Downtown San Jose lands new spot for breakfast sandwiches and coffee

SAN JOSE — A new morning beverage and food joint is headed to downtown San Jose after it signed a lease in a building in the historic district, a fresh sign of a rebound from coronavirus-linked economic maladies.

Egghead Sando Cafe has signed a lease at 80 S. First St. in downtown San Jose, according to public documents and a broker for the property.

The dining establishment that rented the space offers breakfast sandwiches, specialty poached eggs, salads and coffee, according to the merchant’s website.

Egghead Sando Cafe leased 2,500 square feet of ground-floor retail space, according to Nick Goddard, a senior vice president with Colliers, a commercial real estate firm.

“Leasing activity is really strong right now in downtown San Jose,” said Goddard, who arranged the Egghead Sando Cafe rental deal. “We are getting a lot of tenants signed up with good rental rates.”

Egghead Sando Cafe should be open in its new location sometime this year, Goodard estimated.

The restaurant and beverage spot is taking over the space that once was occupied by Zanotto’s Express Deli, a short-lived and ill-fated venture in downtown San Jose.

The deal — and numerous restaurant or retail leases lately in downtown San Jose — suggest that this section of the city is beginning to revive from the ailments that the coronavirus inflicted on the South Bay and the rest of the Bay Area.

“Everyone’s evening trade is actually better than it was before March 2020,” Goddard said.

Goddard also said he is seeing signs that top-notch restaurants are saying they prefer to be in downtown San Jose.

The restaurants are expressing this preference even though they are of high enough quality that they could find spots in the downtown districts of Palo Alto, Mountain View, Sunnyvale and Campbell.

Despite the upswing, downtown San Jose isn’t robust at all hours of the day.

“Happy hour and lunchtime are still a little anemic,” Goddard said. “But nighttime activity is great.”