Modesto’s Redwood Cafe to be carted up Highway 99 in unusual move. Here’s how it’ll work
A beloved Modesto restaurant is closing on Dale Road, but it’s not the end for the 14-year-old “casually elegant” eatery.
Redwood Cafe owner Bob Campana sold his property to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The church is building a 30,000-square-foot temple near the site, and had “no interest in the (restaurant) building,” Campana said.
“It was a square-peg, round-hole situation, so that’s why they negotiated with me” to acquire the land, he said. “Once that happened, I said, ‘I need time because I’m not just gonna shut this thing down and there’s no way I can let you bulldoze it.’”
Upon hearing Redwood Cafe would have to close or relocate, Susan Dell’Osso, president of River Islands Development, visited Campana in July at his in-construction restaurant in Patterson, The Old Waterhouse.
The decision was all but immediate. Dell’Osso wanted Redwood to move to River Islands’ new town square in Lathrop.
“We make this video of the restaurant and what we’re thinking about, and we send it to Allan (Chapman, owner of River Islands Development),” Campana said. “In 48 hours, Allan calls back and tells Susan, ‘I wanna do this deal.’”
Two weeks later, Chapman visited Redwood Cafe and his vision was clear: This was not a re-creatable restaurant. It would have to be moved.
“Building a new building would not would not give this character,” Campana said. “So I sold the entire building and everything to River Islands for $1 under the pretext they would move the building and take the challenge to do it.”
From owner to partner
In 1994, Campana bought the property on which Redwood Cafe sits. He owned a pool construction business at the time and wanted to move his office and yard there.
What existed at the site on Dale south of Bangs Avenue was a farmhouse that came equipped with a catering license.
When he went to the city to submit his plans, Campana discovered he could not put his construction yard on the property, so he fell back on the conditional-use permit and began hosting weddings. The business was named Vintage Gardens.
At 50 years old, Campana said he sold his pool business and decided to “retire a little bit” — a decision that was quickly overturned when his daughters advised him that he would get bored.
Thus, the idea to build a restaurant was born and Redwood Cafe was established in 2010.
Now, 14 years and another almost retirement later, Campana finds himself in yet another new venture.
“I’m so impressed with Bob. He’s the heart and soul of this thing,” Dell’Osso said. “He’s coming with us to run the restaurant with his staff, which is amazing. So now he’s my partner.”
Not only is he in the midst of reestablishing Redwood Cafe in a new community, Campana is constructing The Old Waterhouse in Patterson.
The restaurant is expected to open in early February, and the timing is just right to give his Redwood Cafe employees somewhere to work during the move.
“I was not as heartbroken about closing the restaurant because I knew I could bring my staff and I could move everybody,” Campana said. “Building a team that can serve people and give people a vibe that is not a common experience is a very proud accomplishment that we’ve been able to achieve.”
Highway will shut down for moving project
Campana and Dell’Osso are working with semiretired and renowned architect Doug Dahlin of the Dahlin Group, based in Pleasanton, to bring the Redwood Cafe project to life.
Hale Construction is doing the contracting work.
The construction company, along with a moving company, was underneath the Redwood Cafe building within days of the deal agreement between Campana and River Islands to figure out how to cut the building apart to pick it up and move it.
“The way I would describe it is we’re going to cut this building up into sections like shoeboxes, and then we’re going to build this new building, and we’re going to insert these shoeboxes into this new building,” Campana said. “So you’ll be walking down a brand new hallway and then walk into a room, and you’ll be in the old restaurant”
The grounds, the kitchen and the bathrooms will all be re-created. Portions of the building including dining rooms and the bar are being moved as is.
The four or five sections of the original restaurant will be relocated 22 miles north on Highway 99 and west on Highway 120 to River Islands. The California Highway Patrol will assist with the move, which will take place at night.
“They’re going to shut down Highway 99,” Campana said. “It’s going to be freaking nuts.”
The goal is to have the basements built and the first floor installed by April 1 so that when the sections are delivered, they have a place to land, Dell’Osso said.
New restaurant will be three times bigger
Chapman was reserving a premier lot in River Islands’ developing town square to build a tasting room to promote Napa Valley’s Priest Ranch Winery — owned by River Islands’ parent company, Campana said.
That plan changed when the deal came about with Redwood Cafe. The restaurant will be placed there instead.
It will have views of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, Mount Diablo and River Islands’ new football/event stadium.
The building will be three floors. The restaurant in Modesto is between 4,500 and 5,000 square feet, and the new one will be three times as large, Campana said.
An elevator system will be installed to carry guests between floors.
“It will be a much bigger building, much more capabilities,” Dell’Osso said. “But all the original, lovable areas that are iconic are coming along with it.”
Whereas there’s one wine cellar in the Modesto restaurant, there will be four or five in River Islands. The top floor of the restaurant will be a banquet facility.
The menu will largely remain the same, but new dishes will likely be added to honor the delta, like a catfish or migratory fish option.
Priest Ranch wines will be served at Redwood.
Campana said they will provide a shuttle from a location in Modesto to the new Redwood Cafe in River Islands, as well as The Old Waterhouse in Patterson.
“That is going to be a component that is very unique to let the people of Modesto still enjoy (Redwood),” he said.
The last day to visit Redwood Cafe in Modesto is Dec. 31. The new restaurant is projected to open in late 2025.
To stay updated and see the progress of the move, text Redwood Cafe to 30120.
River Islands, a developing community in Lathrop
River Islands project in Lathrop was established in 1989. It’s a 5,000-acre project with 15,000 approved housing permits and 5 million square feet of commercial space.
Housing development began in 2012, though the community’s first school was opened in 2011.
“The whole intent is to make it feel like a real, traditional community where people know each other,” Dell’Osso said. “We want people to belong.”
Around 4,000 homes are occupied and a 100-acre downtown area — where Redwood Cafe will be — is in progress.
“When I learned that the Redwood Cafe was going to be torn down, it was just an amazing opportunity to take this feeling and this belonging,” Dell’Osso said. “It fits the same kind of community orientation as what we’re trying to do.
A football and events stadium is being built, adding to a baseball stadium already there.
A grocery store and a medical office building are in progress that will fill up around one-third of the 100-acre site.
“But to me, (Redwood) is going to be the glue that holds it all together,” Dell’Osso said.
This story was originally published December 27, 2024 at 12:52 PM.
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