Eppie's Restaurant (Gone)
Sacramento, CA
Photo courtesy John Flores

Here sits an Eppie's Coffee Shop on Madison Boulevard in Sacramento that has been vacant for about 3 years now. Eppie's Coffee Shops once flourished in the Sacramento area and some other Northern California locations in the mid-century era and most have now been closed or torn down. There is an exception of one Eppie's that is still open in near West Sacramento, which is privately owned and is still doing well.

Eppie's Restaurant Exterior View
Sacramento, CA
Photo courtesy John Flores

As far as the old vacant one on Madison, I am not too sure if it will be around for much longer. There is another one near Alhambra in Mid Town Sacramento near the Capitol City Freeway that is also vacant and ready for someone to save it. Many thanks to John Flores for info. 08-06

Eppie's Restaurant Closer up
Sacramento, CA
Photo courtesy John Flores

Here’s Eppie’s Restaurant, once a familiar 24-hour stop at 30th and N streets in Sacramento. The sweeping roof, broad windows, and angled mid-century lines gave the building plenty of coffee shop character, especially when the lights were glowing after dark.

Eppaminondas “Eppie” Johnson opened the restaurant in 1964. Designed by Louis Armet of Armet & Davis, it became the flagship of a regional chain that eventually grew to more than 20 locations. Children even received Professor Eppie masks, proving that a restaurant promotion could once involve breakfast and a disguise.

Eppie's Restaurant $2.99 Breakfasts
Sacramento, CA
Photo courtesy John Flores

Eppie Johnson later used the restaurant’s popularity to help launch Eppie’s Great Race in 1974. The running, bicycling, and paddling event became a major Sacramento charity tradition and continued until 2018.

UPDATE: The Midtown Eppie’s closed in April 2004. Its original signs were removed, but the distinctive building was preserved and converted into an IHOP. The Eppie’s name continues at an independently operated restaurant in West Sacramento. 09-26

Jimmy's Coffee Shop
San Jose, CA
Photo courtesy Heather David

Check out Jimmy's Coffee Shop in San Jose. Featuring a restaurant building that dates back to 1976, Johnny's is a well preserved coffee shop with interior colors that decor that brings back memories of when it first opened. Many thanks to Heather David for info. 07-08

Here’s Jimmy’s Coffee Shop at Capitol Expressway and Monterey Highway in San Jose. The angular roofline and roadside pole sign gave the place plenty of coffee shop character, but the real time travel began after stepping through the door.

Jimmy's Coffee Shop
San Jose, CA
Photo courtesy Heather David

Built in 1973 as a Cindy’s Restaurant, the dining room retained its brown-and-orange vinyl booths, matching counter stools, and hanging light fixtures long after Jimmy’s took over. Located across from the Capitol 6 Drive-In and flea market, it became a popular 24-hour stop before or after browsing the swap meet.

The remarkably intact interior even hosted a 2011 Googie preservation event, followed by a caravan across the highway for a night at the drive-in. Coffee shop architecture and a drive-in movie made a pretty good double feature.

UPDATE: Jimmy’s Restaurant has permanently closed. The building and original roadside pole sign survived the closure, although their long-term future remains uncertain. 09-26

Bo Town Restaurant formerly Sambo's (Closed)
San Jose, CA
Photo courtesy Heather David

San Jose is home to the Bo Town Restaurant. This former coffee shop structure used to be a former Sambo's. The architect is Ron Bergquist. Many thanks to Heather David for info. 09-08

Here’s Bo Town Restaurant in downtown San Jose, housed inside a wonderfully intact former Sambo’s Restaurant. Built in 1966, the dramatic zigzag roofline and broad glass walls gave the building far more motion than the average coffee shop.

The Ung family opened Bo Town in 1986 and turned the old Sambo’s into a longtime destination for Cantonese food, dim sum, and fresh seafood. The restaurant remained a downtown favorite for nearly four decades while preserving the building’s distinctive Googie exterior.

Bo Town Restaurant (formerly Sambo's)
San Jose, CA
Photo courtesy Heather David

A proposed 30-story residential tower initially placed the old restaurant in danger. Preservation efforts led the developer to revise the plans, moving the tower back and incorporating the restored coffee shop facade and roofline into the project’s entrance.

UPDATE: A three-alarm fire heavily damaged the vacant Bo Town building on September 24, 2024, destroying the interior and collapsing part of the rear roof. The signature front facade and structural framing survived, and plans still call for the Googie exterior to be restored as part of the future development. 09-26