'Dine Downtown' offers discounts for dining in San Jose

'Dine Downtown' offers discounts for dining in San JoseSource: San Jose Downtown Association
Laila Weir
Published on July 07, 2021

Folks in the South Bay looking to eat out will find a selection of prix-fixe meals and other limited-time specials at downtown San Jose eateries through July 18.

The specials are part of Dine Downtown, a series of restaurant deals presented by the San Jose Downtown Association. This year, 26 restaurants and cafes are participating in the promotion, offering chef's specials, food-and-drink pairings and the ever-popular fixed-price menus. 

For example, Habana Cuba Restaurant is serving up a chef's special sampler with two beef empanadas, two turkey croquettes, yuca frita and a passionfruit gin mojito or substitute non-alcoholic drink ($18; serves one). And 71 Saint Peter Mediterranean Grill is offering a "Tasting Trio" small-plates menu that features sweet potato fries with wasabi aioli, a coriander seared ahi tuna slider and black tea tiramisu ($24), plus an optional flight of paired wines ($16).

Diners can get 90 minutes of free parking in five ParkSJ garages to enjoy their meals out during the restaurant weeks.

Plus, fans who comment on the Downtown Association's Facebook page about which business they're most excited to visit during Dine Downtown 2021 will be entered to win a $25 gift card to downtown San Jose's popular Mezcal Restaurant. (The association will announce the winners at the end of the Dine Downtown promotion.)

The San Jose Downtown Association hopes the return of the annual promotion, its 13th, will help businesses still struggling from the challenges of the pandemic, as the association's Nate LeBlanc told ABC7 News. "We didn't snap our fingers and things magically came back to life," LeBlanc said to the outlet of California's reopening. "There's very much still an uphill climb for these hospitality businesses to try to get back to some sense of normalcy."

"We have great restaurants, great chefs in downtown. And we want to show [people] what we are and what we can do for them," Mezcal Restaurant co-owner Adolfo Gomez told the outlet. "This is a good time right now. It's a good moment to try and bring that magic back."

As the Mercury News notes, the participating eateries include several that actually opened during the pandemic or just before, like The Good Spot, Devine Cheese & Wine, Petiscos, Scott’s Chowder House, The Shop by Chef Baca and Paper Moon Coffee.

For a listing of participating businesses and details about the specials they're offering, visit sjdowntown.com/dine-downtown/.