In late July, the Barnes & Noble at Sequoia Station started a closing sale with 40% off books, music and games. The assistant manager, Val de Leon, said the store was "seeing more business than Christmas." The store closed on Sept. 16 after 33 years beside the Caltrain station. About two and a half months earlier, on Middlefield Road, Dasbierhauz served its last German beer-garden meal. Co-owner Mehmet Vural said that final service "was one of the busiest days ever."
Neither space emptied because people stopped coming. Most of the Redwood City storefronts that changed hands in 2026 did so because of a lease, a partnership or a building. And most of the businesses that took them over were run by people already cooking, brewing or selling within a few blocks.
Busy Right Up to the Last Day
The reasons these spaces opened up have little to do with the customers.
At Sequoia Station, Hunter Properties said it had spent a long time discussing a renewal with Barnes & Noble at a rent "closer to market rate." Principal Curtis Leigh said both sides eventually decided it was "time to move on from each other." De Leon said employees had expected the lease to run into early 2027, so the September exit came as a surprise. She also said Sequoia High School students used the store as a "third space" after school, and train commuters stopped in on their way through.
Dasbierhauz closed on June 30 because Vural's business partner was moving. "It just didn't work out partner-wise," he said. The original Dasbierhauz in Mountain View is still open.
House of Humor is the long version of the same pattern. Owner Mark Greenbaum closed the costume shop's 747 El Camino Real storefront in 2024 over issues with the building. It took about six months to find a new spot "two stores down, on the same block," at 729 El Camino Real, a unit the shop had been using for storage. That space was about 1,000 square feet smaller.
Here is how the year's main handoffs line up:
| Address | Before | Now | Status as of late September 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 830 Middlefield Road | Dasbierhauz, closed June 30 | Gangsan, contemporary Korean | Soft-opened this summer |
| 711 El Camino Real | Redwood Bistro, closed in June | Mr. Pan Bistro, Taiwanese | Open since Sept. 17 |
| 2655 Broadway | Ike's Sandwiches | Nosh Corner, sandwiches and drinks | Open since April |
| 2070 Broadway | The Broadway Sandwich Market | The Sandwich Guy, deli | Open |
| 1011 Veterans Blvd. | Sizzler | Reef Zaman, Mediterranean grill | Soft-opened June 29 |
| 352 Woodside Plaza | Redwood Grill Market | Buzz & Brew, takeaway coffee | Open since June 3 |
| 1091 El Camino Real | Barnes & Noble, closed Sept. 16 | Party Teller, seasonal party supplies | Announced, no opening date published |
The New Tenants Came From Down the Block
If an empty storefront usually means a chain moving in, Redwood City's 2026 list looks different. Many of the new operators already worked in town, some of them next door.
Buzz & Brew is the Redwood Grill team converting its own market next to the restaurant into a takeaway coffee shop. Owner Johnny Arreola said he made the change after neighbors told him a coffee shop was missing from the area. He quoted one customer: "We've lived here for years and always wished there was a coffee shop." The top seller is the Honey Bee, a shaken espresso with honey, cinnamon and sea salt for $6.95. The shop is open daily from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Nosh Corner comes from Kenny Hout and Ashley Chhor, a married couple who live in Redwood City and have owned Brew Coffee and Bakery since it opened in 2021. They built the shop so a sandwich run and a coffee run could happen at one counter. Signature sandwiches include the Ohh My Nosh and the Redwood City BBQ at $13.50, and the drink menu runs from Vietnamese coffee to taro milk tea. It seats about 30 inside, has outdoor seating, and is open daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
The Sandwich Guy is run by Louay Obeidi, whose family owns Falafel Tazah in San Carlos, Redwood City and Foster City. Most sandwiches are $15.95. The Godfather, with salami, prosciutto, mortadella and provolone, is $18.50. Hours are 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily. Reports disagree on exactly when it opened. The Almanac says June, and the East Bay Times described it in late September as about two months old. Obeidi has been frank about the work:
"I opened up the deli because I thought it'd be easier, to be honest, but it was really hard."
He says a deli takes in-person consistency seven days a week and a steady supply of perishables, and that it is getting easier as he settles into a rhythm.
House of Humor got its missing space back without leaving the block. In June it expanded into 731 El Camino Real, a former accounting office next door, removed the walls between the units, and reopened on Sept. 1 at its old size.
