I have a court appearance next month in San Jose. My original inclination was to stay in SF and take the “baby bullet” to the courthouse (cab from the station) for the afternooin hearing, then back to SF for dinner and to stay overnight. Flying out of SF airport.
Is this crazy? The schedule says the train takes an hour, which would be fine. But if there are good (informal) places to eat in SJ maybe I’d stay there. Ideas?
Not crazy. I have Court in San Jose every so often. My office is in SF. Live in Sonoma County.
No huge deal from either, but maybe I am just used to the traffic.
Train should be fine and way better than driving from Sonoma County as I do from time to time.
I don’t have any SJ recs for you, sorry.
Vung Tau is really good Vietnamese if you like Vietnamese in SJ. http://www.vungtaurestaurant.com/
There’s also Minato…that’s where Bourdain ate on his recent trip here this past summer. http://www.japantownsanjose.org/rest8.html
Other than those, is there a particular type of food you were looking for?
Thanks to both of you. William, I LOVE Vietnamese food and that sounds like a perfect option if I stay in SJ. Mike is giving me confidence though that staying in SF is not nuts, so that idea still appeals
San Jose would be fine for a short stay, but if you prefer to stay in SF it should work. I’m not sure of the lodging options but if you stay near the train station in SF, there is a little bistro called South Park Cafe that I have really liked in the past. I sent a French guy there once and he told me it was the best French restaurant he had been to. 
Just two nights? SJ is not very exciting, though you could certainly find some good food, and maybe a couple of us would even come join you if you’re interested. SF is definitely a more interesting place to be, and taking Caltrain is a pretty easy solution, especially mid-day. Your plan is fine if you want to be in SF.
Neal - Japan Town in SJ has some really good eats. Many choices depending on what you like. Most are informal.
If you plan to rent a car while staying in SJ, the recommendations for informal should include:
Vietnamese - just bear in mind that San Jose/South Bay is sprawling similar to LA/SoCal. The further south on Highway 101 (call it 101, NOT “the 101”) you go, the more Vietnamese options you’ll find.
Korean - Santa Clara is the epicenter of Korean cuisine in the Bay Area (Oakland being 2nd). El Camino Real has dozens of Korean restos for you to choose from.
Chinese - Cupertino has a lot of options. Another board has done repeated offlines at a corkage-reasonable establishment there.
FYI, be prepared for some nasty traffic during commute hours.