I would love to see restaurants like Urban Remedy and other healthy options for lunch. Also, San Ramon used to be full of mom and pops stores and restaurants and due to raising costs of rents we’ve lost those gems to large chain restaurants that lack quality and charm. Please make it possible for those businesses to thrive here.

Sorry to say still not interesting.

Great concept, but not too impressed yet with the stores/restaurants. I would love to see something like YardHouse, Olive Garden, Urban Plates. I know these are chain restaurants, but they are affordable and fun to dine out as a family.

The addition of Fieldwork Brewing is an amazing addition. One of the best brewers in the Bay Area is coming to our doorstep. Can't wait!

Bowden (sic) Bakery, who has been in San Francisco for 140 years, opened a retail outlet in Fremont and features an in house bakery, a lunch and dinner menu featuring custom made sandwiches and a nice selection of breads and pastry items.

I do not know if this type of store fits the profile of the City Center but it would be nice if they, or a similar kind of store, were to open.

Just my opinion.

I love everything going in so far!!! Super excited!! Super happy about equinox and that theater!! Excited to try the restaurants!!

I have to agree with Pam. So far there isn't anything that interests our family. Yardhouse is one of our favorites and would do well in San Ramon. I was hoping this new center would be similar to Santana Row or Walnut Creek in regards to food. Why do we need Williams Sonoma/Pottery Barn?

I’m just hoping for a few Electric Car Chargers in the newly developed site.

I also agree with Pam, not yet excited and I want to be because I'm a positive person but when I add up the number of burger joints in this town it's staggering! McDonald's, In/Out, Carl's Jr, Burger King, Wendy's, The Habit...and I'm sure I'm missing some. We no longer have the best Chinese rest...due to a fire, and we no longer have a great Mexican rest. due to greedy landlords. We have BWW...why??? Did the city NOT read our comments about food from the survey? I did and we did not ask for another burger joint!! I can't imagine the families here like all this processed food going into their children's stomachs..woo food companies a little harder San Ramon!!!

Woohoo Ramen Hiroshi is opening here! No more going to walnut creek for excellent ramen! This is not a chain store!

Roamburger.com
RamenHiroshi.com
These restaurants look great! I’m hoping they get a good Mexican restaurant.

I am excited to see what you are doing,It is not easy to satisfied to all of us.Lets do the best we can.The businesses have to make money,if they cannot survive ,they will leave.A good cross section of businesses and affordability is required too.All the best.

So sad,the trade off of more congestion fior the likes of Pottery Barn and William Sonoma.One bright star is the brew co. and ramen place.Hope the other additions will more unique and not a rubber stamp .

Olive Garden, please!!!

Olive Garden would be a welcome additionNH

How many more burger joints and bars do we need in San Ramon? I have heard of only two of the retail stores that are planned, so I'm probably not going to shop there. And 10 theaters that have only 80 seats in each (total of 800)? It's going to be hard to see a movie on the spur of the moment because the seats will already be filled. And I don't need to watch a movie in an oversized chair (apparently made for someone over 6 feet tall and weighing over 200 pounds) while waiters are serving food to people around me.

The traffic congestion that we will be living with is certainly not worth what we are being offered.

Great to see brewhouse and ramen place. The rest are boring chains in a city already full of chaIns! Come on San Ramon, let’s get some more character to our City Center. Some chains have better character and quality than others:

- Agree on getting some healthy options like Urban Remedy. Take a look at the new shopping centre in Concord that has Next Level Burger (vegan burger from Oregon) and Urban Remedy both inside a Whole Foods 365. Very forward thinking (and these places were packed when I visited - and yes they are in concord!).
- philz coffee! Walnut Creek just got one - first in tri-valley Área.
- pls no Starbucks - there are enough them serving bad coffee the rest of the world laughs at us for. This area desperately need a good coffee place (like Coffeeshop in Walnut Creek and Inkhouse in Pleasanton)
- how about some independent shops to throw in the mix like Danville

Olive garden ??!! Please NO !

So excited for all the announcement and looking forward to supporting our new city center!

WOW what a disappointing lineup! Why on earth is an exercise place an anchor store?? Don't we have Club Sport and 24 Hour Fitness in San Ramon? Why do we need another over priced gym?
It would be great to have a Trader Joe's which would do a ton of business in San Ramon.
Who is making these horrible decisions as to the tenants coming to this unnecessary shopping center?
I will be surprised if any of these businesses last in San Ramon.

