For nearly 35 years, Sweet Joanna’s Cafe has been a neighborhood staple at the University of San Francisco’s downtown campus, serving students, staff and local workers. But after surviving the severe economic downturns of recent years, the cafe’s owner says he was shocked to learn last month that the university does not plan to renew his lease.
Operating on the first floor of the historic Folgers Coffee building at 101 Howard St., just a block from the Embarcadero, Sweet Joanna’s has weathered the neighborhood’s ups and downs.
“In the pandemic we went through the worst. And I thought, okay, the good time is coming,” owner Joseph Abughosh said. “I don’t know about the good time anymore.”…