The Pressroom

The Pressroom has that rare downtown buzz you can feel before you even sit down. It’s lively, polished, and humming with the kind of energy that makes you want to order one more round and stay awhile. Set inside the historic Lyndon Building (built in 1884) with roots in San Jose’s newspaper days, the place carries a civic swagger with elegance. Start with the drinks. They take cocktails seriously here, with a menu that reads like a newsroom in motion: City Beat, Pear Review, Inkwell Manhattan, all built with intention, not just booze and sugar. Note: they don't use simple syrup in ANY of their hand crafted cocktails. I had a dazzling French 75 with dinner, then a tawny port to escort what can only be described as world-class beignets - hot, tender, and indulgent with three sauces - raspberry chocolate and dulce de leche. Dulce de leche was my favorite. The food landed punches across the table. My Ora King salmon, served medium rare, was outstanding - silky and precise, with the kitchen showing real control. My friends went for the braised short rib and the rosemary fried chicken, and after swapping bites like civilized animals, we genuinely couldn’t pick a winner. Two thumbs up across the board: five-star excellence. Service deserves its own paragraph. I walked in with a roller bag because I didn’t want it heisted from my rental car. The hostess didn’t blink; she stored it, handed me a claim check, and made it feel completely normal. That small, gracious move set the tone for the entire night: attentive, professional, and quietly confident from start to finish. If you want a guaranteed win in downtown San Jose - stellar vibe, serious cocktails, a kitchen that doesn’t miss, and service that makes you feel taken care of, run to The Pressroom. Bring friends, show up hungry, put your trust in the Pressroom. You won't be disappointed.

Amazing place! A bit on the expensive side so def upscale ! The ambience is wonderful! I usually avoid gin drinks but had this drink called the pear review which is honestly one of the best cocktails i have had! The house made milk bread and chili lime butter is absolutely delicious! 🩷 would def come here again!

The atmosphere of this restaurant is super cool. The lighting, the plants, and bar are all gorgeous. The food was also delicious. The pork katsu was super crispy, the sauce was insane, and the mushrooms were delicious. Would absolutely go back

Had an amazing time at the Pressroom with Raaj. My fiance' and I popped in for an early lunch and some cocktails to celebrate our recent engagement. We were greeted by Raaj at the bar, who gave us a thorough explanation of the menu, providing suggestions for shared plates, larger dishes, and his personal favorites. We decided to go with The Roasted Mushrooms, Pork Belly with Persimmons, and The Handmade Lemon Ricotta Agnolotti. As for cocktails, we thoroughly enjoyed The Smash or Pass, and Raaj was kind enough to share a toast of Guiseppe Prosecco with us. Not only does The Pressroom offer a sophisticated yet welcoming atmosphere, the food is fabulous, and Raaj made the day extra special. Thank you. 🥂

Took a long pending visit to The Newly opened Pressroom in Downtown. Ambience is great. We went for their brunch and were not disappointed. The Armstrong and Benedict Arnold with Mimosa’s , followed with French toast were spot ON. Must try. Next time will try their dinner menu.

Burger was thick, juicy, just the right charbroil. Severely underrated. Great brunch! Duck Cheney might have been a mochi waffle 🤤

Food was delicious! The highlights were the ahi tuna nachos and the bread pudding. I would come back for the bread pudding alone! Got the steak and it was well seasoned and tender. The drinks are really good too. I got the bourbon ledger and it was very well balanced for a whisky cocktail. They have indoor and outdoor seating and space to accommodate large groups but I recommend you call ahead and get a reservation because it's pretty crowded during peak times

Ryan Chua

My family and I came here to celebrate my birthday. The restaurant was busy that night so highly recommend a reservation. The service was great and helped with any questions we had. We had ordered multiple appetizers, entrees, and cocktails. All of the dishes were tasty and did not disappoint. The poke nachos was fresh and light, the pork belly was delicious with crispy crunch, and the steak was cooked to perfection! This place is great for special occasions or just a night out in town.

Tracy Molina (STAR TRACE)

I stumbled upon this place while walking through downtown San Jose and immediately told my husband, ‘We need to check this place out!’ It’s a gorgeous restaurant, and I knew right away it would be a great date-night spot. The inside is just as impressive—the space is beautifully designed with a newspaper-themed aesthetic that feels both stylish and unique. It really adds to the overall experience. After looking into The Pressroom, I realized they offer a daily happy hour, which is rare to find in the South Bay—especially at a more upscale restaurant. We walked in without a reservation and were immediately seated. We started with cocktails. I tried the Pear Review and the Rewrite, and both were excellent. My husband had The Standard and absolutely loved it. We ordered exclusively from the happy hour menu, and everything impressed us. The oysters ($2!!) were phenomenal—small and sweet, just how we like them. We also tried the Millionaire Bacon Bao Buns, which admittedly looked a bit underwhelming at first, but completely delivered on flavor. The steak bites were perfectly tender and very enjoyable as well. We’re already excited to come back to try their dinner and brunch menus.

