I am a structural engineer who worked with Tony on a complex addition and renovation of an existing single family residence in San Mateo, CA. This job was outside the realm of your standard wood framing project; the open main floor plan required a steel moment frame to support seismic loads from the new master suite addition above, and new foundation work needed to be installed in a tight crawlspace with limited access. From the beginning, Tony was a pleasure to work with. He has an easy-going yet "on-the-ball" demeanor, and was engaged in the project from start to finish. He was a great communicator and problem solver, which is a necessity on a complex renovation project in which there are almost always unforeseen existing conditions that need to be addressed during construction. I don't recall needing to wait more than a few hours for a call back from Tony. This accessibility and high level communication allowed the job to proceed with relatively minimal setbacks. My understanding is that the homeowners are very happy with his work and service as well.Read More

Accolade was already hired by the owner when they found me. He was their trusted contractor from work on their previous house. Many of the details were worked out collaboratively between Tony, the owner, and myself. I was very happy to see Tony there everyday working himself, sometimes with his daughter as carpenters assistant. He takes pride in his work and got things done efficiently on a tight timeline. The client was very happy to move in less than a year after they bought the dilapidated house despite a complete gut remodel that rearranged the entire floor plan and fit two bathrooms where there once was only one.Read More

Tony has done numerous jobs for us. All of them were excellent. He has remodeled two bathrooms, the kitchen, and redone all of the floor covering in the downstairs of our home. All jobs were completed in a very timely and professional manner. Tony does much of the work himself but does hire subs for some aspects of the job. All of the subs were also very professional. I cannot speak highly enough about Tony as a person as well as a contractor. I have recommended him to several friends and all of them have been extremely happy with his work also. He is honest, curtious, hard working and a pleasure to work with.Read More

Accolade Construction remodeled by 1903 house, adding a full basement and a new kitchen. It was a difficult site, with very tight access. The contactor was able to work around this issue successfully and the job finished almost exactly when promised. I was very happy with the the quatlity of th work and would use Accolade againRead More

Tony is a good choice for your general contracting needs - he is honest, forthright, and a hard worker. He'll work closely with you to ensure that the final outcome of your project meets your expectations and his work not only looks good but is well crafted and to code. The best part is that he is true to his word - he shows up when he says he will and bills to what he quotes with no major surprises - and will give you a reasonable head's up if he anticipates any challenges/overruns as well as present cost-conscious options along the way. You can trust his frank opinion regarding how best to approach the job, will keep your budget in mind and doesn't try to "up-sell" you. Last but not least, he's personally on the job and doesn't just hand things off to others, rarely to be seen again (like other contractors I've had). I would definitely use his services again in the future.Read More

We are very satisfied, repeat customers of Tony Cuellar, owner of Accolade Construction. In 2010 Tony created a master bath, giving us a master suite and guest bath, by creatively reconfiguring an existing bath, part of a hallway and an old linen closet. The work was the highest quality. We subsequently sold our home of 20 years and downsized to a small 1925 Spanish style bungalow. The house had been benignly neglected for 40 + years. Tony, together with a local architect completely remodeled the house, managing to keep the feeling of the era but modernize it and help us utilize every inch of space. The remodel included replacing all plumbing, electrical and hvac systems. We now have a tankless hot water heater that also powers our radiant heating system. My husband likes to say we bought a roof, foundation and a few support beams. Tony is good at turning problems into positives. We had hoped to keep original front windows but ended up having to replace all because of dry rot. He suggested we raise the ceiling height, add a beam.. These changes gave the living room a feeling of charm and spaciousness we had not thought possible. The skilled labor he employees....ie tile, plasterers, electricians, painters etc are professionals committed to quality. Tony is very proactive about schedule changes, ie custom windows behind schedule...and in general providing information on unexpected conditions and the trade offs/costs and design changes, needed to address the issues. We would not hesitate to employ Tony for any future projects. We believe Accolade Construction is synonymous with creative, quality work at fair prices.Read More