How many parking spaces does a busy sandwich shop need before it has to move? Elmisa Cafe's small complex at 11611 Rancho Bernardo Road shares 41 spots, with no street parking nearby, and the owners say they have outgrown it. This fall the family-owned cafe is moving about four minutes away to The Plaza Rancho Bernardo on Bernardo Center Drive.
Behind The Plaza, on Bernardo Plaza Court, parking is also at the center of a bigger argument. A five-building office complex there is up for replacement by 122 townhomes. In public testimony, the case for and against has come down largely to where cars will go. On this stretch of Bernardo Center Drive, the strip where you pick up dry cleaning, takeout and dinner, parking is deciding what gets built and what moves in.
Forty-One Spaces on Rancho Bernardo Road
Eddy and Roula Jabbour opened Elmisa in 2020 and named it after their three daughters, Elise, Mia and Sasha. It built a following on sandwiches, salads and bowls made with Boar's Head meats and cheeses and house-made sauces. When Eddy Jabbour explained the move to What Now San Diego, he gave one reason.
"Parking has always been the biggest challenge for us. We have built such a great business, and we've definitely outgrown it."
The new address is 16773 Bernardo Center Drive. Jabbour told the outlet the new space has more parking, a slightly larger footprint and a better patio, and that the menu will stay "for the most part" the same. He gave mid-November 2026 as the target and said the goal is to open before December. The Plaza's fall 2026 directory already lists Elmisa Café as "Coming Soon." Elmisa's own website still shows the Rancho Bernardo Road address, so call ahead before driving over for lunch.
The Restaurant Row Elmisa Is Joining
Elmisa isn't moving into an empty center. Two newer restaurants have opened in The Plaza in the past year, so Elmisa arrives as the third.
Barrel Riot, at 16765 Bernardo Center Drive, Suite O1, calls itself a restaurant, winery and neighborhood gathering place. It serves lunch, happy hour and dinner with food, beer and wine. In October 2025 the San Diego Union-Tribune reported a planned opening for later that month. The business's own site now says it opened in Rancho Bernardo in 2026. Either way, it is pouring today.
Dubu took over the former Urge space at 16761 Bernardo Center Drive, Suite M1. It specializes in soondubu, the bubbling Korean soft tofu stew, along with other Korean dishes. By late July 2026, the local food blog mmm-yoso reported that the Rancho Bernardo location had already opened, with readers describing dinners there during its soft launch.
Add the tenants that were already there, and The Plaza's restaurant directory for fall 2026 reads like this:
- Barrel Riot
- Dubu
- Elmisa Café, coming soon
- Iron Wok
- Naturally Desi Café
- PKI Sushi
- Roberto's Taco Shop
- The Golf Bar
Errands share the same lot. The Plaza's tenants include J & E Cleaners, RB Shoe Repair & Alteration, The UPS Store, MyPoint Credit Union, Companion Care Veterinary Hospital & Urgent Care and Arthur Murray Dance Studio. You can drop off shirts, mail a package and order a bowl of soondubu without moving your car. That is the pitch Elmisa is moving toward.
A Boba Shop Is Coming to the Former Daboba Space
The change also reaches past The Plaza's own storefronts. 3CAT Handcrafted Beverage is preparing a second San Diego shop at 16449 Bernardo Center Drive, in the space Daboba used to occupy. What Now San Diego described it in September as a handcrafted bubble-tea shop. When Hoodline covered the company's expansion on October 1, it said "no exact opening date has been set." For now it's an empty storefront with a name attached. It will replace a boba shop with another boba shop.
Behind The Plaza, a Debate Over 17 Guest Spaces
Walk to the back of The Plaza and you reach Bernardo Plaza Court. A five-building office complex there spans 11818 to 11858 on a 5.5-acre site. In its staff report, the City describes the buildings as a mix of vacant and occupied commercial offices, including a financial institution and a medical office. KB Home has applied to replace them with a townhome community called City View.
According to the San Diego Union-Tribune's report on the October 15 Planning Commission hearing, the proposal includes:
- 122 townhomes: 50 two-bedroom, 50 three-bedroom and 22 four-bedroom, from 1,200 to 2,200 square feet
- 13 affordable units
- Two garage spaces per home and 17 guest parking spaces for the whole development
- A community barbecue and seating area, a play structure, a dog run and an outdoor fitness loop
The 17 guest spaces came up again and again. The Rancho Bernardo Planning Group voted 8–0 on September 17 to recommend denial. Per the Union-Tribune, its stated reasons included insufficient parking, strain on local services and a poor fit with Rancho Bernardo's master plan. Planning board member Jim Nadlonek told commissioners he worried the guest spaces would fill up and push visitors onto nearby private property or into business lots. A pediatric dentist whose practice sits on an adjacent lot said his patients already struggle to find parking there. Peggy Collette, an on-site manager for two commercial buildings on Bernardo Center Drive, also spoke in opposition, citing street access and limited parking.
KB Home answered with traffic numbers. John Abboud, the company's senior vice president of land acquisition, said the current office use generates about 1,155 daily vehicle trips, compared with 732 projected for City View. He said guest parking would be first-come, first-served, and the homeowners association could limit it further. Ron Bamberger, president of the Bernardo Town Center Property Owners Association, said he is in "strong support of City View." He told commissioners he expects local businesses to benefit "tremendously" from more residents nearby.
The commission voted unanimously to recommend approval. Vice Chairperson Matthew Boomhower made the motion. The San Diego City Council makes the final decision. No date has been announced, and city project development manager Sara Osborn said it will not come up before December.
Elmisa is leaving a lot with 41 shared spaces for one with more room, and The Plaza is gaining restaurants. Neighbors whose businesses depend on those same lots are the ones raising parking at City Hall. The two sides at the hearing disagreed on whether 122 households nearby would mean more customers or more cars circling for spots.
Dates on the Bernardo Center Drive Calendar
The city's planning work for Rancho Bernardo goes beyond this one site. The City of San Diego is updating the Rancho Bernardo Community Plan. Its schedule included a public meeting at the Rancho Bernardo Library on Monday, November 2, from 6 to 7:30 p.m., and also lists a presentation to the Planning Commission on Thursday, November 5, and a December 31, 2026 deadline for feedback on the plan's Atlas. Details are on the City's community plan update page.
Here is where things stand for the rest of the year:
| What | Where | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Elmisa Cafe | 16773 Bernardo Center Drive | Targeting mid-November, aiming to open before December |
| 3CAT Handcrafted Beverage | 16449 Bernardo Center Drive | No opening date set as of October 1 |
| City View townhomes | 11818–11858 Bernardo Plaza Court | City Council hearing not before December |
| Community Plan Atlas feedback | Online via the City | Due December 31, 2026 |
Until Elmisa's new doors open, lunch is still at 11611 Rancho Bernardo Road, in a lot with 41 spaces.
Watching which businesses move to Bernardo Center Drive tells you something about how the neighborhood is changing, and the same is true of what your own home is worth here. If you'd like to see where your Rancho Bernardo property stands this season, The Malkiewicz Team can help. Get Your Instant Home Valuation, and we'll put local, block-by-block context behind the number.