Can we get some international flavors with such a diverse community? Would love to see some Greek and Mediterranean fare restaurants, Thai, Indian, Asian Fusion, Seafood etc. would be nice to have places with wine and dine or wine and paint options, stand up theatre, cute coffee shops, froyos, music playing....ahh the joys of life. Any plans to create such a vibe or atmosphere in the new downtown?

I’m hoping to see some healthy options in the mix. How about a Hobees or a local coffee shop (yes for Philz!). Would love a wine bar, jazz club...somewhere to enjoy weeknights with friends without having to leave town. Retail stores found nearby anyway would not be a draw. Bring in local Mom and pop restaurants or celebrity chef ventures. We don’t need any more fast food- please no Olive Garden! Authentic Italian- I’m there! We need to change up the vibe to draw the community in and make San Ramon a destination to be reckoned with!

Why are some asking for Olive Garden, like that is the best Italian Food, whats next, Red Lobster. Come on people of San Ramon, we can do better than this.

I agree with many comments on here. We've lost 5 big restaurants here in San Ramon which is not good. It would be nice to get universal restaurans like maybe Mexican, Olive Garden, BJ's, Mel's diner, etc. Max's was great and Many miss it. San Ramon is a wonderful, desirable city but not for restaurants. Plus some will want to eat outside of the new City Center.

Very excited for another movie complex option; one with REAL food as well.


The rest, not my cup of tea. A mall is a mall. Tenants come and go......

HOWEVER, would be nice for a decent family restaurant (ie kids). Not many choices...

I sure hope this isn't going to be an expensive debacle to just adds to traffic on Bollinger Canyon. Frankly, I'm not hearing much of interest in this new development. Seems like more of the same foo foo stores and eateries that we already have.

We are excited about the development as we're hoping that it'll house local small businesses that would bring unique eats, retails, music, and coffee shops that are so sorely lacking in San Ramon right now. We really would like some restaurants like those in Danville or Pleasanton downtown. PLEASE, no more chain restaurants or big stores.

So disappointing! Bring back our “small town”, family oriented community. SR doesn’t need more people and added traffic congestion. I’d prefer to see more boutique shopping and small family businesses. Healthy option restaurants would be a nice addition also.

The city does NOT make any decisions on what stores or restaurants occupy a given location. That is the prerogative of the landlord or property owner.

Really excited to see Boba Guys moving in! They previously existed only in SF. I will be making the trek from Pleasanton for their excellent tea drinks!

To Steve - then whoever owns the property should have read the community survey the SR citizens filled out prior about our wants and needs.
UGH...I also forgot Nations...

We need an Islands!! Would do very well here!!

It's depressing how many people are begging for an Olive Garden...

Oh my, Olive Garden that is pathetic (YUCK)!!!! They announce 10 stores Boba Guys -Cool, The Lot - Awesome, West Elm - very good, Fieldwork - Sweet, Ramen - Awesome, the rest we will see. You will need to mix in local /regional with national brands. Sorry you can have some boutiques but generally these bust out and isn’t that what this M and other store is about Support the town center for God’s sake, this is our town/region...

I work in BR and with the owners. I was told expect top notch Italian, Mexican, salad AND Asian eateries. News to be released in April.

San Ramon has plenty of fast food restaurants. We need some nice upscale dining. There is a reason we have to go to surrounding cities for dinner.

We need all of this like a hole in the head! I don’t need more restaurants, big business or another movie theater as the ones we already have are fine and struggling to stay in business! Anyone remember Coffee Cavern that was rudely squished by Starbucks? I still only see horrible traffic, easy access for theft to hop onto 680 and pricey stores I cannot afford! Sorry

San Ramon needs more family style restaurants for sure. A big lack for the school aged kids....have to go to surrounding area for that need.

People, look at all your complaints about the tenants coming into the City Center. Did any of you bother to look at the going per square foot lease price? They are very similar in pricing to Union Square in San Francisco.

Think about the above pricing. You have premium pricing like in SF, but nowhere near the foot traffic. Who can afford these types of prices? They are larger chains who have economies of scale, not mom and pop shops. It's no secret that most restaurants fail within three years.

