Simi Valley's First Whole Foods Is the Second Plan for an Empty Tapo Canyon Storefront

The former Bed Bath & Beyond at 2631 Tapo Canyon Road appeared on a closure list in early 2021, and on Tuesday, Nov. 10, it reopens as Simi Valley's first Whole Foods Market.

The grocery store is new to Simi Valley, but the way this space got filled is a pattern you can see across town. When a deal falls through, a different tenant eventually moves in. That is what happened at this anchor space. It is also what happened at a brewery space on Cochran Street, and it is why a family-owned crepe shop at Civic Center Plaza opened before the big store next to it did.

How the space sat dark

Here is how the space went from home goods to groceries:

1. January 2021. USA Today listed the Simi Valley Bed Bath & Beyond at 2631 Tapo Canyon Road among stores slated to close by the end of February 2021.
2. February 2023. The Simi Valley Acorn reported that an Amazon Fresh market would be going into the empty store.
3. May 2023. A follow-up in the Acorn reported no update on Amazon Fresh. Amazon had paused expansion of its Fresh stores that February.
4. March 2026. As the Acorn reported, city staff told the City Council that Whole Foods had been confirmed for 2631 Tapo Canyon Road and was going through tenant approvals.
5. September 2026. A quarterly city report, covered by the Acorn, said Whole Foods was finishing interior work in the former Bed Bath & Beyond and aiming for an early November opening.
6. Nov. 10, 2026. Opening day.

In the 2023 coverage, the city made clear that the hold-up was not at City Hall. Kelly Tinker, the city's management analyst at the time, explained the stall to the Simi Valley Acorn:

"What (Amazon) has been doing is reevaluating their brick-and-mortar operations to see how they want to continue to proceed with physical locations."

The same Acorn report said Amazon was still under contract with the property owner at Simi Civic Center Plaza, which sits on Tapo Canyon Road between the 118 Freeway and Alamo Street. Tinker said it was still unclear whether Amazon would open a Fresh store there or try to sublease the space to another grocer.

The tenant that finally opens there belongs to the same company. According to its opening announcement, Whole Foods Market is part of Amazon's Worldwide Grocery Stores. The same thing is happening in Thousand Oaks. The Acorn reports that in September 2025, Whole Foods announced plans to take over the former Amazon Fresh space at The Promenade in Westlake-Thousand Oaks, and that store has not opened yet.

What changes on Nov. 10

Until now, Simi Valley shoppers heading to Whole Foods have had options like the Thousand Oaks store at 740 N. Moorpark Road and the Porter Ranch store at 20209 Rinaldi Street. Since The Promenade location has not opened, Tapo Canyon will be the newest Whole Foods in the area when it opens. The Ventura County Star also reported the 9 a.m. grand opening at the Civic Center Plaza store.

The store is the chain's 96th in California. To mark the opening, Whole Foods is giving food and a monetary donation to Food Share Ventura County, which already picks up surplus food from local Whole Foods stores.

Which California brands will be on the shelves

According to the announcement, the store will carry more than 1,500 products from more than 390 California suppliers. Here are some of the brands named for this location:

• Produce: herbs and salads from Kenter Canyon Farms, collard greens and kale from Cinagro Farms, and spring onions from Coke Farm
• Cheese counter: Rumiano Cheese Company, charcuterie from Gusto, and chocolates from Chuao Chocolatier
• Seafood and meat: smoked salmon from The Santa Barbara Smokehouse, caviar from Tsar Nicoulai, air-chilled chicken from Mary's Chickens, and grass-fed lamb from Pozzi Ranch
• Pantry: Sauz pasta sauce, Groundwork Organic Coffee Roasters, and Lark Ellen Farm granola bites
• Beer and wine: MadeWest Brewing Company, Topa Topa Brewing Company, Figueroa Mountain Brewing Co., Broc Cellars, Jolie-Laide, and Bonny Doon Vineyard, among more than 440 wines and 250 craft beers
• Prepared foods: hot and salad bars, pizza by the slice, a Market Sandwich counter, and sushi made daily by Kikka Sushi

A crepe shop opened first

Whole Foods is the anchor of the plaza, but it is not the first new business there. Civic Center Plaza covers 2621 to 2795 Tapo Canyon Road. In its September quarterly report, as the Acorn reported, the city listed The Krusty Crepes at 2760 Tapo Canyon Road, Suite 8, as a recent opening, months before the anchor store was ready. The shop calls itself family-owned and serves its original-flavor crepes, acai bowls, and leche flan.

A few doors down at Suite 4, Pozoleria Doña Ana now lists a Simi Valley location on its website, marked as coming soon. In March, the Acorn reported that the restaurant, which already has locations in the San Fernando Valley, was planning to open here. The family-owned restaurant serves Nayarit-style Mexican food, including pozole, menudo, and birria. Check its page for hours before you go, because it has not posted an opening date.

Just up the road, El Paseo Shopping Center has added its own new restaurants this year. In January, the Acorn reported that the city counted Urbane Café, Chipotle, and California Fish Grill among recent openings there. In March, the Acorn reported California Fish Grill open at 2920 Tapo Canyon Road, Suite A, serving grilled seafood and bowls.

All of this new activity follows a difficult stretch. In that March report, the Acorn said Simi Valley's retail and industrial vacancy rates were still higher than in neighboring areas, as changing shopping habits left some storefronts empty. Filling a 35,203-square-foot anchor space takes care of one of the largest of those empty storefronts on Tapo Canyon.

A second-plan brewery on Cochran

The same thing happened at 20 W. Cochran Street. In April, What Now Los Angeles reported that the 8,400-square-foot space was meant for a different brewery and became available when that deal fell through. Ali Zia, who co-founded Tarantula Hill Brewing Company in Thousand Oaks in 2019, took it over for Simi Valley Brewing Company.

What Now reported plans for an indoor space that seats 200 and a patio under oak trees with room for about 200 more. Head brewer Daniel Price, who previously worked at Beachwood Brewing & Distilling, will brew a rotating lineup focused on West Coast IPAs and lagers. The pub menu leans toward barbecue, with seafood and vegan dishes too. The original target was June, depending on inspections and the liquor license. The city's September quarterly report said the brewery had started a soft opening, so call ahead before planning a group visit.

More openings are still in the pipeline. The same report said a 986-square-foot Dutch Bros Coffee drive-through at 2135 First Street is in preliminary review. The Whole Foods space shows how long that process can take. An Amazon grocery store was first reported for the site in February 2023, and the doors open in November 2026.

If you have questions about what Tapo Canyon's new tenants mean for your part of town, whether you're picking up a crepe at Civic Center Plaza or wondering what comes next on Cochran, I'm glad to talk them through. Reach out to Paul Coleman anytime. Let's Connect.