Rincon de los Esteros, San Jose, CA

Rincon de los Esteros is the far northern, industrial edge of San Jose, where the tech business parks give way to the low-lying baylands stretching toward Alviso and the bay. The name, roughly 'corner of the estuaries,' fits the geography. Housing in Rincon de los Esteros is sparse. The land is mostly R&D campuses, industrial buildings and office parks on big parcels, with light rail tracks down First Street and across Tasman. City plans have long pointed the broader north side toward more homes, but for now residential streets are the exception. The outdoors is the surprise. Along one side of the district, the Guadalupe River Trail heads north to its end at Gold Street in Alviso, where riders can pick up the Bay Trail and ride out along the marsh. On the way it connects with the Highway 237 Bikeway. The Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge lies not far north, with open water and shorebirds a short ride away. Food here is geared to the office lunch. SAJJ on North First Street does Mediterranean bowls and wraps with falafel and shawarma, and Faz on East Tasman Drive serves combo platters, lamb shank and kabobs to the weekday crowd. For a morning coffee, the Starbucks at River Oaks Place is a short drive south. Daily errands take a car or a train. VTA light rail runs right through, Highway 237 and US-101 handle regional trips, and Sprouts on East Brokaw Road covers a full grocery run with its deli and produce aisles. For a worker who wants to be next to the campuses and the baylands, it functions. As a traditional residential neighborhood, Rincon de los Esteros is not one, and it does not pretend to be. Its draw is the wetlands on one edge and the offices on the other, not a Main Street in the middle.