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The first thing you’re likely to notice as you enter Mama Kin in downtown San Jose is the live band onstage, or the line of hopefuls with guitars signed up for the open mic if it’s Tuesday. Music is essential to Mama Kin’s atmosphere—appropriate for a venue named after an Aerosmith song—as is the selection of Cajun...
The Biz Beat: Enticing Caribbean food plated in downtown San Jose
Island Taste Caribbean Grill is where Jamaican and Haitian food flow through San Jose. If all you know about Jamaica is Bob Marley is from there, a visit to Island Taste will introduce your taste buds to a new world of spices and flavors that are familiar, yet deliciously otherworldly. Opened last April, the downtown San...
The Biz Beat: Urban Momo brings Nepalese cuisine to San Jose
Tucked neatly between China and India, Nepal combines the best of neighboring cuisines with little twists and turns that make it uniquely delicious. While better known for its towering Mt. Everest, the country is also the home of the momo, an instantly recognizable take on Chinese potstickers. “Most people might not know what Nepali food...
The Biz Beat: San Jose eatery brings the heat, flavor of Northern Thailand
If you are looking for pineapple curry or dislike spicy foods, Khaosan Thai may not be the place for you. Co-owner Nestor Felix dismisses the curry as “not even real Thai food—we serve only authentic dishes here.” And as for spice, there is medium, hot, and, for the adventurous, Thai hot. “Some customers come in and...
The Biz Beat: International Food Bazaar brings the world to San Jose
When it comes to sourcing what you need to cook the finest of world cuisines, it’s difficult to imagine something the International Food Bazaar in San Jose does not already have in stock. From pink pineapples and halal meats to more than 30 types of canned fava beans, the well-ordered displays are exhaustive in their...
The Biz Beat: San Jose wine and cheese restaurant simply ‘Devine’
When having some wine and aged cheddar cheese, you might not think of pairing it with caramel corn—but it’s part of Liana Ryan’s culinary genius. The mix of sharpness and sweetness creates a surprisingly balanced, harmonious depth of flavor. “My first thing, when you are pairing cheese and wine or wine and food, is that everything is subjective,”...
The Biz Beat: Western wear gallops in tech-driven San Jose
When customers walk through the doors of Winchester Western Wear, they’re hit with a blast from the golden past of California’s ranching era. Framed posters hang above shelves lined with intricately detailed cowboy boots that capture the store’s 40-year history. Crocodile skin boots worth $15,000 rest in a display case, and a working cash register...
The Biz Beat: ‘Memories of Vietnam’ in San Jose’s Phở Hà Nội dishes
The magic of the pho and other Vietnamese food at San Jose’s Phở Hà Nội begins with beef broth bubbling in a cauldron that is almost as tall as owners Huyen “Helen” and Harry Nguyen. Over 500 pounds of shank bones are gently simmered for 24 hours, and the results are elegant and rich with...
The Biz Beat: Palermo brings Sicilian cooking to San Jose
One of the greatest culinary marriages came about when dried pasta, introduced by the Arabs to Sicily in the 12th century, met tomatoes grown from seeds brought to 16th century Spanish Palermo after Hernán Cortés gathered them from Montezuma’s gardens. Regardless of its international foundations, red sauces and pasta dishes have come to define popular Italian cuisine....
The Biz Beat: A sweet bounty awaits inside family’s East San Jose bakery
It’s easy to underestimate the wonders within Mexico Bakery on Alum Rock Avenue in East San Jose from its modest storefront. But stepping inside, the interior, like some magical Tardis machine, seems three or four times larger than it possibly could be as the mind struggles to take in the colors, shapes and varieties of all the...