Where did you get a quick lunch in Rancho Santa Fe Village a year ago if you didn't want a reservation? Rancho Roasters and Caffe Positano covered the morning. Mille Fleurs, Lilian's at The Inn and Nick & G's covered the evening. The hours in between had fewer choices than the Village's size would suggest.
That gap has mostly closed in about eleven months. Three places opened on or near Paseo Delicias, and all three are built for the middle of the day and early evening: a bistro that changed hands, a pizza and gelato shop next door to it, and a sandwich and soft-serve counter under the clock tower. Now the Village's longest-running dinner spot at the corner of Paseo Delicias and La Granada has picked this fall to close for a full redesign. For the first time in a while, its absence won't leave the center of the Village empty.
The newcomers all aim at the middle of the day
Here is what the Village looks like for the last week of October, sorted by when each place is useful.
| Spot | Address | What it's for | Hours on record |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rancho Sandwich & Creamery | 6110 El Tordo | Breakfast burritos, deli sandwiches, wraps, soft serve | Mon–Sat, 8 a.m.–4 p.m. |
| Paseo Pizza & Gelato | 6024 Paseo Delicias, Unit D | Pizza, rotating gelato, house-brewed beer | Daily, noon–9 p.m. |
| Paseo | 6024 Paseo Delicias, Suite C | Sit-down bistro; current menu also lists a sushi and omakase bar | Check before going |
| Nick & G's | 6106 Paseo Delicias | Closed for redesign; reopening planned for November | Follow nickandgs.com |
The hours tell the story. Between them, the sandwich counter and the pizza shop keep a door open in the Village from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and from noon on Sunday. Before these openings, that stretch depended on the coffee shops and the established dining rooms.
One owner, two doors at 6024 Paseo Delicias
The change started in the space many locals still call the Rancho Santa Fe Bistro. The Rancho Santa Fe Review reported that Jennifer Fields took over the restaurant on Nov. 1, 2025 and renamed it Paseo. The opening menu had baked brie, flatbreads, meatballs and lamb lollipops alongside pastas, seafood, steak, burgers and a children's section. By March 2026, Ranch & Coast's review described a mostly Mediterranean, classic bistro menu. The menu now posted on Paseo's website also lists a sushi and omakase bar with nigiri, sashimi and signature rolls.
Fields then opened a second business next door. Paseo Pizza & Gelato, in Unit D of the same address, held its grand opening Sept. 25 and 26, 2026, with a kids' carnival on the Saturday, the Union-Tribune reported. The menu has 18 signature pies plus build-your-own. The namesake Paseo pie comes with Grande mozzarella, imported burrata, crispy prosciutto and arugula, finished with balsamic glaze. The shop also makes its own craft beer and rotates its gelato flavors. You can order online through paseopizzarsf.com.
With two doors at one address, the same block now covers a family pizza night and a sit-down dinner, and Paseo Pizza's seven-day schedule means Sunday is covered too.
Under the clock tower, an 8 a.m. sandwich counter
The third opening sits a short walk away. Rancho Sandwich & Creamery soft-opened in late June 2026 at 6110 El Tordo, in the building at El Tordo and La Granada beneath the clock tower. The Union-Tribune identified the owner as Chris Miller, a Rancho Santa Fe resident.
The menu fills a gap in the morning that the coffee shops only partly covered. It serves avocado toast, breakfast burritos, muffins and bagels from 8 a.m., then deli sandwiches, wraps, salads and sides, with lemonade, iced tea and soft-serve ice cream. It's open Monday through Saturday until 4 p.m. The shop's online ordering page lists breakfast as a menu category, so you can call ahead before a morning errand.
Put the three openings together and the Village now has a breakfast burrito at 8, a sandwich at noon, a soft serve at 3 and a pizza at 8 p.m. That's the backdrop for Nick & G's going dark.
Nick & G's is closing into a busier Village
The Union-Tribune reported on Sept. 29 that Nick & G's would close in mid-October for a complete renovation and menu refresh and reopen in November. By the time you read this, the restaurant at 6106 Paseo Delicias should be closed. No exact reopening date has been announced. The restaurant points people to nickandgs.com and @nickandgs on Instagram for updates.
The building has turned over before. It's a Lilian Rice building at the corner of Paseo Delicias and La Granada, built in the 1920s as the home of the Millar family, one of Rancho Santa Fe's earliest. It was Delicias restaurant for 24 years, then briefly Ponsaty's. In 2017, local resident Sandra DiCicco-Bonar of the Grand Restaurant Group opened Nick & G's and named it after her children, Nicolas and Gianina. Gianina Pickens, the "G," is now chief operating officer of the group.
The redesign is led by chef and partner Alex Carballo. He has spent 20 years in San Diego kitchens, including Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens and Fox Point Farms, and was the opening chef at The Crosby Club. According to the Union-Tribune's account, the plans include:
- An Amalfi Coast look, lighter and more contemporary, in yellows, oranges and blues with nature-inspired patterns, developed with Rachael Lorraine Harris and Michael Soriano
- A large olive tree in the center of the dining room, ringed by new custom banquettes and tables
- A new wine cellar that diners see through to a lighter bar and lounge, plus a view into the kitchen
- A planted patio under a wave-shaped shade canopy, and a back courtyard with greenery and water features
- A smaller menu built around coastal Italian-American dishes, handmade pasta, seafood and local produce, keeping some longtime favorites
Carballo plans to use the closure for wine pairings, hiring and service training. In the same interview he named the newcomers on Paseo Delicias and said he welcomes the company:
"I like the energy when there's more…it gives people a little more variety and a reason to go into Rancho Santa Fe, and we're in the heart of it."
The list he gave the Union-Tribune works as a directory of the Village right now. New: Paseo, Paseo Pizza & Gelato and Rancho Sandwich & Creamery. Long-running: Mille Fleurs, Lilian's and the café at The Inn, Thyme in the Ranch, Caffe Positano and Rancho Roasters. A year ago the closing of the Village's best-known dinner spot would have left a gap. This November, the corner of Paseo Delicias and La Granada has neighbors open all day.
The Village calendar between now and the Stroll
The new tables have a few dates to fill before the year ends:
- Nov. 19, 10 a.m. The Rancho Santa Fe Garden Club's holiday brunch and speaker event features certified arborist Wes Marshburn at the Secret Garden, 17025 Avenida de Acacias, with catering by BelleCal Seasonal.
- Nov. 26, 1 to 8 p.m. Lilian's at The Inn lists a four-course prix fixe Thanksgiving. The page doesn't print a year, so confirm before you book.
- November, date to be announced. Nick & G's plans to reopen with its new room and menu.
- Early December, date to be announced. The Rancho Santa Fe Stroll and tree lighting was held on Thursday, Dec. 4 last year, its third year, as the Union-Tribune noted. It will be the first Stroll with all of this year's new places open along the route.
For more on the Covenant's day-to-day life, see our Rancho Santa Fe neighborhood page and our look at the club-centered side of the community.
A busier Village changes daily life around Paseo Delicias, and we follow these changes as closely as we follow sales. If you'd like a local's read on how the Village's new energy figures into your home's story, The Barnett Team is glad to talk it through, starting with a complimentary home value review.
