Unwrap Japantown this Holiday Season

This blog series highlights the business corridors in the 2023 Holiday San José shop local campaign, written by the business outreach team in the City's Office of Economic Development and Cultural Affairs.

Happy Holidays! My name is Sal Alvarez and I am part of the Business Development Team at the City of San José's Office of Economic Development and Cultural Affairs, focusing on small business support through capacity building of business associations and storefront activation. I manage city-wide Streetlight Banner, Storefronts Activation Grant and Business Improvement District Formation Programs for the City. A San José native, I love our neighborhood business districts and am excited to support the Japantown Business Association and support our local businesses through this year's Holiday San José Shop Local Campaign.

San José's Japantown is one of the last three historical Japantowns in the United States and a cultural treasure for those looking to be immersed in a cohesive community experience through food, shopping, services, historical art and events. The Japantown Business Association has a fantastic website that is a wealth of information that I encourage you to visit.

Jackson Street serves as Japantown's main street that is surrounded by community treasures such as the Japanese American Museum of San Jose, San Jose Buddhist Church Betsuin, San Jose Buddhist Judo Club and Yu-Ai Kai Senior Center and is home to iconic places to shop and enjoy like Kogura Gifts Co., Nichi Bei Bussan NB, Shuei-Do Manju Shop, and Ukulele Source. Other wonderful neighborhood experiences like Santos Market, Okayama Japanese Restaurant, and Jtown Pizza are all walking distance of the district center.

When our children were young, our family lived near Japantown and still enjoy visiting Kazoo Japanese Sushi Boat, Nijiya Market and Pau Hana Shave Ice, getting a cone at Foster's Freeze and a Chicago Dog at Wienerschnitzel or a bowl at Happi House Teriyaki and relaxing at Roy's Station Coffee and Teas. Now our girls are older so they stop in at Classic Loot, Zonkey Toys and get our eyes checked at Shinmori Optometry. We have great memories of riding our bikes through Japantown during so many Viva Calles! I work at City Hall so you may sometimes find me riding a scooter to lunch at Gombei, Kumako Ramen, or Minato Japanese Restaurant. For fun, 7 Bamboo Lounge is a great place to meet co-workers and friends after work.

Are you ready to explore Japantown? Visit our 'Unwrap Japantown' Holiday San José page and view our list of places to shop, eat and celebrate along this corridor. We also recommend visiting the Japantown Business Association page for a full list of businesses in the area.

For other business areas to visit this holiday season, visit the Holiday San José page.