From Avenida Del Mar to the End of the Pier: What's New to Eat in Downtown San Clemente This Holiday Season

Downtown San Clemente got two new places to eat in 2026, and they opened at opposite ends of the same walk. Zov's opened in the spring at 155 Avenida Del Mar. In September, Hook & Cook opened at the far end of the San Clemente Pier, where no food concession had operated for more than a year. Between them is the stretch that holds most of the season's events, from the Sunday farmers market to Santa's drive down Del Mar on December 5.

So the holiday season works as one outing more than a list of separate stops. Here is what changed on that walk, what is still in progress, and the dates to plan around.

The top of the walk: Zov's at 155 Avenida Del Mar

Zov's held friends-and-family preview service at its San Clemente location April 24 through 26, 2026. By May 23, the Daily Pilot was reporting that the restaurant had recently opened downtown at 155 Avenida del Mar, in a space designed to suit the coastal setting.

The name will be familiar to anyone who has eaten in Tustin, Irvine or Newport Coast. Chef Zov Karamardian and her husband, Gary, started the family business in 1987. Three generations now run it: son Armen Karamardian is chief executive officer, daughter Taleene Karamardian leads creative and operational work, and granddaughter Morgan Karamardian handles branding and marketing. In a news release quoted by the Daily Pilot, Armen Karamardian called San Clemente's "coastal energy and strong sense of community" the right fit for the company's "next chapter."

The menu follows the rest of the family's restaurants: Mediterranean dishes interpreted through a California lens. For a holiday walk, it gives the upper end of Del Mar a sit-down dinner option with a long Orange County track record, open in time for the late-hours shopping nights.

The bottom of the walk: Hook & Cook at the end of the pier

The bigger change is at the other end. The city owns and runs the San Clemente Municipal Pier. Its end-of-pier concession has traditionally sold bait and tackle alongside food and drinks. According to the Orange County Register, the previous operator, the Snack Shack, had moved out about a year before the new operator was selected in May 2026. For roughly a year, a walk to the end of the pier ended with nowhere to buy food.

Hook & Cook fills that gap. The city held a grand-opening ribbon cutting at 11 a.m. on Friday, September 4, 2026, at the end of the pier and invited the community to meet the team and try the menu.

The Register described the operators' proposal this way:

• Lunch and dinner: lobster rolls and lobster bisque, plus Baja-style tacos, burritos and fish and chips
• Early hours: acai bowls, fruit, breakfast burritos, sandwiches and coffee
• Sweets: North Pole beignets dusted with powdered "snow" and "Shark Bite" shave ice, with a fixed share of each Shark Bite sale going to pier preservation
• For anglers: hooks, weights, rigs and bait
• Community programs: quarterly "Hooked on Education" catch-and-release fishing clinics for kids and families, and a "first catch" bragging board for young anglers

City staff explained the stakes in their report to the council, as quoted by the Register:

"The end-of-pier concession is a highly visible and iconic public asset, requiring an operator capable of balancing operational success with the character and public use of the San Clemente Pier."

One proposed idea fits this season. Among the extras Hook & Cook listed were a "warmth station" during the Christmas Pier Lighting events and "Sunset Acoustic" sessions with local musicians. Those came from the operators' proposal, so check with the concession before planning a December evening around them.

What left Del Mar, and what is still coming

The 2026 changes did not all add tables. Rancho Capistrano Winery closed its Avenida Del Mar location this summer, the Register reported on August 18. In a farewell message, owners Kyle and Sylvia Franson thanked the city for nearly ten years and said "San Clemente will always hold a special place in our hearts." Their San Juan Capistrano and Ladera Ranch locations remain open. No new tenant for the space has been announced.

A few doors up is the former H.H. Cotton's at 201 Avenida Del Mar, which closed in September 2024. According to the San Clemente Times, the space is slated to become the city's first Broken Yolk Cafe after an extensive renovation. It would be the chain's 43rd location nationwide and the ninth run by San Diego restaurateur Nick Harris and his ownership group.

The timing is still open. Billy Matolla, the group's vice president of operations, told the paper: "We're trying to shoot for the end of the year, so we're hoping (for) December, but I have a feeling that it might go into the first part of the year." He also said the planned remodel would leave the space unrecognizable. For now, think of a holiday breakfast there as a maybe and a January breakfast as more likely.

As of late October, the walk from the top of Del Mar to the end of the pier looks like this:

The holiday calendar between the two ends

With food back at both ends, the downtown calendar fills in the middle. Most of these dates are weekends, and several fall on Sundays, which means they overlap with the San Clemente Village Certified Farmers' Market. The state's market list, current as of October 1, 2026, has it on the 200 block of Avenida Del Mar at Seville, Sundays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., year-round.

This Sunday, November 1, is the easiest pairing. The farmers market runs until 1 p.m., and Casa Romantica's Fall Harvest Festival runs from 10 to 2 with cider and a pumpkin hunt. The Very Merry Marketplace on November 15 also falls on market morning and brings local artisans selling handmade goods.

December 5 is downtown's biggest night. The San Clemente Downtown Business Association's Puttin' on the Glitz runs from 4 to 9 p.m. with late shopping and dining hours, live music, carolers, street musicians, vendor booths and a silent disco. Santa drives down Avenida Del Mar from the top between 4 and 4:30 p.m. From there, the SCDBA points families to the city's Santa's Village by the Sea at the Community Center for a sledding hill, holiday crafts and a visit with Santa. The city's calendar lists the Community Center portion from 4:30 to 9 p.m., so build in a gap between watching Santa's arrival and heading to the sledding hill.

The next morning, December 6, Casa Romantica's free Christmas Open House offers holiday decorations and letters to Santa from 10 to 2, which overlaps once more with the farmers market. On Friday, December 11, Christmas Nights @ the Casa adds lights, live music, artisan shopping and s'mores from 5 to 7 p.m.

One weekend to plan around

If you take the train to the pier, mark November 7 and 8. The Pacific Surfliner has posted a full corridor shutdown between San Diego and San Luis Obispo for that weekend, with no bus bridge. Check the current advisories before any trip that weekend, and plan another way to get to lunch at Hook & Cook.

Zov's arriving, the winery leaving and Broken Yolk on the way are all part of what's around homes within walking distance of Del Mar and the pier. If you own nearby and want to see how recent sales on your street compare, The Coche Group can walk you through the evidence. Start with a home valuation to find out what buyers will pay.