La Ca Phe now open on 740 Story Road in San Jose near Vietnam Town

La Ca Phe is a Vietnamese Coffee shop specializing in a variety of specialties that are not easy to find in the Bay Area. Their Eggspresso Hanoi is a special egg-based coffee drink that I last tried in Vietnam and it blew my mind. They also have Ube Coffee and a wide variety of other Vietnamese and Southeast Asian-style drinks.

They have been working on this coffee shop for three years and opened to huge demand. La Ca Phe is at 740 Story Road. Instead of doing your typical Starbucks routine, come try out some unique and truly delicious coffee someplace new!

Source: Insta

Menu for Maui at the Signia San Jose

Executive Sous Chef Joe Derla has a strong personal connection to the islands and crafted a unique menu offering to benefit the Kokua Hospitality and Restaurant Fund. It's called Menu for Maui and it's available at the Fountain Restaurant every Sunday until October 1st. Proceeds will assist fellow restaurant, bar, and hospitality workers displaced be the wildfires in West Maui.

The menu includes items such as ube custard French toast with candied macadamia nuts, braised short rib loco moco with kimchee fried rice, fish with poi, and a pineapple mimosa with Hawaiian salt.

It's a great menu for a great cause. The Signia is located right in front of Plaza de Cesar Chavez in the middle of Downtown San Jose.

Luna Park Chalk Art Festival - Sat, Sep 16 from 10am-5pm at San Jose's Backesto Park

The Luna Park Chalk Art Festival is a colorful family-friendly event celebrating creativity. This annual event, which will take place on September 16th from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Backesto Park, showcases the amazing talents of local artists who create stunning chalk murals on the sidewalks and streets.

The festival is more than just a visual feast. It also features live music, food trucks, vendors, and activities for kids of all ages. You can even join in the fun and create your own chalk masterpiece in the designated community areas. The best part is that the festival is free to attend and supports a great cause: the Luna Park Arts Foundation, a nonprofit organization that promotes art education and cultural awareness in San Jose.

Whether you're an art lover, a music fan, or just looking for a good time, you'll find something to enjoy at the Luna Park Chalk Art Festival 2023. Don't miss this opportunity to see how San Jose's creative community transforms Backesto Park into a colorful wonderland of chalk art. You'll be amazed by what they can do with some chalk and imagination!

Original Gravity in Downtown San Jose will transform into two new unique lounges

Original Gravity was the first large-scale craft beer pub and taproom in San Jose. You could argue Good Karma was across the street was technically the first, but they typically only had a handful of unique craft beers while Original Gravity had dozens rotating constantly. 

After Original Gravity, the proprietors went on to open Paper Plane next door focusing on craft cocktails and elevated gastropub food. Miniboss was their 3rd project, literally taking it to the next level with arcades, pinball machines, and a gaming twist to their craft cocktails on Santa Clara Street. In 2024, they'll open Eos & Nyx--a stunning two-story restaurant and bar that will be a key anchor for the Paseo building (formerly Camera 12) along with Urban Putt and an Unofficial Logging.

So after all this success, they shut down Original Gravity earlier this year. Why?

The proprietors believe that craft beer has become more common and local breweries like Strike, Camino, and Clandestine now all have their own taprooms. So they are pivoting and using the space for a new dual-concept space.

The front will be a listening lounge called Still OG. It'll feature a DJ area, shelved filled with vinyl, and an acoustic ceiling. Here they will primarily serve pre-made draft cocktails.

In the back will be Alter Ego, a more modern lounge that will feature handmade craft cocktails with a lot of focus on presentation. Drinks will have unique glassware and unusual garnishes and ingredients. Seating will be mostly by reservation with limited space reserved for walkups. To me it sounds like a modern day speakeasy.

Both Still OG and Alter Ego are scheduled to open in November. Everything this team has done so far has been excellent, so I can't wait to try out their latest concepts.

P.S. If you want great craft beer in Downtown San Jose, you still have Market Beer Co. inside of the San Pedro Square market with a killer selection of both taps and bottles.

Source: The Merc

Downtown San Jose office tower converting to housing

Urban Catalyst is building two high rises near city hall, one is a 26-story high-rise with 389 residences and the other was supposed to be a 20-story office building called Icon with 525,000 SQFT of office space. Now given market conditions, it looks like the office building is going to pivot into more housing.