Wei-Ai Tai

Beautifully decorated interior, this swanky and stylish restaurant is a great addition to the downtown San Jose dining scene. The newspaper theme is evident throughout this bright and airy venue, and the food items were all delicious. Didn’t get a chance to try the cocktails, but the menu looked intriguing. Fast and friendly service. Several paid parking lots within a 5-minute walk.

G Lee

I’m not sure of it’s be out I never noticed the Pressroom, but it’s really nice. Right near San Pedro Square on Santa Clara Street. You enter at the corner and it’s a restaurant with a nice big bar in the back. Off to the side in a separate room they have another bar against the wall which looks pretty cool as well but it was closed on this particular day for whatever reason. Love the high ceilings and openness. Nice furniture and decor. They have an outside seated stress but it’s not so fancy. Just tables and chairs on the sidewalk, though partitioned away from the public. The waiter was very friendly and patient. He walked us through some of their unique drink concoctions ands advised on different apps to eat. Oysters, bay buns, sliders, and steak bites were all grub! I think we had a couple of the steak bites. For drinks, the Pear Review was a nice cocktail. The sweet pear flavor mixed well with the gin, and I’m usually not a gin fan. The Night Watch has pineapple and dark rum, another nice grouping. They have a terrific happy hour for both food and drink!

Tracie lloyd

We were in San Jose just for a weekend from Canada, we popped in here for a drink and appetizer before we had a reso someplace else! We loved the vibe in here and lighting and space was perfect even though it was busy we also never felt rushed. The bartender was great! The drinks were impressive and well those snacks we got were amazing! He invited us to come back the next day and so we did exactly that we came for another visit and we’re just impressed day 2! This place is perfect!

Trillian Eats

I do not leave 5-Star reviews often, especially for food because we are such foodies, but the Pressroom nailed it. We were in town for ten days for the NWSL Championship and my birthday and we dined at the Pressroom four times! It was a stone's throw from AC Hotel where we stayed which made it an early easy pick. However we were pleasantly surprised! The drinks were spot on a creative, we had brunch, lunch, dinner and snacks and each and everything we had was cooked perfectly, served quickly and even over Thanksgiving weekend things went beautifully. Thr bar tenders, the chef, the managers and even the hostess was inviting and nice to speak with. We will absolutely come here again!

Khang Kayla Vuong

We went here for my friend’s birthday and left satisfied and happy :) Food quality , ambience, service and location. The Pressroom checked every box! Park at the parking garage on Market and San Pedro Square. That will give you 90 minutes of free parking. A quick 5-7 minutes walk will take you to the Pressroom, which is located just a block away from the parking garage. Highly recommend you make a reservation beforehand too as the restaurant was pretty crowded even on a week night! From the outside looking in, The Pressroom looks very chic with its huge wooden push door and an outdoor patio with cute black-and-white striped umbrellas. The inside gives an upscale and elevated vibes though! Floor-to-ceiling windows surround the corner restaurant with dark wood interiors and cute little booths. The bar is well stocked with varieties of alcohols and nicely decorated. I love that the restaurant is dimly lit which creates a nice ambiance for dining. There is cute fake plants decorations everywhere - between the booths, hanging from top of the windows, around the bar, etc. I whispered to my friend that w should come back here to enjoy brunch and see the restaurant in daylight. Our dinner reservation was at 7pm. The front staff was super friendly, quickly checked us in and directed us to our table which pleased me instantly. I had requested a nice table because it was my friend’s birthday and they provided just that. We got a window table/booth which provided nice view of the patio and also the bar area. Our server promptly brought us water and kindly explained the menu to us. We needed up ordering the Bread and Butter, Poke Nachos, and the Prime NY Steak Frites. We also picked the Pear Review and Byline Fizz for cocktails. Food came out in reasonable amount of time. We enjoyed the house-made milk bread in the Bread and Butter. So soft and yummily melting in your mouth! The Poke Nachos was fresh and nicely seasoned. I wasn’t impressed with the steak. Though it was pretty decent, nothing spectacular stood out to me. Both of the cocktails served their purpose! My friend loves strawberry and her Byline Fizz was infused with all strawberries LOL which pleased her! Overall, we had a great night with nice food, ambience and service! Best of all, we only paid $2 extra for parking LOL. We will definitely come back to try this restaurant’s brunch menu :)

Richard

Finally got to try this in DTSJ and did not expect this place to be this good. The interior is beautifully designed and the menu is diverse with lots of asian, French, Italian options and more. We ordered the braised pork belly, agnolotti with truffles, pork katsu, and the braised short rib. The pork belly was phenomenal and definitely our favorite. I can say hands down this is my new favorite restaurant in DTSJ and we'll definitely be back for more

Liz P.

