Espresso Cafe Recommendations in San Francisco South Bay?

#1: Post by **iceberg** » December 18th, 2015, 3:50 pm

I'm looking for recommended places to get espresso in the South Bay, preferably around Cupertino/Sunnyvale/Santa Clara or San Jose/Willow Glen.

While I live in the area, I've usually just made coffee at home with my Aeropress or went for pour over at a cafe (and drip only in dire emergencies). That's usually because I can't remember an espresso shot that ever blew me away. So far, I've only tried a shot from Chromatic. It was good, but not good enough for me to understand the incredible devotion to espresso.

So HB'ers, can you recommend a cafe or two (and perhaps even name the barista) that I should seek out to find a great espresso shot?

#2: Post by **yakster** » December 18th, 2015, 4:42 pm

I find great espresso at Chromatic, so I'm not sure you'll like any of these other recommendations any better

Belanos in Santa Clara
B2 in San Pedro market, San Jose
Vero's Cafe in SOFA San Jose
Roy's Station in Japantown San Jose

December 18th, 2015, 8:01 pm

I'll give that entire list a try, but I'll start with a quick comparison between Belanos and Chromatic since they are so close to each other.

Thanks for the list, Chris.

#4: Post by **objective1** » December 18th, 2015, 8:10 pm

I can second B2 in San Pedro. Very open almost food court kind of venue, but the blend they served was good enough to get a second one. It was about a year ago, when i was in town on business, but i had marked it up as a place to return to when in town visiting Adobe.

#5: Post by **Balthazar_B** » December 23rd, 2015, 8:46 pm

If you're willing to go a *little* far afield to Los Altos, the Red Berry Coffee Bar is very good.

#6: Post by **CoffeeMac** » December 24th, 2015, 1:12 am

Try Blue Bottle in Palo Alto (old Varsity theatre on University , now called Hannahouse).

You can also try Paris Bagutte across the street; they pull good shots using Ritual beans.

Another great choice, my favorite in Palo Alto, is Zombie Runner on California ave. also in an old theatre. Owner is a passionate ultra marathon runner who is also a coffee geek. So the shop is a cross between running store and espresso shop. Strange combination, but probably the best espresso I've had south of SF.

#7: Post by **yakster** » June 17th, 2016, 5:02 pm

1 Oz Coffee opened up near my office in Santa Clara in the pavilion of a business park near Silicon Valley Bank, serving Vertigo Coffee. They're open from 8 - 12 right now but soon to be staying open until 1pm, and the espresso that they serve there is very good. I usually pop in with my own Inker Ischia demitasse (rather than get it in a paper cup) right before they close on the way to lunch for a shot of espresso, they're also very friendly and like to talk about coffee.

I'm sad that our offices will be moving away this summer, there's not a whole lot of good coffee options North of 101 in Santa Clara.

https://www.facebook.com/1ozcoffee/

#8: Post by **RyanJE** » June 17th, 2016, 5:16 pm

I frequent the Bay Area for work and had the same search. I believe there is a barefoot out by Campbell..

Sadly they had a shop they closed closer to Menlo park I believe.. Also a chromatic closed in San Jose which was great.. Wonder why the difficulty....

#9: Post by **yakster** » June 17th, 2016, 5:30 pm

Chromatic still has a shop in Santa Clara and roasts out of San Jose, I hear a rumor that they're working on opening a cafe in San Jose, but I don't have a timeline on this.

I've been stopping by the Barefoot Campbell location when we go see movies at the Camera 7 theaters in the Pruneyard, they close a bit early, though, so they're not always open when we get out of the movie.

#10: Post by **BTD1986** » June 17th, 2016, 10:15 pm

I second Red Berry, they are my go to place because they are constantly rotating their coffees between all the top roasters. They usually have three different espressos to choose from. Additionally, Red Rock Coffee in Mountain View is pretty good too.