Urban Putt has a new grand opening date - February 8th

The hottest new minigolf place in the Bay Area is opening up in Downtown San Jose in a couple weeks. They have some of the most unique holes you can imagine with nods to Silicon Valley and unique interactive elements. The Winchester Mystery House, Sharks, a submarine, and a UFO are all items you'll find throughout the venue. When you're done, there are craft cocktails and unique food items to try out. It's one of the most exciting new entertainment options Downtown in years and is actually the first minigolf place I can remember in the area.

Opening day is February 8th starting at 4pm and it's located at 201 South 2nd Street (the old Camera 12 Movie Theater). For more info head to their website over here.

San Jose's Electric Light Tower and its connection to the Eiffel Tower

Built in 1881, the San Jose Electric Light Tower was one of the 50 tallest man-made structures on earth upon completion. It stood nearly as tall as the Signia Hotel in Downtown San Jose, but was built over 120 years ago. Not only was it extremely innovative for its time (illuminating a half-mile radius), but there several connections between this project and the Eiffel Tower in Paris. This is all the more reason to build a new landmark that pays homage to San Jose's Electric Light Tower.

You can now rent Tom Wohlmut's exceptional documentary linking the San Jose Electric Light Tower to the Eiffel Tower over here. The 56 minute film takes you through a journey of how San Jose's innovative light tower was built, how it brought San Jose international recognition, and how it was tragically destroyed. 

There were also several short interviews recorded about the relationship between the two towers that not many people had the chance to see. You can find those videos embedded below. 

Mario Fontana ETH-Zurich from TAW on Vimeo.

Bernard Meurtin Interview from TAW on Vimeo.

Corentin Interview Ver 1.0 from TAW on Vimeo.

San Jose looking for options to prevent encampments on the Guadalupe River Trail

The Guadalupe River Trail and Guadalupe River Park is essentially San Jose's "Central Park." The core of the trail and park network stretches from San Jose International Airport, through Downtown San Jose, all the way to the Children's Discovery Museum. Last year, San Jose received $ 2 million to relocate the homeless living in encampments along the trail and reclaim the trail for public use. Unfortunately, the encampments have come back.

Mayor Matt Mahan is proposing to redirect existing city funds to address this issue as soon as possible. He is also hoping that a similar policy could be used to address re-encampment in other public spaces in San Jose.

The Guadalupe River Trail and Park system has the potential to be one of the best urban parks in the Bay Area. It should be safe and accessible to everyone, and clearing or relocating the encampments is critical to that goal.

Source: KRON4

New food hall is officially open in Downtown San Jose

A new "cloud kitchen" is now open on Santa Clara Street called the Downtown Food Hall. The concept is optimized for take-out food and delivery services like Doordash, but there will be a dine-in option for all of the eateries there.

One of the first restaurants to have their soft opening is Halal Taqueria, and anywhere from 11 to 19 more will soon follow. For more information on what's coming, head over here.

Source: NBC Bay Area

Honest reviews of San Jose's "iconic" statues

SJtoday had a post today rating various San Jose landmarks. I won't spoil the reviews, but I would rate the one below as 🐍💩 / 10. That is all, happy Friday. Oh, the reviews are over here.

San Jose has the lowest percentage of population living below US poverty level

Among US cities, San Jose has the fewest percentage of people making less than $35k a year, which is the national poverty level. The exact percentage is 12.31%. Napa and SF were in the top 15 as well, coming in at 12th and 14th place respectively with around 15% of families living below the poverty level.

The study also points out that while San Jose has the best percentage, the cost of living is also much higher than other parts of the country.

Source: Madison Trust

Massive new Tesla sales and service center proposed for Evergreen in San Jose

A whopping 49,600 SQFT Tesla store and service center is being proposed near Eastridge Mall and the Costco Business Center at the border of Evergreen and East San Jose. San Jose is Tesla's top market per capita in the US (30% of all San Jose car sales are EVs), so any expansion of service and delivery centers would be very welcome. I already know several people on their 2nd or 3rd Tesla.