The same pattern holds for businesses that never needed a vacant storefront. Victor Lu, a Redwood City resident, started his Pigly sandwich pop-up in 2018. On July 20 he set it up in the Redwood City Eats ghost kitchen at 426 MacArthur Ave. to test the concept, with the hope of eventually opening his own brick-and-mortar shop. It serves four sandwiches led by grilled lemongrass pork, priced $11 to $14, on weekdays from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Richard and April Sigona are moving their sandwich pop-up, Rosie's, to Sigona's Farmers Market at 2345 Middlefield Road, which Richard's family owns. They will serve from a pink-and-white trailer that is still being built, with regular service expected in November.
Gangsan is a debut concept, but its kitchen is close to home. Chefs and longtime friends Ike Hwang and Jack Choi lead it, and so far the most popular dish is galbijjim, beef short ribs slow-braised in ox bone broth, at $88. Hours are 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and 5 to 9 p.m. on weekdays, and 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends.
Where the Out-of-Town Arrivals Fit
Three of the year's newcomers did come from outside Redwood City, and each one ties back to the city's existing food scene.
Mr. Pan Bistro moved to 711 El Camino Real when its Cupertino lease ended. Server Paul Lai, speaking for chef-owner Jimmy Pan, said Redwood City has far fewer Taiwanese restaurants than Cupertino, and the team hopes to be a convenient lunch option. The braised pork rice is $9.90. Sizzling black pepper beef comes on a cast-iron plate for $17.98. The dining room seats about 50, with no outdoor seating.
Reef Zaman's restaurateur, Faris Alqabass, is based in Los Angeles. He had planned to open the concept in New York City and changed course when he found the former Sizzler space. His head chef, Mohammed Al-Omari, previously worked at Mazra nearby. The dining room seats about 280, with a patio planned that would add 300 more seats. The Redwood City Pulse lists Reef Zaman alongside Nomadic Kitchen, Pasha, Zadna Grill, Hella Mediterranean, Nick the Greek and Mazra as part of the city's Mediterranean cluster.
Party Teller is the one replacement that changes what an address sells. Leigh describes it as a store with seasonal and holiday-themed supplies all year, "from Halloween to Fourth of July," and says it is set to move in before the holiday season. No opening date had been published as of late September. There is also no announced new Redwood City address for Barnes & Noble. De Leon said she hoped the store might reopen in the former Rite Aid at 340 Woodside Plaza, which is not an official plan. The company has pointed customers to its San Mateo and Burlingame stores and to a new Cupertino location at 20740 Stevens Creek Blvd. planned for this fall.
An October That Runs Through These Addresses
Halloween is the season both of the year's party and costume storefronts were preparing for. Greenbaum calls it House of Humor's busiest period, and Party Teller is trying to open in time for the holidays that follow. The city's October calendar also passes several of the new spots:
- Oct. 3, 10:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.: PortFest at 475 Seaport Court. Admission is free, with boat tours, water activities and a new 2026 stop at the Marine Science Institute.
- Oct. 6, 5 p.m.: A Library Lot B redevelopment open house, listed on the library's calendar.
- Oct. 7, 5 to 9 p.m.: The Redwood City Library Foundation's Upscale Pub Crawl. It starts at 1044 Middlefield Road and moves through downtown businesses.
- Oct. 17, noon to 8 p.m.: The 47th Palestine Culture Day at Courthouse Square, 2200 Broadway, with music, food and vendors.
- Oct. 24, noon to 3 p.m.: The city's Halloween Spooktacular at Red Morton Community Center, 1120 Roosevelt Ave., with carnival games, crafts and a pumpkin patch for children.
Nosh Corner at 2655 Broadway and The Sandwich Guy at 2070 Broadway both list daily hours, so both are open on the Saturday of Palestine Culture Day at 2200 Broadway. On El Camino Real, Mr. Pan Bistro at 711 and the enlarged House of Humor at 729 and 731 sit on the same 700 block, so one stop in October covers a costume and lunch.
Many of this year's storefront handoffs went well because the new tenant already knew the block. A home sale can work the same way: knowing the house and the street well before listing gives you more to work with. If you're thinking about when to hand off a longtime Redwood City address of your own, Lynn North can walk you through a preparation timeline and an up-to-date valuation in a free consultation.