The Press Room is a beautifully designed restaurant with a stunning bar and a spacious, well-planned seating area. Whoever handled the architecture and interior design deserves major credit—it’s modern yet comfortable, with clever touches like the newspaper-style artwork that I especially appreciate as an artist with a design background. We’ve been twice—once for happy hour and once for dinner—and both times it’s been surprisingly quiet between 5:00 and 7:30PM. It’s a bit of a mystery, because the cocktails are fantastic, the food is delicious (and not overpriced like some other spots nearby), and the service has been consistently excellent. The bartenders are friendly, knowledgeable, skilled, and attentive, which makes the experience even better. Perhaps the slower traffic has more to do with marketing or location, because this place has so much potential. It’s the kind of venue I’d happily recommend to family and friends—and we’ll likely be back next week. I can easily picture it being booked out for holiday parties, especially given its proximity to many Bay Area tech companies. There are garages nearby, and street parking is available (and free further down). While we’ve made reservations, it seems they accommodate plenty of walk-ins. Overall, it’s a great spot—stylish without being stuffy, well-run, and worth visiting whether for happy hour, dinner, or a special event.

Michael Swartz

The Pressroom has that rare downtown buzz you can feel before you even sit down. It’s lively, polished, and humming with the kind of energy that makes you want to order one more round and stay awhile. Set inside the historic Lyndon Building (built in 1884) with roots in San Jose’s newspaper days, the place carries a civic swagger with elegance. Start with the drinks. They take cocktails seriously here, with a menu that reads like a newsroom in motion: City Beat, Pear Review, Inkwell Manhattan, all built with intention, not just booze and sugar. Note: they don't use simple syrup in ANY of their hand crafted cocktails. I had a dazzling French 75 with dinner, then a tawny port to escort what can only be described as world-class beignets - hot, tender, and indulgent with three sauces - raspberry chocolate and dulce de leche. Dulce de leche was my favorite. The food landed punches across the table. My Ora King salmon, served medium rare, was outstanding - silky and precise, with the kitchen showing real control. My friends went for the braised short rib and the rosemary fried chicken, and after swapping bites like civilized animals, we genuinely couldn’t pick a winner. Two thumbs up across the board: five-star excellence. Service deserves its own paragraph. I walked in with a roller bag because I didn’t want it heisted from my rental car. The hostess didn’t blink; she stored it, handed me a claim check, and made it feel completely normal. That small, gracious move set the tone for the entire night: attentive, professional, and quietly confident from start to finish. If you want a guaranteed win in downtown San Jose - stellar vibe, serious cocktails, a kitchen that doesn’t miss, and service that makes you feel taken care of, run to The Pressroom. Bring friends, show up hungry, put your trust in the Pressroom. You won't be disappointed.

Aadi

Amazing place! A bit on the expensive side so def upscale ! The ambience is wonderful! I usually avoid gin drinks but had this drink called the pear review which is honestly one of the best cocktails i have had! The house made milk bread and chili lime butter is absolutely delicious! 🩷 would def come here again!

Alex Taffe

The atmosphere of this restaurant is super cool. The lighting, the plants, and bar are all gorgeous. The food was also delicious. The pork katsu was super crispy, the sauce was insane, and the mushrooms were delicious. Would absolutely go back

Ang

Had an amazing time at the Pressroom with Raaj. My fiance' and I popped in for an early lunch and some cocktails to celebrate our recent engagement. We were greeted by Raaj at the bar, who gave us a thorough explanation of the menu, providing suggestions for shared plates, larger dishes, and his personal favorites. We decided to go with The Roasted Mushrooms, Pork Belly with Persimmons, and The Handmade Lemon Ricotta Agnolotti. As for cocktails, we thoroughly enjoyed The Smash or Pass, and Raaj was kind enough to share a toast of Guiseppe Prosecco with us. Not only does The Pressroom offer a sophisticated yet welcoming atmosphere, the food is fabulous, and Raaj made the day extra special. Thank you. 🥂

Jasbir Singh

Took a long pending visit to The Newly opened Pressroom in Downtown. Ambience is great. We went for their brunch and were not disappointed. The Armstrong and Benedict Arnold with Mimosa’s , followed with French toast were spot ON. Must try. Next time will try their dinner menu.

