Turlock sees well-known restaurant chains come to town; coffee, fried chicken, more
Amid the ongoing pandemic and economic uncertainties, Turlock is still smoking when it comes to new restaurant and retail developments.
Several new chains and well-known local eateries are expanding into the Central Valley city, including Stanislaus County’s second Dutch Bros Coffee location. The new coffee spot sits at the corner of Monte Vista Avenue and Crowell Road, across from Stanislaus State University. The city also saw the opening of its first recreational cannabis dispensary earlier this month, with three others still in the works.
Dutch Bros, a cult favorite among loyal fans of the Oregon-based drive-thru coffee chain, opened its first in-county location last August in Oakdale. Three other locations had been planned in the region at that time, including the upcoming Turlock site and two Modesto locations.
The Turlock coffee kiosk is part of the new Warrior Crossing retail shopping center across Crowell Road from the university campus, hence its name. The land, which was the former site of a residential home and adjacent agricultural field, is now part of a larger 6,700-square-feet development that includes a mix of retail and restaurant spaces.
Dutch Bros Regional Operator Isaac Schaaf said the Turlock Dutch Bros Coffee kiosk should open Sept. 4. The chain has hired 60 people to staff the site, and they are being trained at the Oakdale location. The coffee shop is still accepting applications online for its current and future valley locations.
Schaaf is also overseeing the first Dutch Bros location in Modesto, which is being constructed on McHenry Avenue just south of Briggsmore Avenue in front of the imposing black-mirrored Modesto Radiology Imaging building. But the company has scrapped plans for the site of the second Modesto location, at Briggsmore and Orangeburg avenues, according to Modesto Associate Planner Jonnie Hanson Lan. Schaaf said there was no official word yet on whether an alternate is being considered.
Warrior Crossing center includes new restaurants
While Dutch Bros will be the first business to open in the new Warrior Crossing shopping center, it will not be its last. Also contracted to open in the complex will be the new soup-and-sandwich restaurant Sourdough & Co. and national pizza chain Domino’s Pizza. Sourdough & Co. is based out of El Dorado Hills east of Sacramento and has more than 30 locations across the state. The chain is known for its signature baked sourdough bread, which is used in sandwiches and soup bowls. Meanwhile the new Domino’s will be Turlock’s second — an existing store is open on Geer Road.
Construction work continues on Warrior Crossing. The development’s leasing agent, Chris Sill of Lee & Associates Commercial Real Estate Services, said the two restaurants will take up close to 3,000 square feet in the complex, leaving another 4,000 square feet that can be leased by “restaurants, retail or high-profile office users.” He said crews expect work to take another 30 to 45 days to complete the shopping center.
Across town, in the Turlock Town Center, another new tenant is set to move in. The shopping complex, which recently saw a Smart & Final Extra! grocery store open up as one of its anchors, will also have a Popeye’s Louisiana Kitchen fried chicken fast food chain moving into one of its vacant stand-alone buildings.
A sign has been hung on the building announcing the new tenant, but it appears exterior and interior work has yet to begin on the project. Turlock Associate Planner Adrienne Werner said the city does not have a date yet for work to begin.
Four Turlock cannabis dispensaries move forward
In downtown Turlock, local Mexican restaurant chain Rancho Fresco plans to move into the historic Enterprise Building. The restaurant, which has existing locations in Patterson and downtown Modesto, will move into the spaces at 214 and 216 West Main Street in the triangle-shaped building that sits in front of the city’s Calafia statue. Outdoor patio seating for the location has already been approved by city planners.
A little down the road, also on West Main Street, the city saw its first cannabis dispensary open earlier this month. Firehouse, owned by The Premier Group which also runs Phenos in Modesto, Patient Care First in Ceres, Flavors in Riverbank and Blue Fire in Merced, is operating out of the former Waffle Shop building.
Work also continues on three other retail marijuana stores in town — The Evergreen Market and Perfect Union Turlock both on Golden State Boulevard, and Natural Health Center on West Monte Vista Avenue. Turlock City Council had initially banned all recreational pot shops from the city limits, but relented last year and launched a cannabis business pilot program which includes the four planned commercial dispensaries.
This story was originally published August 26, 2020 at 4:34 AM.