Do you want mom and pops to front all the money to be in the City Center and flounder? This is a very risky value proposition. I'm sure none of you would come to their financial rescue if they were to not succeed.

Big Chains aren't always best, but they are the only ones that can afford high real estate prices anymore.

Matt R, what are the leasing rates?

My favorite bookstore was driven out of San Ramon because of rent being raised too high,& that location is still empty about a year later. Other small businesses & restaurants here have been driven out by greedy landlords raising rent so high that a realistic business plan makes no sense. Who wants to routinely pay $11- or $12- for a sandwich if you aren't on an expense account. I am sick of mediocre chain restaurants & do not frequent them.

When I go to a movie, I definitely do not want to sit near someone eating a greasy pizza or some other "real food" concoction, & I do not want to sit on a cushy cloth upholstered seat that hundreds of people before me have sat on & dripped & spilled their wonderful meals. That whole idea is in polite terms, quite disgusting.

This City Center will negatively impact the ability to get to Whole Foods and Target with the increased traffic. I imagine it will negatively impact that center. Trader Joe's is a terrific idea! We do not need a Pottery Barn or William Sonoma, we can go to Walnut Creek or Pleasanton for that! No to chain restaurants! Maybe Gianni's would be willing to move? They have excellent food but in a bad location.

The Mayor has quietly leaked that Gordon Ramsay is opening a burger / pub. I hope we’re not paying $15 for a burger.

Wish Esin would come back.

I say no to Olive Garden for sure. Let's bring in privately owned restaurants who truly care about their product?
Would love to see something like the Protein House model (currently in CO and NV): organic healthy gluten free delicious choices.
Let's be the creative and current California that people believe we are when it comes to healthy food choices.

We need more family friendly, healthy food places, not just burgers and bars.

We don't need a "city center" aka. another mall filled with run-of-the-mill occupants. We need to draw quality employers to the Tri-Valley, so residents don't have to drive 30+ miles to get to work. Pottery Barn and Wms. Sonoma will not last when they have stores just down the street in Stoneridge Mall. The landlords will rent to whoever signs a contract. They don't give a hoot about what we think we need. When one renter moves out, another useless vendor will move in or not. I'm just sorry that the existing shopping center next door will suffer from the unwelcome congestion.

Looks like Capitalism is in high gear along with local politics and politicians with greasy palms in San Ramon. Street widening, congestion, eye sore, almost blinded today driving by with the sun off the silver siding. BR does not care what we want, they only care about renting retail space. Live the small town feel now before it goes away.

Olive Garden? Are people serious? We don’t need An Olive Garden in San Ramon! Go elsewhere for that.

Invite Paris Baguette.
Invite Kara's Cupcakes.
Invite Sprinkles Cupcakes, Ice Cream and Cookies.

They are unique...

Merriam-Webster herself wrote these eloquent words
"Definition of mall
a : an urban shopping area featuring a variety of shops surrounding a usually open-air concourse reserved for pedestrian traffic
b : a usually large suburban building or group of buildings containing various shops with associated passageways"

Another tidbit to nosh on.......DOWNTOWNS DON'T HAVE OWNERS


as you were

It is a sorry and fitting commentary on the state of the San Ramon Valley that THIS particular article is the only one that draws sustained interest and comment. It's superficial and snobbatory, without so much as a hint - not even a soupcon or a scintilla - of real Community. Again, Sad!

And before anyone invites the door to meet my butt - after nearly 30 years here we're looking, for precisely this reason.

So many negative comments about the restaurant choices and congestion. Get a grip, do people not realize much of the congestion in this valley is created by San Ramon and Danville residents having to leave those towns to go to places like Pleasanton and Walnut Creek to get these kinds of shopping and restaurant options??? Be positive for a change, San Ramon will now have a reason to stay in San Ramon and now you can ride your bike down the Iron Horse Trail to get there. And those that are moaning about the tenant choices the "City" makes, they don't have any say in it. The developer controls that and it looks like they are making great choices! Excited to see what opens and if you don't like it, don't go there...

Excited about City Center opening in October.

San Ramon has so many fast food and poor quality restaurants in
surrounding plazas.
It's time for a change to have some up-scale nice restaurants and sit-down
places.