Thao Ha

Food was delicious! The highlights were the ahi tuna nachos and the bread pudding. I would come back for the bread pudding alone! Got the steak and it was well seasoned and tender. The drinks are really good too. I got the bourbon ledger and it was very well balanced for a whisky cocktail. They have indoor and outdoor seating and space to accommodate large groups but I recommend you call ahead and get a reservation because it's pretty crowded during peak times

L

I had low expectations but was pleasantly surprised. The service, the taste of the food and the whole place was a vibe. Every plate was perfection, we especially enjoyed the fried artichokes, baked Brie and fried chicken.. and our server Charles, did not miss!! Thank you, Pressroom!!

Pretty decent nice restaurant serving New American cuisine. Price is on the higher side ($50-70) but has options for more affordable options ($25-35) , but tasted decent. It's great for date nights. We got the Brussels sprouts, poke nacho, prime burger, and the anglioloti (basically ravioli). The only not so great dish was the dessert - Dubai Chocolate brownie. It was just too rich and overpowered by the chocolate ganache. There wasn't much brownie in it. Service was very attentive.

Great happy hour menu! The drinks are fab! Tried the pear review, the wire, the rewrite, smash or pass, the down under.. all of them were good! Esp the first 3. The ambiance is great too.

Vicky Leung

Pretty decent nice restaurant serving New American cuisine. Price is on the higher side ($50-70) but has options for more affordable options ($25-35) , but tasted decent. It's great for date nights. We got the Brussels sprouts, poke nacho, prime burger, and the anglioloti (basically ravioli). The only not so great dish was the dessert - Dubai Chocolate brownie. It was just too rich and overpowered by the chocolate ganache. There wasn't much brownie in it. Service was very attentive.

Alex Nguyen

Went here for my dad’s birthday. Food is slightly pricey, so be prepared for that. Food was decent though. I really loved the poké nachos (although they are more like tostadas). Our server, Chris, was also really kind in serving us. The prime burger was okay. Felt like the 1/2lb patty lacked any sort of seasoning, could have improved in that. The steaks are perfectly cooked though, multiple people in our party ordered steak and it came out very consistent. Overall, may not come here for a while, but food is decent overall and staff are really kind to you.

We were really excited to come here based on all the great reviews, but unfortunately the experience didn’t live up to the hype. We ordered the Black Dahlia and Juice Is Loose cocktails, along with the eggs Benedict and the banana custard stuffed French toast. The presentation of both the food and drinks was honestly 10/10 everything looked beautiful and very Instagram-worthy. That said, the actual food was mediocre and nothing memorable. The cocktails felt more like juice or coffee poured over ice rather than well-balanced cocktails. The poached eggs in the eggs Benedict were undercooked, with the whites still loose. The French toast was greasy, with oil soaked into the bread, and you could tell it was fried in oil previously used for savory food because of the lingering aftertaste. If you’re coming purely for the ambience and aesthetic, this place delivers. But if you’re looking for a genuinely good brunch, I’d skip this spot you’re better off going to Bill’s Cafe.

Kissan Mistry

We were really excited to come here based on all the great reviews, but unfortunately the experience didn’t live up to the hype. We ordered the Black Dahlia and Juice Is Loose cocktails, along with the eggs Benedict and the banana custard stuffed French toast. The presentation of both the food and drinks was honestly 10/10 everything looked beautiful and very Instagram-worthy. That said, the actual food was mediocre and nothing memorable. The cocktails felt more like juice or coffee poured over ice rather than well-balanced cocktails. The poached eggs in the eggs Benedict were undercooked, with the whites still loose. The French toast was greasy, with oil soaked into the bread, and you could tell it was fried in oil previously used for savory food because of the lingering aftertaste. If you’re coming purely for the ambience and aesthetic, this place delivers. But if you’re looking for a genuinely good brunch, I’d skip this spot you’re better off going to Bill’s Cafe.

Steve Fisher

Lunch on a weekday. We ordered the Mushrooms w/pesto dish, & Endive Salad for starters, followed by the Steak Frites and Salmon. The mushroom dish was the standout, with the endive being a close second. It's rare to find endive on the menu anywhere and this dish was harmonious - letting the ingredients really shine. Unfortunately, the mains were a disappointment. The salmon was plated very nicely, but the texture was off, which made me think it might have been frozen, rather than fresh, and the flavor of the sauce was somewhat overwhelming and perhaps too complicated for me to enjoy. Although it was a large and generous portion - the steak was also a let down: oversauced. Along with the large amount of un-rendered fat and gristle, my guess is that the large volume of gravy was a compensation for sub-par ingredients. At $62, my preference for Steak Frites would be for a smaller, higher quality cut of meat, with a lesser amount of more concentrated sauce, so that I could enjoy a bit of crust on the steak. The fries were very good however. Service was excellent and we were well taken care of. I do think the atmosphere could be tweaked a little. In the evenings/weekend, the bass-heavy music might be fun, but it didn't seem to work for a midweek lunchtime, and we struggled to hear each other inside one of the (quieter) booths.