The converted project would have 650 multifamily units after getting city approval. There is a significant need for housing and a lot of vacant office space right now in Downtown San Jose, so this sounds like a wise shift.

Source: The Merc

The Signia San Jose (former Fairmont) added to ResortPass ☀️🏊🏻🍸🍹

ResortPass is a site for "Daycations" meaning if you live locally instead of staying at a hotel you can pay to come and use the hotel's amenities. This includes things like the pool, poolside bar, gym, and spa. You're essentially a guest, but without the room.

The Signia by Hilton (formerly the Fairmont) is the latest hotel to be added to the program. This is a huge addition as it has the best swimming pool of all the Downtown San Jose hotels and maybe all of the South Bay hotels period. If you have never stayed here, you probably didn't even know this pool even exists. It's hidden on the podium on the 4th floor of the hotel, and looks down at Plaza de Cesar Chavez in the middle of Downtown San Jose. From the park if you look at the hotel and see the palm trees, that's where the pool is.

A day pass costs $50 for adults and $15 for children and includes the pool, steam room, sauna, lounge chairs, towel service, and the fitness center. You can also book a cabana for $130 that is good for 2 adults and 2 children and comes with a complimentary snack pack (two non-alcoholic beverages, popcorn, kettle chips, a protein bar, and candy).

It's a rare opportunity to stay and San Jose's fanciest hotel without paying for a room. You can book your daycation at The Signia over here or check out other San Jose options here. 

Hayes Mansion, the DoubleTree by Hilton, Hyatt House San Jose Airport, Hyatt Place San Jose Airport, and the San Jose Marriott Downtown are also available on the site.

Downtown San Jose expected to escape "doom loop"

An article at SiliconValley.com has been circulating over the past week with an optimistic outlook on Downtown San Jose's future. The title says it all: "Downtown San Jose is poised to escape ‘doom loop’ scenario: experts."

These experts are a panel of industry leaders, executives, and developers. The primary struggles are access to capital markets which are mostly frozen or too expensive due to interest rates. They predicted it would take until 2025 for major recovery and apartment and office projects to get off the ground.

Several people from the panel urged business leaders to make Downtown San Jose a vibrant entertainment district in 2024, which would help set the stage for major development in 2025. 

In order to make that happen, San Jose has to confront homelessness, blight, and crime. These issues also exist in San Francisco, but to a much larger extent. One panelist said:

"There is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for San Jose to eat San Francisco's lunch. San Jose is a more friendly place for conventions, it is a better place to hear music, it is a better place to have dinner."

In addition to bring more of these recreational opportunities down south, there is still significant demand for office space for AI startups. Normally these small companies would look first in SF, but the panelists said they are seeing more and more inquiries for space in the South Bay.

Mayor Matt Mahan and other panelists rattled off a list of reasons why Downtown San Jose is destined to become Silicon Valley's urban core. These included access to transit, entertainment, SJSU, great weather, a large population base, and existing nearby companies like Google, Adobe, and Apple as anchors.

One last quote from panelist Gary Dillabough worth mentioning is:

"We have to be bold. We need to start thinking differently in San Jose. We need a different attitude. We can’t overthink things. We need to take chances.”

In other words we have to do the same things as a city that our local tech companies have to do in order to survive and thrive. 

Source: SiliconValley.com

New Five Wounds Trail would link San Jose's cycling and walking network to the 28th Street/Little Portugal BART station by 2031

The Mercury News has a story about a trail that has been in the works for over 20 years. 

The Five Wounds Trail--named after the Five Wounds Portuguese National Church it would run by--would be a paved 2.17 mile route starting at the intersection of Story and Senter Roads. This is where the Coyote Creek and Lower Silver Creek trails come together. It is also near Kelly Park, Happy Hollow Park & Zoo, the Japanese Friendship Garden, and History San Jose.

From there it would follow an abandoned railroad track all the way to Little Portugal, which is anchored by Five Wounds Church and is the site of the proposed 28th Street BART station, sometimes also referred to as the Alum Rock BART station.

What has become an unofficial walkway for some would be cleaned up, paved, and turned into a nice trail for walkers, runners, and cyclists with a few potentials areas for basketball courts and exercise equipment. It is all part of a master plan to connect hundreds of miles of trails together in Santa Clara County and would be a tremendous amenity for residents, especially those that are planning to utilize the new BART station.

Source: The Merc