.  It is literally next to a residential house, so if you show up and they are home, they will come out and open the shop for you.  Great live bait shop (when they have it) and they're not stingy with spot recommendations.  They have all kinds of baits, live or frozen.
Highly recommended.

Highly recommend this location for fresh live bait and Sturgeon Fishing the sloughs. Kyle and Kirsten provide great customer service. Kayak and skiff rentals are also available. I also sell my tackle in there store @Tails2Tales under spins and flutter jigs.


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Thanks for the post Alan. Definitely gotta eat at Maria Elena's for sure. Looks good