From shops and showrooms that spark creative inspiration to dining hotspots and luxe lodgings, these new design-forward destinations are not to be missed.
Shops and Showrooms
Herman Miller
Walnut Creek
Herman Miller has expanded its Bay Area presence with a new retail location in Downtown Walnut Creek, where customers can test and compare the many products in the modern furniture brand’s portfolio, including ergonomic workspace and gaming chairs and designs for living spaces. Classic midcentury pieces like the like the Eames Lounge Chair and Ottoman are displayed alongside and new releases, such as the Pawson Drift Sofa Group by John Pawson and Land Table and Storage Collection by Stine Aas, and recent reintroductions, including the Nelson Basic Cabinet Series by George Nelson and Girard Stool by Alexander Girard. The store is located within Broadway Plaza.
1245 Broadway Plaza, Walnut Creek; 925.900.6922
Restaurants
The Happy Crane
San Francisco
James Yeun Leong Parry’s new restaurant in San Francisco, the Happy Crane, celebrates the acclaimed chef’s Chinese heritage and English background with a menu rooted in tradition yet expressed through a modern lens. Dim sum and small plates are peppered with creative flavors like smoked figs, coppa and artichokes, while fresh seafood stars in “XO little fry king,” Parry’s take on a street-food mainstay typically prepared with dried seafood.
The restaurant’s design also deftly marries old and new — an aesthetic crafted by Maria Wu of Studio Wu and architect Hallie Chen of CAHA Design. Highlights include a large, custom artwork by local artist Jesselle Sue that serves as a backdrop to a sleek seafoam banquette; a large-scale floral lantern that nods to classic paper lanterns in the private dining area, where pivoting white oak slats offer flexible privacy; and dark floral wallpaper that’s reminiscent of vintage cheongsam dresses adds a playful-yet-refined touch in the bathroom.
451 Gough St., San Francisco; 415.610.1823
Poppy & Claro
San Jose
Downtown San Jose’s new all-day dining destination, Poppy & Claro, serves up locally driven, seasonal fare alongside coffee, California wines and beers, craft cocktails and nonalcoholic refreshers. The counter service restaurant and bar is the first dining concept from Silicon Valley real estate firm Jay Paul Company, known for creating innovative workspaces.
Conceived by architecture and interiors firm Cass Calder Smith, the casually stylish aesthetic features poppy-orange hues, custom oak furniture, local claro walnut millwork and Heath Ceramics tiles. Original artwork throughout includes works by Sharon Paster; Rodrigo Franzao; and Jay Kelly, whose California bear mural crafted from vintage magazines commissioned specifically for the space pays homage to the state’s history and spirit.
50 West San Fernando St, San Jose; 408.408.7777
Hotels
Mendocino Cove Resort
Fort Bragg
Teresa Raffo and Chris Hougie, the duo behind glamping destination Mendocino Grove, have transformed the former Pine Beach Inn into a modern motor lodge opening November 2025, bringing a blend of contemporary design, wellness, recreation and culinary amenities to the Mendocino coast. The new Mendocino Cove Resort features 50 rooms in a range of styles and configurations, from ocean-view rooms and suites to elevated motor lodge-style accommodations — all designed with a casual, modern coastal aesthetic.
Fitness and wellness offerings include eight professional pickleball courts (private lessons with a coach are available for newbies), plus a fitness center, sauna, outdoor hot tub, cold plunge pool and massage treatments. Guests also enjoy direct access to a private beach. A signature restaurant and bar will debut this winter with a menu of seasonally inspired, locally sourced fare.
16801 Ocean Drive, Fort Bragg; 707.962.8332
Lotus Abrams has covered everything from beauty to business to tech in her editorial career, but it might be writing about her native Bay Area that inspires her most. She lives with her husband and two daughters in the San Francisco Peninsula, where they enjoy spending time outdoors at the area’s many open spaces protected and preserved by her favorite local nonprofit, the Peninsula Open Space Trust.
