Mama Kin, known for its live music and good eats, is closing after about two years in downtown San Jose. The restaurant, which offered Cajun appetizers and entrees along with craft cocktails named for dead rock and jazz stars, announced the closure in an Instagram post on Monday. The post garnered more than 2,000 likes and...
Campbell business district is a hidden gem for eccentric wares
Hundreds of miniature antique soldiers line the shelves, with crouching archers drawing bows and others bearing shields in historic scenes from centuries ago. The market for these novelties is still in demand, as employees pack and ship boxes to collectors worldwide. The Sierra Toy Soldier Company is one of more than 100 niche industrial and...
San Jose State students tackle academic shortcomings with AI
When a team of San Jose State University business students recognized the path toward academic counseling and course curriculum was complicated and messy, they turned to AI for a solution. Gabriel Castaneda, co-founder of CollegeBot.AI, said the students launched the artificial intelligence platform as a startup company to help students navigate through their class requirements...
Santa Clara County increases funding for children and family services
Santa Clara County has increased its commitment to the well-being of children and families. Despite a shortfall, the county bumped up its Children’s Budget by 9.1% mid-year to $1.29 billion, ensuring a focus on critically needed services. The county is contributing $260.9 million from its general fund, with federal, state and other non-county funding offsetting...
2024 in review: The top 10 Biz Beat stories
It’s been an interesting culinary year for The Biz Beat, with fast-food burgers competing with Indian and Mexican food for the top spot on the Best of 2024 list. The top two restaurants, Saapaadu and Campus Burger, opened just this year, but Burger Bar, coming in fourth, has been around since 1953. All the restaurants...
Silicon Valley minimum wage bump barely makes a dent
Next month will bring a minimum wage bump to workers in Silicon Valley, but it’s barely enough for these earners to survive in one of the most expensive places in the country. Once a trailblazer in increasing minimum wage, San Jose now lags behind six cities in Santa Clara County, going up by just 40...
San Jose allows housing development in business districts
The dynamic in three San Jose neighborhoods is about to shift, with a greater focus on residential development. The City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to change the neighborhood business districts of Japantown, Willow Glen and 13th Street to allow for new housing. The updated zoning code will enable development of 50 to 65 homes per acre at heights...
The Biz Beat: San Jose distillery makes award-winning whiskey
The tasting room at 10th Street Distillery in San Jose features windows looking into the distillery, showing off a stainless steel boiler and two copper pot stills with otherworldly-shaped domes that wouldn’t be out of place in one of Joan Miró’s surrealist paintings. It’s all connected by more stainless steel and designed by founders Virag...
Santa Clara County wants tourism to save iconic farmlands
Fruit picking, wine tasting and weddings — Silicon Valley leaders want to preserve the romance of their farmlands through tourism as the “Valley of Heart’s Delight” gives way to strip malls and tech campuses. The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously moved forward with the idea of creating an economic development office...
San Jose is No. 1 U.S. city for manufacturing jobs
In Silicon Valley where innovation, artificial intelligence and entrepreneurship reign, a recent study puts San Jose as a leader in the nation’s manufacturing market. The study by equipment supplier company ABM ranks San Jose as No. 1 for cities with the highest concentration of manufacturing jobs in its workforce. The study bases its findings on...