Cache Bouren and Tomoyo Yoshinaga will crack BitterBuck this Friday, September 4, on Fountain Alley between First and Second, next to Goodtime Bar. First Street is a construction mess, so the working entrance is on the Second Street side. The pair already run the exceptional Haberdasher and Cash Only. This room splits the day in two: pour-over coffee until 4 p.m., then amaro and spritz until 10.
There is no espresso machine. Five pour-overs and two Chromatic cold brews, beans roasted locally, can land as a boilermaker with a side of amaro. Andytown Shore Leave Hook with Sfumato Rabarbaro. Tico Huila with Cynar. Boast Mexico with Vecchio del Capo. Kenz Ethiopia with Pasubio. Chromatic decaf with Brucato Woodlands. Nitro cold brew with Tuve Fernet. Pastries come from The Midwife and the Baker. Sweet and savory pies come from Sweetdragon Baking Co.
After 4 the menu flips. The house Garibaldi is a shaken, foamy mix of orange, grapefruit, Select, and Campari. Three things sit on tap: a cold-brew martini, Chromatic nitro, and Guinness. Citrus juice stays off almost every other drink; acidity comes from verjus, the juice of unripe grapes. Small plates come out of their own kitchen. Notch Gonzalez, who did Dr. Funk, designed the interior.
Fountain Alley already holds Goodtime, Scratch Cookery, and Fox Tale. Another 7 a.m. room on that brick strip is useful if the day starts before the rest of Downtown San Jose wakes up, and useful again if the night wants bitter rather than sweet. Soft openings fill fast in a space this small. Walk in from Second, order the Garibaldi or a pour-over with Cynar, and decide which half of the day belongs there.
Instagram: @bitterbucksj
Source: Scott Firestone from San José: Downtown Dwellers ESTD. 2009
