"The market is open YEAR ROUND, RAIN OR SHINE." Market manager Heather Harlow ended her June 21 Patch post with that line, in capital letters, the way she usually does. It reads like a routine sign-off. In Alamo Plaza, it's also the most consistent promise anyone has made.
Over the last six years, two of the plaza's biggest units went dark. One sat empty for more than a year. During all of that, a group of farmers, bakers, cheesemakers and a seafood vendor kept setting up in the Bank of America parking lot at 120 Alamo Plaza every Sunday morning. On Oct. 18 the market holds its 13th annual Harvest Festival. A few weeks later, the plaza around it gets its first big new tenant in years.
The units that went dark around the market
Here's how the anchor spaces have changed, according to DanvilleSanRamon.com's reporting:
- 2020: 24 Hour Fitness, a long-time tenant in unit 140F, closed for good during the pandemic.
- 2025: Rite Aid closed its Alamo Plaza store as the national chain went through bankruptcy. That left one of the plaza's anchors empty.
- September 2026: Crews were remodeling the former Rite Aid at 130 Alamo Plaza, which by then had been vacant for just over a year.
- December 2026, planned: Vim + Vigor Fitness is scheduled to open its first "Reserve Club" there. The company calls it its "most elevated fitness experience."
The new club will join two fitness tenants already in the center. The Iron House is at 190F Alamo Plaza, and BODYROK, a pilates studio, is at 170F. The December date is the company's plan, not a confirmed opening. DanvilleSanRamon.com reported that Vim + Vigor representatives didn't respond to its interview request while the remodel was going on.
None of this changed the Sunday market. While 130 Alamo Plaza sat empty, the market next to it kept opening every week. The market moved to shorter summer hours from June 28 through Sept. 27 but kept running.
Oct. 18: the Harvest Festival, year thirteen
The 13th annual Harvest Festival is Sunday, Oct. 18, at the market's usual spot, 120 Alamo Plaza in the Bank of America lot. According to the festival listing on Patch, posted by Harlow on Oct. 8, the day includes:
- Trick-or-treating at the stalls. Vendors decorate their booths and hand out treats to kids during market hours.
- A ventriloquist and puppeteer from 10 a.m. to noon.
- Kids' activities for the whole market, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
- Free mini pumpkins for the first 50 kids to take home and decorate. The listing suggests getting there early.
About closing time: Harlow's Oct. 8 post lists the market as 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. every Sunday. The state's register of certified farmers' markets, current as of Oct. 1, 2026, lists the Alamo market as Sundays 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. For the festival, plan on the manager's 9-to-1 window. If a later shopping trip matters to you, check the closing time before you go. Both sources agree on the 9 a.m. start.
Who has been setting up in the lot
Harlow posts weekly vendor lists, and those lists show a core group that comes back week after week. Four of the five farms in the June 14 lineup, J&J Ramos, J&M Ibarra, Kem Organic and Resendiz, were back on the Sept. 6 list. Here's who was on the Sept. 6 list, grouped by what they sell:
- Farms and berries: J&J Ramos Family Farm, J&M Ibarra Farm, Kem Organic Farm, Resendiz Family Farm, Bay Fresh Berry Producer
- Cheese, honey and seafood: Achadihna Cheese Co., Pete's Gold Honey, Santa Rosa Seafood
- Prepared food and baked goods: Squirrel Bakery, Hummus Heaven, Los Tamales Foods, Prime Food Inc. Dip & Chips
- Plants, tea and goods: Brenda's Plants, Mossy Stick Gardens, Barbara the Tea Specialist, Runa Fashions
- Community booth: San Ramon Fire Dept., offering CPR training
Brenda's Plants was marked as a new vendor in both the Aug. 30 and Sept. 6 posts. The Aug. 30 post also welcomed Clay Sparrow Studios. Both weeks had live music: Cory Roay on Aug. 30 and Dave Land on Sept. 6. Vendors change from week to week, so treat this as a recent lineup, not a promise of who will be there on a given Sunday.
The Alamo Improvement Association names Bill Harlow of the Bay Area Farmer's Market Association as the person leading the market. It also notes that produce is picked fresh and reaches local farmers' markets within 24 to 48 hours.
A Danville Boulevard address with the same staying power
You'll find the same pattern a short drive south at 3195 Danville Blvd. The business there has changed hands, but the restaurant has stayed. Bay Area Telegraph reports the building has been part of Alamo's dining scene for about four decades. It ran as the Courtyard Cafe for nearly 25 years before The Peasant's Courtyard opened there in 2009.
The latest change happened quickly. DanvilleSanRamon.com reported that The Peasant's Courtyard served its last meal on April 19, 2026. The next morning, April 20, the space reopened as The Courtyard Restaurant under new owners. At first, the new owners kept much of the old menu and said dinner would come later.
By August, Bay Area Telegraph reported that both the new menu and dinner service were in place. The restaurant's menu lists weekday breakfast and lunch, weekend brunch, and dinner starting at 4 p.m. The courtyard setting is mostly the same, and several employees from The Peasant's Courtyard stayed on after the sale.
Weekend brunch makes it an easy stop after the market. The menu includes buttermilk pancakes, brioche French toast, eggs Benedict, chicken and waffles, and an Alamo Scramble with bacon, greens, tomato relish and cheese. There's also a bakery side, with cinnamon rolls, croissants, coffee cake, sourdough loaves and focaccia. The dinner menu adds fish and chips, pasta pomodoro made with East Bay Artisan bucatini, chicken piccata, and prime steak frites. Bay Area Telegraph suggests checking hours before you go, especially early in the week.
Staying in the plaza after the stalls pack up
If you'd rather stay put once the market closes, the plaza owner's Alamo Plaza directory lists Brass Bear Deli, Alamo Palace Restaurant and Bagel Street Cafe among its food tenants. Brass Bear Deli says on its own site that it's open seven days a week, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. That means it's open the whole time the market is, and for hours after. Alamo Palace's ordering page says online orders reopen Oct. 13 at 11 a.m.
Parking is easier than you might expect. Harlow's posts point to plenty of free parking right next to the market, in the same center where the old Rite Aid is being remodeled. DanvilleSanRamon.com's report didn't include the club's hours, so it isn't clear yet how much the club's December opening will add to the plaza's Sunday-morning traffic.
What hasn't been posted yet
As of Oct. 12, the market hasn't announced a Thanksgiving schedule or holiday market plans. We also didn't find a confirmed 2026 date for the Alamo Women's Club holiday sale. Last year's Jewelry Faire was Dec. 4 and 5, 2025. Harlow usually posts weekly updates on the Patch Alamo calendar, so that's the first place holiday dates are likely to show up.
The Harvest Festival starts at 9 a.m. on Oct. 18, and the mini pumpkins go to the first 50 kids.
At Tim & Julie Steffen, we keep track of how Alamo Plaza and the Danville Boulevard corridor are changing because these blocks are part of everyday life in Alamo. If you're curious how the plaza filling back in might affect the value of your Alamo home, start with an instant home valuation, and we're happy to talk it through.