SAN JOSE — Dutch Bros Coffee is eyeing an empty restaurant site at 2624 South Bascom Ave. for its first San Jose store, according to a proposal the company submitted to the city.
The company had previously proposed a location in Gilroy at the corner of Alexander and East 10th streets.
Dutch Bros Coffee drive-through building at 2624 South Bascom Avenue in San Jose, concept. (Dutch Bros Coffee, Barghausen Consulting Engineers)
San Jose site of a Dutch Bros Coffee drive-through building at 2624 South Bascom Avenue, concept. (Dutch Bros Coffee, Barghausen Consulting Engineers)
“Dutch Bros Coffee, known for its upbeat baristas and genuinely caring service, is a growing drive-through coffee company with more than 900 locations in 18 states and over 24,000 employees,” Barghausen Consulting Engineers stated in the company’s filing with city planners.
The new San Jose site would be at the corner of South Bascom Avenue and Leigh Avenue in the southwestern section of the city, a short distance from Campbell, according to the proposal.
Dutch Bros Coffee drive-through building at 2624 South Bascom Avenue in San Jose, concept. (Dutch Bros Coffee, Barghausen Consulting Engineers)
“The project proposes to convert a 2,536-square-foot restaurant building with a drive-through lane and two drive-through windows on a 0.58-acre lot that was formerly occupied by Wendy’s and previously proposed to be used by Starbucks into a Dutch Bros drive-through coffee shop,” the consultant stated.
Dutch Bros intends to retain the exterior building shell for its proposed drive-thru operation.
“Proposed site improvements include the addition of a pickup window west of the existing windows, removal of the two currently existing drive-through windows, and a bypass and early-exit lane to the existing single-lane drive-through,” the consultant stated.
The bypass lane would enable early exits for customers who receive their orders through a system of runners. Dutch Bros also intends to offer services to pedestrians.
“A walk-up window is proposed on the west side of the building, as is a pedestrian path from South Bascom to the structure,” the consultant stated in city documents. “Another sidewalk is proposed along the south side of the existing drive-through lane to accommodate Dutch Bros staff.”
Dutch Bros said all orders would be taken in person either at the window or through a runner who carries a handheld device to transmit orders to the kitchen, according to the proposal. The site will include no speaker boxes.
“This ordering process minimizes noise impacts and decreases the amount of vehicle idling at menu boards that are common at traditional drive-through facilities,” the Dutch Bros consultant stated.
The existing structure would be revamped with what the company described as high-quality building materials.
“It will be re-faced with simple, bold colors,” the consultant stated. “The addition of a signature Dutch Bros ‘tower’ element is proposed. Colorful and visually interesting wall signs depicting the Dutch Bros Coffee logos will be installed on all sides of the building.”
The company donates more than $3.5 million a year to communities where it operates and to local nonprofits, Dutch Bros stated in the city planning documents.
“Dutch Bros Foundation and Dutch Bros Coffee are both about people first and actively engage in the communities through giving and action in four core areas: youth, music, health, and origins,” the company’s consultant stated.