What exactly is going up behind the construction fence on the east side of The Shops at Mission Viejo, between the food court and Macy's? And will any of it be open before the holidays? One restaurant will. North Italia's own location page now reads "Opening 12/16," at 555 The Shops at Mission Viejo, Suite 1100. Three more restaurants are expected in early 2027, a full season after the date the project was first announced with. Two other planned tenants have no date yet.
That gap matters more than any single tenant name. Simon Property Group, which owns the mall, didn't wait for the whole wing before opening. It chose to open a restaurant first. That order says a lot about what the company expects this corner of Crown Valley Parkway to do.
The holiday promise, and the date that replaced it
When the expansion was first reported, the target was clear. The Orange County Register's March 2025 report described a 50,000-square-foot outdoor village aimed at the 2026 holiday shopping season. Here is how the dates have moved since:
- March 27, 2025. Simon announces the expansion. The Register's March 31 report gives a 2026 holiday-season target.
- June 9, 2025. Mission Viejo's Planning and Transportation Commission unanimously approves the planned development permit, adopting Resolution 2025-1535.
- September 18, 2025. Construction begins. That October, the Register reported the open-air wing should be finished by late 2026.
- November 3, 2025. The Orange County Business Journal reports the outdoor area and new tenants as "slated to open in late 2026."
- September 21, 2026. A Simon spokesperson tells the Register that North Italia is "slated for late 2026," with Gus's BBQ, Tommy Bahama Marlin Bar and Blue Bottle Coffee following "in early 2027."
- October 8, 2026. North Italia's Mission Viejo page posts a specific date of December 16.
So the holiday 2026 target still holds for one tenant. North Italia opens nine days before Christmas. Every other tenant has either moved into the new year or has no date yet.
Where the fence sits and what it becomes
The approved plan calls for four new buildings around a half-acre open-air promenade. The Planning and Transportation Commission minutes put the project at 47,812 square feet on a 2.5-acre section of the existing east-side surface lot, next to the entrance between the food court and the north Macy's building. The Business Journal places it at the mall's southeast corner, between Old Navy and the Macy's women's store. The plan includes retail, restaurants with outdoor dining, and walking space along the promenade.
The size depends on which document you read. The commission minutes say 47,812 square feet. A later city status report gives a revised 47,100. Press coverage, including the Register's September piece, rounds it to 50,000. The city's own records are the more precise source.
Anyone who parks on that side of the mall will notice the land the wing takes up. Those 2.5 acres used to be surface parking. During the public hearing, one commissioner asked whether the mall would run short on spaces. Simon answered that its parking study showed the lot was underused and offered to work with city staff. December will test that study. Holiday shoppers and North Italia's first dinner crowds will arrive in the same weeks.
The order of arrival, tenant by tenant
Simon's store directory now lists Arhaus, Blue Bottle Coffee, Gus's BBQ, North Italia and Tommy Bahama Marlin Bar as "Coming Soon." It places all but Arhaus on the lower level. Here is the latest timing each tenant has been given, and who gave it:
| Tenant | Latest stated timing | Who said it |
|---|---|---|
| North Italia | "Opening 12/16" | North Italia's location page, October 2026 |
| Gus's BBQ | "Early 2027" | Simon spokesperson, September 2026 |
| Gus's BBQ | "Late spring or summer of 2027" | Co-owner John Bicos, June 2026 |
| Tommy Bahama Marlin Bar | "Early 2027" | Simon spokesperson, September 2026 |
| Blue Bottle Coffee | "Early 2027" | Simon spokesperson, September 2026 |
| Arhaus | No date given | Simon leasing page |
| Pacific Catch | No date given | Simon leasing page |
Gus's BBQ has two estimates. Simon's September estimate is earlier than what co-owner John Bicos told the Register in June. If the restaurant's own timeline holds, the barbecue may not be ready until around Memorial Day.
Simon's leasing page still describes Arhaus as a two-level store in the Outdoor Village. It also lists Pacific Catch as a planned full-service restaurant anchor next to North Italia. Neither one appeared in the September opening schedule Simon gave the Register. For now, both are in the plan with no date attached.
Why a restaurant opens first
The Register's September story asked whether restaurants are becoming the new anchors at Orange County malls. One of its numbers shows why Mission Viejo is a natural test. Location-analytics firm Placer.ai estimated that August 2026 visits rose 30.4% year over year at Brea Mall, 14.8% at Irvine Spectrum, 6.3% at South Coast Plaza and 6% at Fashion Island. The Shops at Mission Viejo rose 1.2%.
Brea Mall offers the clearest comparison. Its outdoor redevelopment adds a plaza and 11 retail and dining spaces, including North Italia, Pacific Catch and a 14,000-square-foot Din Tai Fung. Brea's North Italia opened in April 2026. Both malls are owned by Simon, and both share a restaurant lineup. The Mission Viejo mall's version is simply further behind. Placer.ai told the Register it cannot separate dining visits or show cause and effect, and that redevelopment, retail openings and events can all affect traffic. Even so, Mission Viejo posted the smallest gain of the five centers in the comparison.
North Italia's senior director of marketing, DJ Duporte, described the strategy to the Register:
"Whether someone comes for dinner and stays to shop or comes to shop and decides to grab a meal, the best properties create that natural connection."
The same article puts the national trend in numbers. U.S. department store sales were nearly flat through the first eight months of 2026, up about 0.2% year over year, while total retail and food service sales rose 5.2%. A mall anchored by Macy's and Nordstrom is adding a sit-down restaurant on the parking lot next to them. Opening that restaurant before the rest of the wing is consistent with those numbers.
What the mall offers in the meantime
Some of the mall's changes are already finished. Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn have reopened in larger, relocated Level 1 spaces near Nordstrom. The Register's October 2025 update listed Sbarro, Iron King Mongolian BBQ, Jamba Juice, Mr. Inkwells Piercing Studio and Uniqlo among the recent additions.
The holiday calendar also starts weeks before North Italia opens, and much of it takes place away from the mall:
- Saturday, October 24, 2 to 7 p.m. The city's Día de los Muertos Fiesta at the Norman P. Murray Center.
- Friday, November 6, through December 24. The mall's Santa Photo Experience.
- Saturday, November 21, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The 55th Gifts & Goodies Holiday Boutique at the Norman P. Murray Community & Senior Center, 24932 Veterans Way. It promises more than 80 crafters, and admission is free.
- Sunday, November 29. Santa's Arrival and the holiday lighting at Civic Center Plaza, 200 Civic Center Drive. Festivities start at 3 p.m., and Santa arrives at 6 p.m.
- December 5 to 6 and December 12 to 13. Photos with Santa at Nordstrom inside The Shops.
- Wednesday, December 16. North Italia opens at Suite 1100 in the new wing.
The city tree lighting happens at Civic Center Plaza, not at the mall. The mall's main seasonal draw is Santa photos, which begin November 6. Nordstrom's sessions come later, on two December weekends. Anyone planning a December dinner at the new wing has one option for now. North Italia will be the only restaurant open on the promenade, with the other spaces still being built out around it.
Gus's BBQ, Tommy Bahama Marlin Bar and Blue Bottle Coffee are next in line for early 2027, and that will bring more of the wing to life. If you'd like to talk through what the new wing means for your part of Mission Viejo, Adam Nelson follows these projects closely and is glad to share what he's seeing. Let's Connect.