The new location would be built on 3.6 acres of empty land close to the corner of East Capitol Expressway and Evergreen Palace. If you look at the site on Google Maps, you'll notice quite a bit of vacant land. Arcadia Development made the proposal to build the Tesla center, but that wasn't the full scope of the project. Next to Tesla would be 250 new homes, sports fields, retail, restaurants, parks, and a medical office.

Source: The Mercury News

iChina hires a rockstar chef, obviously aiming for the stars

By aiming for the stars, of course I'm talking about those rare Michelin Stars. As our one and only Michelin Star restaurant--Adega--closed their doors in 2023, iChina is our next best shot.

Yesterday iChina announced that Singapoean Chef Chen Zhinengh is joining the team as Executive Chef. He has worked at multiple Michelin-star restaurants including Hakkasan in New York, Empress By Boon in SF, and 3 Michelin-starred Cantonese restaurants.

Below is the full text from the email blast. I'll look forward to trying iChina soon after his updated menu is live.

Introducing Chef Chen Zhinengh

We are thrilled to announce Chef Chen Zhinengh has joined iCHiNA to lead our kitchens. Because eight is an auspicious number, here are eight reasons we’re lucky to have him.

#1

Born in Singapore, Chef Chen started working in restaurants at the age of 16.

#2

He has cooked at some of the top restaurants in Singapore including the Mandarin Oriental and Ritz Carlton Hotels.

#3

Chef Chen was part of the opening team for Hakkasan New York and went on to help oversee all US locations.

#4

Prior to joining iCHiNA Chef Chen was Executive Chef at the Michelin-starred Empress By Boon, in San Francisco.

#5

A master of Peking Duck—one of our signature dishes—Chef Chen has combined culinary methods from top restaurants around the world to create a Peking Duck with  distinctive taste and a richer texture.

#6

Chef Chen has cooked at 3 Michelin-starred Cantonese restaurants.

#7

This video starring Chef Chen making dumplings has been viewed over 54,000 times. If it doesn’t make you want to try our dim sum, we don’t know what will!

#8

Chef Chen is developing some amazing specials to offer during Lunar New Year including 魚生撈起 (Prosperity Salad) and 红豆汤 (Red Bean Glutinous Rice Soup) to bring you health and prosperity in the new year. 

Book a table now for a taste of Chef Chen’s exquisite cooking. Some of his new dishes include Golden Tofu Lobster featuring lobster, pumpkin, and silken tofu and Black Bean Prawns with housemade black bean sauce and fresh gai lan.

World's first radio show was in... San Jose

SJtoday had a great post last week about a San Jose invention most people don't realize came from San Jose, the radio. Well, there is some debate on who invented the actual radio technology, but at minimum the first radio broadcasts were in San Jose. 

It all went back to the early 1900s, well before the Silicon  Valley era. Charles David "Doc" Herrold was the first radio broadcaster in the world and in 1910 created the first radio show. At one point, he had to tap into San Jose street car power lines for transmission. It's an interesting story and you can check it out at the source link below.

Source: SJtoday

New housing proposal near Five Wounds future BART station and urban village

The densification of the Little Portugal neighborhood around Five Wounds Church and our next BART station is beginning. There is a new proposal to replace two residential lots at 1271 and 1279 Julian Street with a 140-unit apartment building sitting on just under an acre. The seven-story building would have two floors reserved for parking and five floors with 1-3 bedroom apartments. 14 of the apartments would be reserved for very low income housing.

The development permit is going to be considered for approval this Wednesday. This would be one of several projects in the Little Portugal neighborhood, which could see up to 2,000 new jobs, 600,000 SQFT of commercial space, and 5,000-7,000 residential units long-term. The neighborhood is likely to look very different in 10 years.

Source: SVBJ