Stalwart San Francisco Italian-American restaurant Original Joe’s has just opened a huge new location in Walnut Creek, and the ribbon-cutting was Thursday morning.
It’s a first East Bay outpost for Original Joe’s, the retro-chic, red-sauce Italian restaurant that was founded in SF’s Tenderloin, and now has locations in North Beach and Daly City — in addition to offshoots called Little Original Joe’s in the Marina and West Portal.
Original-brand Original Joe’s features leather booths, generous portions, and a sizable menu of Italian American fare, including pastas, steaks, chops, and classics like veal marsala and chicken piccata. The North Beach location debuted in 2012, after a 2007 fire destroyed the original Taylor Street location that opened in 1937. And not long after, a renovation revived the Westlake Shopping Center location in Daly City. (A restaurant with the same name and logo in San Jose is unaffiliated, though there is a link to a former business partner from back in the 1950s. And San Rafael Joe’s, which is serves similar food, is also unaffiliated.)
The Walnut Creek location, at 1300 South Main Street, is situated between the Broadway Plaza and Main Street Plaza shopping centers, and was formerly home to Stanford’s Grill until 2019. After a nearly two-year remodel, the restaurant opened its doors Thursday, with Walnut Creek Mayor Cindy Darling appearing at a ribbon-cutting ceremony.
The dining room at the new Walnut Creek Original Joe’s. Photo courtesy of the restaurant.
A booth at the new Walnut Creek Original Joe’s. Photo courtesy of the restaurant.
In the restaurant’s honor, the City of Walnut Creek officially declared August 14 as Original Joe’s Day.
In a statement, the city said, “Original Joe’s, the iconic San Francisco Italian American restaurant, selected a prominent corner space in the plaza for its first East Bay location, drawn by the area’s strong foot traffic and ideal location.”
The new location features 300 seats across indoor and outdoor dining areas, including a 50-seat cocktail lounge, and 10,000 square feet in total. A private dining room also features its own bar and patio.
“When you do a restaurant this size, you have to feel confident in the region, in the market, and we do,” says John Duggan, speaking to the Chronicle.
Photo courtesy of Original Joe’s
The new location also serves lunch daily, with a lunch menu that is nearly identical to the dinner menu.
Original Joe’s was founded in 1937 by Croatian immigrant Ante “Tony” Rodin with a business partner, and the current businesses are run by Rodin’s grandchildren, Elena and John Duggan. In addition to the three Original Joe’s and two Little Original Joe’s locations, they also opened Mexican-American restaurant Elena’s in their home neighborhood of West Portal in 2024.
While Little Original Joe’s also specializes in Italian-American food and features a number of the same menu items, it is a somewhat shorter menu that also includes pizza.
Original Joe’s – 1300 S. Main Street, Walnut Creek – Open Mon-Thur 11 am to 10 pm, Fri 11 am to 11 pm, Sat 10 am to 11 pm, and Sunday 10 am 10 pm
Dining and Cooking