In June 2011, hundreds of people went to a daylong block party on South Coast Highway 101 to welcome the first Whole Foods in Encinitas. Less than six years later the store closed. The space sat vacant, and by 2021 the building's owner was moving its own office into it.
The chain is coming back, this time to the former Kohl's at Encinitas Marketplace, 134 N. El Camino Real. In this story the shopping center is older than the store. The plaza at El Camino Real and Via Molena was designed around a supermarket and had one for most of its 45 years. The Kohl's years were the exception. A grocery store going back in returns the building to its first use.
Four Anchors Before This One
The Coast News reported in June that Encinitas Marketplace opened in 1981 as Wiegand Plaza. Its anchor space has changed hands several times since then.
| Era | Anchor tenant | Type |
|---|---|---|
| From 1981 | Alpha Beta | Grocery |
| Later | Lucky Stores | Grocery |
| Later | Albertsons | Grocery |
| Until April 2025 | Kohl's | Department store |
| Planned | Whole Foods Market | Grocery |
North Coast Current identifies Alpha Beta as the plaza's original anchor, followed by Lucky and Albertsons before Kohl's took over the space.
Three grocers in a row, then a department store, and now another grocer. Kohl's had named Encinitas in a January 9, 2025 corporate announcement of stores that would close by April of that year. The Coast News reports that the store did close that April.
Whole Foods will use part of the old Kohl's box, not all of it. Leasing plans show a 22,212-square-foot space next to the future Whole Foods that is still available, and it remained available in the center's August 2026 leasing materials. Whatever moves in beside the grocery store will shape the north end of the plaza as much as Whole Foods does.
Why the First Encinitas Store Was on the Coast
The first Whole Foods was a different kind of project. It was a 23,000-square-foot market on the ground floor of Pacific Station, a three-story mixed-use building at 687 S. Coast Highway 101 with shops, offices and 47 residential units. The Coast News described the market as the centerpiece of the development and said downtown had been "eager for a standalone market." The chain first announced it would anchor Pacific Station in 2007. The store opened in June 2011, six months after the building itself.
It lasted until February 22, 2017. Encinitas was one of nine stores the company closed nationwide in a realignment announced with its quarterly earnings. A company spokeswoman told The Coast News the closures were part of aligning the portfolio "with a more thoughtful growth strategy." Thora Guthrie, then executive director of the Encinitas 101 Main Street Association, told the paper, "We're surprised and disappointed to see Whole Foods go."
The 2026 Coast News report notes that those 2017 closures came shortly before Amazon acquired the chain.
In January 2018, The Coast News reported that RAF Pacifica Group had bought the retail portion of Pacific Station while the former Whole Foods space sat empty. By November 2021, the paper reported that the firm was moving its own office into it.
This time the store goes into a 1981 plaza on El Camino Real, a stretch the center's leasing materials call one of North County's busiest retail corridors. They also estimate about 1.4 million visits a year to the center.
What Is Confirmed at 134 N. El Camino Real
Here is where things stood in the latest reporting before this post went out:
- The store: Whole Foods Market will take part of the former Kohl's at 134 N. El Camino Real, and it is marked "coming soon."
- The center: Encinitas Marketplace covers 124,411 square feet at the southwest corner of El Camino Real and Via Molena.
- The renovation: About $10 million in work is planned over two years, starting from the June 2026 announcement. It includes upgraded storefronts and exterior improvements meant to modernize the 45-year-old center.
- The designer: RDC, the Long Beach firm that also designed Del Mar Highlands Town Center and Fashion Valley.
- Not yet announced: an opening date and the size of the new store.
RDC posted renderings and a short description of the project on July 2, 2026. The firm says it is designing the new grocery store as a "transparent, daylight-filled civic node, centered on freshness and connection" inside the former anchor space. The Coast News published renderings of the new Whole Foods storefront and the redesigned shopfronts with its June story.
The center's leasing materials from August 2026 still list Whole Foods as "coming soon." Through the summer, neither the architect's post nor the leasing brochure gave a construction start or opening season. The two-year renovation window helps a little with timing. It covers the whole plaza's facelift, so storefronts across the center may be under construction in stages while the grocery space is being built.
Encinitas is one of several new Whole Foods locations planned around the county. The Coast News also names Carmel Mountain Ranch and downtown San Diego.
The Plaza Whole Foods Is Joining
Encinitas Marketplace already does a lot of everyday business. The center's site plan lists Ernie's Gourmet Deli & Wine Bar, Pho-Ever Vietnamese, Kaito Sushi, Thai Pan Express, The Kebab Shop and Chick-fil-A for food. It also lists SKIN\SET and Phenix Salon, plus O'Reilly Auto Parts, Lawrance Furniture and Verizon. The Coast News reported that Verizon recently moved into the center from another location on El Camino Real.
The same site plan shows one more restaurant name marked "coming soon," Crackin' Curry. As of the August leasing materials, no opening has been announced for it.
That mix explains why the return works for this plaza. Most of these tenants are lunch spots, quick dinners and errands. In a center like that, a grocery anchor works best, because a weekly shopping trip also brings people to the deli, the sushi counter and the phone store next door. Wiegand Plaza was built on that model in 1981, and the Alpha Beta, Lucky and Albertsons years followed it. Bringing back a grocery store restores the setup the rest of the center was designed around.
Where to Shop Until the Doors Open
For now, the closest Whole Foods stores are south of the city. Both have hours posted on their official store pages.
- Whole Foods Market Del Mar: 2600 Via De La Valle, Suite 100, Del Mar. This is the closer of the two for most of Encinitas.
- Whole Foods Market La Jolla: 8825 Villa La Jolla Drive, La Jolla.
Until Whole Foods announces an opening date, the Del Mar store on Via De La Valle remains the closest option. A grocery store returning to 134 N. El Camino Real would put one back in the plaza's original anchor space for the first time since Kohl's took it over.
New anchors change how a neighborhood shops, and sometimes how it moves. If you have questions about the changes along El Camino Real or anything else in Encinitas, Chad and Yo at Pagni Real Estate are glad to talk through what's happening near your street. Schedule a free consultation whenever it suits you.
