"This is just the beginning, with many more openings ahead," Dan Almquist said in September. His firm, Almquist, is building The Canopy at Great Park, and at the time he said it, one building there had customers.
That building is In-N-Out Burger at 7900 Great Park Blvd. It opened on Friday, Sept. 4, with 84 seats inside, 36 on the patio, and a drive-thru that holds 33 cars. It starts with two lanes and narrows to one at the pickup window. It is the chain's 443rd location, and the chain's headquarters are in Irvine for now. Most people in the Great Park Neighborhoods have eaten In-N-Out somewhere else.
The rest of the lineup is different. About 20 tenants have been announced for The Canopy, and several of them are opening their first Orange County store, or in one case their first California store. The center that has opened so far gives little hint of what the full center will be. Those brands will also arrive on two separate timelines.
A roster built around first appearances
The Canopy covers 12 acres and has about 90,000 square feet of leasable space. Tenants were announced in three rounds: the grocery anchor at the 2025 groundbreaking, a first wave of 13 names in March 2026, and five more in September.
Tenant | What it is | When announced | Why it stands out locally |
|---|---|---|---|
T&T Supermarket | Asian grocer from Canada, 34,000 sq ft | 2025 groundbreaking | Anchor tenant, first Orange County store |
H&H Bagels | New York bagel shop seen in "Seinfeld" | March 2026 | First Orange County location |
Osen Urban Table | Offshoot of Irvine's Izakaya Osen, possibly built around hand rolls | March 2026 | New concept from an Irvine restaurant |
Chicha San Chen | Taiwanese tea brand | March 2026 | |
JJANG Yakiniku and Social House | Asian fusion restaurant with grills at the table | March 2026 | |
Philz Coffee | San Francisco coffee chain | March 2026 | |
Shootz | Hawaiian-inspired street food | March 2026 | |
The Taco Stand | Tijuana-style taqueria | March 2026 | |
In-N-Out Burger | Drive-thru and dining room | March 2026 | Open since Sept. 4 |
Free People Movement | Women's activewear | March 2026 | |
Rylee + Cru | Children's and baby clothing | March 2026 | |
Solestage | Los Angeles retailer of rare sneakers and apparel | March 2026 | |
Sol Studio | Pilates and heated movement classes | March 2026 | |
Sunfeel | Fine jewelry | March 2026 | |
Brooks Running | Seattle running brand | September 2026 | First California store |
McConnell's Fine Ice Creams | Ice cream | September 2026 | |
Palmetto Superfoods | Smoothie bowls and other superfood items | September 2026 | |
Baba's Hot Chicken | Hot chicken | September 2026 | |
La Jolla Cosmetic | Medical spa | September 2026 |
Some of these names may already be familiar in south county. Almquist also developed River Street Marketplace in San Juan Capistrano, and the Orange County Register reported in March that some of The Canopy's merchants "will sound familiar to south county shoppers." That same coverage pictured Palmetto Superfoods opening at River Street. So the lineup mixes brands new to the county with names Almquist already knows from another center.
Taken together, the table shows how the center is weighted. Food and drink make up most of the list. Fitness and activewear show up repeatedly with Sol Studio, Free People Movement, and Brooks Running. One grocery store anchors the whole site. Of all these businesses, In-N-Out is the one most like what Irvine already had.
Two timelines on one site
The Canopy is often described as one shopping center, but it is being built as two projects with different owners and different schedules.
Phase one is Almquist's retail center. That is where In-N-Out opened and where the tenants in the table will go. As of Sept. 14, the Orange County Business Journal reported that Almquist expects the remaining tenants to open in phases from late 2026 through early 2027, without giving dates for individual stores. In March, T&T was expected by early 2027. That is the most recent date published for the grocer, and it comes from a forecast made more than six months ago.
Phase two is on City of Irvine land, and the City is building it with Almquist. Its centerpiece is Hangar 10, a World War II hangar from the former Marine Corps Air Station El Toro, which operated from 1943 to 1999. City planning documents describe the phase as a food, drink, and lifestyle area. Plans include the restored hangar, three new buildings, reused pop-up containers, seating and play areas, fountains, and space for entertainment. Under the City's lease framework, Almquist will program, manage, and operate the site. The City documents name no separate Hangar 10 operator or vendors.
The City's August 2026 Great Park construction report lays out phase two's progress so far:
- March 2026: Work begins on Hangar 10, the extension of Hornet Drive to The Canopy, a new loop road, and a dedicated parking lot.
- By August 2026: Demolition and mass grading are finished.
- The following month: Parking lot construction is expected to start.
- Fall 2027: Completion expected.
Because of this split, the most distinctive building at The Canopy is scheduled to open last. Phase one's restaurants and shops will probably be up and running for several months before the hangar is finished. The extra roads and parking are part of the phase two work, so the area around the center will likely see construction through 2027.
The calendar the hangar is joining
Hangar 10 is planned as a gathering place with entertainment space, inside a park that already holds large events most weeks. That is one reason fall 2027 matters for the Great Park as a whole. Here is what is on the calendar now:
- Saturday, Oct. 10: The 25th Irvine Global Village Festival runs 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The City says admission and general parking are free.
- Oct. 17–18: Mega Night Market runs 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. both days, with Lao, Khmer, Hmong, Iu Mien, Thai, Vietnamese, and other Asian food, music, and culture.
- Friday, Oct. 23: Rise Against plays Great Park Live with Alkaline Trio and Teen Mortgage. The City calendar lists a 5:30 p.m. start.
- Saturday, Oct. 24: ektaa Diwali Fest runs 1 to 9 p.m. at Great Park Live.
Next year the park adds a regular schedule. In July, Irvine approved an agreement for a Pioneer Baseball League team, not yet named, to play at the existing Great Park Baseball Stadium starting next summer. The deal calls for 48 home games each season from May 1 through Sept. 30.
If both schedules hold, the first baseball season would end on Sept. 30, 2027, close to when Hangar 10 is due to finish. By then, The Canopy's phase one tenants are expected to be open too. The center's restaurants, its grocery store, and its hangar would be finishing up just as the park gets a home schedule of dozens of evening games. For now, In-N-Out is the only open spot on that list.
What you can count on this fall
Here is what is confirmed today. In-N-Out is open from 10:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 1:30 a.m. Friday and Saturday. The other 18 tenants are expected to open in phases starting late this year, and the September coverage gave no individual dates. T&T Supermarket, the grocer many households will likely use most, was last projected for early 2027. Hangar 10 is a graded site with a fall 2027 target.
For a weekend plan, the Global Village Festival this Saturday is free and runs until 6 p.m., and the drive-thru stays open long after that. If you'd like to know when the rest of the lineup opens, watch the Orange County Business Journal and the City's monthly Great Park construction reports. Those two sources reported the September tenant announcements and the Hangar 10 schedule.
We follow changes like these across Irvine and coastal Orange County because they shape how a neighborhood feels from day to day. If you have questions about how The Canopy's opening timeline affects your plans in the Great Park Neighborhoods, LUXRE Realty is happy to talk it through. Contact Us anytime.
