Each new name in downtown Oceanside this year has an earlier address somewhere else in North County. A smashburger shop from San Marcos moved into a former brewery on Horne Street. A barbecue restaurant that opened in Oceanside in 2008 is leaving Ocean Ranch for Coast Highway. A pizzeria from a family that already runs a restaurant in that same Ocean Ranch building is taking over an Italian restaurant's space a few blocks from the pier. None of these is a first restaurant. Each one is an existing business taking over a kitchen another restaurant built.
The addresses that changed hands in 2026
| Address | Previous tenant | Incoming tenant | Status as of Oct. 2, 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 326 N. Horne St. | Northern Pine Brewing | Copper Kings Burgers | Open since Aug. 25 |
| 223 N. Coast Hwy. | Petite Madeline Bakery, then Kettle On Coast | Felix's BBQ With Soul | Waiting on final inspections |
| 608 N. Coast Hwy. | Venezia Italian Cuisine | Trinacria Pizza Co. | Announced; opening not yet confirmed |
One corner, three tenants in seven months
The address at 223 N. Coast Hwy., near Pier View Way, shows how quickly a downtown space can change hands. Petite Madeline Bakery was there until March 15, 2026, according to San Diego Magazine.
Kettle On Coast came next. Owner Givino Rossini already ran two coffee shops, Kettle On Grand in Escondido and Kettle On Main in Fallbrook, and he planned his Oceanside location as something closer to a restaurant. The Coast Highway space came with a full kitchen, which neither of his first two shops had. Chef David Lay, formerly chef de cuisine at Kettner Exchange, wrote a menu rooted in African diasporic flavors with Mediterranean and Levantine influences. It included Aleppo fried chicken with chermoula, miso cheddar grits with berbere, and grilled mochi with honey for dessert. The plan called for a soft opening in early April 2026 and a grand opening in early summer.
By the San Diego Union-Tribune's September 9 restaurant roundup, the space was already described as the former Kettle On Coast cafe. According to What Now, the cafe announced its permanent closure on Instagram and said it had not received enough early support to keep operating.
Felix's BBQ With Soul is the third tenant at this address in 2026. The kitchen that drew Rossini to the space is the same one Felix's now plans to use.
A bigger kitchen means a longer menu
Copper Kings Burgers shows what a larger kitchen can do. Dermot Owens, from Ireland, and Jonathan Petr, an American, started the business as a pop-up after the pandemic cost them their bar jobs. The business was founded in San Marcos in 2020, and they named the concept after the Irish and American copper miners of 1800s Montana.
Their second location opened Aug. 25, 2026, at 326 N. Horne St. in the former Northern Pine Brewing building. The Oceanside menu has everything the San Marcos menu does, made from scratch. Because the Horne Street kitchen is larger, the Union-Tribune reported, it also has four dishes that aren't on the original menu: Guinness stew, spice bag chicken thighs, fish 'n' chips, and a summer pasta.
Northern Pine's owners closed the brewery in April 2025 after what they described as a surprise notice to vacate, and they said at the time they hoped to bring the brand back later, according to San Diego Beer News. A brewery's kitchen became the reason a burger shop could add a stew and a fish fry. For anyone who already knows the San Marcos original, those four dishes are the reason to order downtown.
Ocean Ranch operators head to the coast
The other two changes both start at the same Ocean Ranch address.
Felix Berry, who was born in Alabama, opened the first Felix's BBQ With Soul in Oceanside in 2008. The business later added locations in Carlsbad and San Marcos. Its most recent Oceanside site was 3613 Ocean Ranch Blvd. What Now reported that the restaurant had to leave when its lease ended. The Union-Tribune said a pending rent increase led Berry to close there in August.
The new location keeps Felix's in Oceanside and moves it to downtown. On October 2, Berry told What Now the restaurant was in the final stages before opening. It has applied for a liquor license and is waiting on final inspections. He couldn't give an exact date but hopes to hold both a soft opening and a grand opening in October 2026. The menu covers barbecue and Southern and Louisiana dishes, including baby back ribs, brisket, oxtails, gumbo, jambalaya, shrimp and grits, and a catfish po'boy, with collard greens and red beans and rice as sides.
Mangia e Bevi lists its address as 3613 Ocean Ranch Blvd. #100. Its founder, Salvatore "Tore" Trupiano, is opening Trinacria Pizza Co. with his son Damiano at 608 N. Coast Hwy., replacing Venezia Italian Cuisine. What Now cited San Diego County environmental health records for the move. When SanDiegoVille reported the plan, Mangia e Bevi was still open. Trinacria is a second Trupiano restaurant on the coast, not a relocation.
The menu follows the family's moves. Trupiano is a third-generation restaurateur and captain of the U.S. Pizza Team. His family's story runs from Sicily through New York and Detroit to California, where it arrived in 1986. Trinacria plans to serve Sicilian, New York, Detroit and Chicago-inspired pizzas, all made from scratch with long fermentation, plus beer and wine, catering, and private dining for groups.
The announced opening was September 2026, and that month has passed. As of October 2, no published report confirms the restaurant is open. Its website, tpcoceanside.com, shows only a title page with no hours or menu. For now it's best treated as coming soon.
Where things stand this week
These are the three changes downtown, in the order you can try them:
- Copper Kings Burgers, 326 N. Horne St. Open now. Order something from the four Oceanside-only dishes, since you can't get them in San Marcos.
- Felix's BBQ With Soul, 223 N. Coast Hwy. Waiting on final inspections, with October openings hoped for but not yet scheduled. The Union-Tribune listed the address as 2223 N. Coast Highway, but What Now and San Diego Magazine both give 223, which matches the former Petite Madeline and Kettle On Coast space.
- Trinacria Pizza Co., 608 N. Coast Hwy. Announced for September, with no opening confirmed yet.
There's one smaller addition near the pier. An's Gelato opened Gate D5, a gelato counter inside Oceanside's Top Gun House, in July 2026. Farther from downtown, DiMassi's Mediterranean Buffet opened in the former Romano's Macaroni Grill at El Camino North, 2655 W. Vista Way. It's an all-you-can-eat halal buffet with adult prices from $21.99 to $28.99.
Every operator on Coast Highway and Horne Street this fall is either opening a second or third location or moving an existing one. Copper Kings comes from San Marcos, Felix's has been in Oceanside since 2008, and the Trupiano family has run Mangia e Bevi in Ocean Ranch. Kettle On Coast's owner already ran shops in Escondido and Fallbrook. In each case the kitchen was built by an earlier tenant, and the incoming restaurant brings a menu it has already cooked somewhere else.
At Nova Luxe Real Estate, we keep track of which buildings change hands along Coast Highway and Horne Street, and why, in the same way we follow the homes around them. If you'd like to talk about what's changing on your stretch of downtown Oceanside, Let's Connect.
