Press Release

Woodlands Market owner Don Santa announced today that plans were well underway for a late summer opening for the new Woodlands Café, located adjacent Woodlands Market at 735 College Avenue.

Woodlands Café will operate in the space previously occupied by Willy’s Café, which closed earlier during the year.

“We are in what I think is the most exciting process of opening a new restaurant,” said Santa, who founded Woodlands Market in 1986.  “We are deciding on the menu, the feel and the amenities.

“Our customers deserve an outstanding Café with all the same qualities, ambience and menu items that they are offered at the Market,” he said.  He said the Café would offer home made ice cream, thin crust pizzas from a wood-fired oven as well as “grab and go items.” 

Santa also said that plans were on track to open the previously announced second Woodlands Market location in Tiburon in December of 2010. 

“Creating another Woodlands Market for Belvedere/Tiburon Peninsula is very important to us,” he said.  “We want to make sure that what we have built over the two decades we have operated in Kentfield is extended to the new store.  Customers on the Belvedere/Tiburon Peninsula deserve a great market and we intend to build one.”

Santa said that for both projects, he was working through the permit and design process and was comfortable that both undertakings were moving steadily toward their target dates.

“We understand that setting a specific date for opening is not feasible until all the permits have been obtained,” he said.  “But we want to assure our customers that we are working virtually around the clock to meet the deadlines.

“To make sure that we create the best possible Café, for instance, my team and I have visited restaurants, patisseries, boulangeries, cafes and bakeries from Sacramento to Southern California,” he said.  “We are consulting with experienced and well-known bakers and food/restaurant critics.”

Santa said that additional information on both projects would be available periodically on the Woodlands Market website (www.woodlandsmarket.com).