Menlo Park Turns 99 This November, and Downtown Is Already Rehearsing for 100

The purple wall at 712 Santa Cruz Avenue is now a natural wood color. The flower wall that used to greet diners at the front is gone. The lamp fixtures have decorative covers, the tabletops have gray ones, and new artwork hangs on the walls. According to the Almanac's report on the change, chef-partner Minjun Li wanted a "more zen, relaxed feeling" when the former Mrs Khan space reopened Oct. 14 as Dragon General.

It's the same room with a new menu, and that pattern runs through downtown Menlo Park this fall. The city kicks off its centennial celebration on Dec. 4, and almost everything on the late-fall calendar is something the town already had, reshaped or brought back. New arrivals are a small part of it. That covers a library festival in its 11th season, a Singaporean kitchen back after more than a year away, a closed street that may get one lane of traffic back, and a holiday tree lighting with the oak taking a turn in place of the pine.

Year 99 ends on a Monday

Menlo Park's current incorporation dates to Nov. 23, 1927, according to the Menlo Park Historical Association's timeline. The new city covered about one square mile. Its boundaries ran from Middlefield Road to Olive Street and from San Francisquito Creek to Felton Gables, and several large estates of more than 25 acres were left out at their owners' request. The first City Council met in the Masonic Hall above the Duff and Doyle store.

This year Nov. 23 falls on a Monday, which marks 99 years. The city has already announced that the countdown to 100 starts less than two weeks later, on Friday, Dec. 4, at Fremont Park. Councilmembers were briefed on 2027 centennial plans at their March priority-setting workshop, according to the city. The Historical Association's fall newsletter asks residents to send in ideas for marking the anniversary, so the program is still open to input.

The library's November is the back half of an 11-year tradition

The longest-running item on the calendar is at Menlo Park Library, 800 Alma St. The 11th Annual Menlo Park Storytelling Festival began Sept. 27 and runs nine free events through Nov. 21, all paid for by the Friends of the Menlo Park Library. The city's announcement makes the point that storytelling means telling stories without a book, and that it isn't only for children.

Here's what's left, in order:

1. Thursday, Nov. 5, 2:30 to 3:15 p.m. John Weaver: Pumpkin Tales, listed with the library's children's events.
2. Thursday, Nov. 12, 6 to 7:30 p.m. StoryFest, held online over Zoom.
3. Sunday, Nov. 15, 1 to 3 p.m. Storytelling Workshop: The Enchanting World of "Once Upon a Time", led by drama teacher Enid Davis.
4. Monday, Nov. 16, 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Jeff Gere: True Supernatural Tales of Hawaii.
5. Saturday, Nov. 21, 1 to 3 p.m. Tellabration!, the closing event.
6. Tuesday, Nov. 24, 6 to 7:30 p.m. 4th Tuesday Stories, the new monthly meetup that started Oct. 27.

The workshop and the finale are linked. The city says the Nov. 15 workshop could prepare "the brave" to take part in Tellabration! six days later. A resident can go from audience member to teller within one week of the festival. The monthly meetup then keeps going after the festival closes, and it will still be running when the centennial kickoff arrives on Dec. 4.

Event listings can change, so check the linked page before you go.

Two kitchens that came back to downtown

The festival is the oldest thing on the calendar. Downtown's restaurant news this year is mostly about kitchens returning.

Shiok! Singapore Kitchen served Singaporean dishes at 1137 Chestnut St. from 1999 until the building sold and its tenants, Gerry's Cakes among them, had to leave by Jan. 1, 2025. The restaurant spent the next stretch doing delivery and takeout from a ghost kitchen in Redwood City. In April, the Almanac reported that it had reopened at 625 Oak Grove Ave., the former Lotus Restaurant space, with the entire kitchen staff back and several servers returning.

Co-owner Dennis Lim described the move to the Almanac this way:

"We don't want to think of it as like a new opening. We want to think of it as we're coming back to the community."

Dragon General at 712 Santa Cruz Ave. went the other way: the room stayed and the cuisine changed. From 2022 until it closed in September, the space was Mrs Khan, the only Uyghur restaurant on the Peninsula. It switched concepts after it couldn't find a chef for authentic Uyghur dishes, the Almanac reported, and Kusan Bazaar in Mountain View is now the Peninsula's only Uyghur restaurant.

Li has about 25 years of chef experience. His menu covers Dongbei, Beijing, Shanghai, Hunan and Sichuan cooking, plus a Chinese American section. Highlights from the Almanac's report:

• Dongbei signatures include crispy sweet and sour pork, crispy eggplant with garlic and chili, and sweet and sour pork ribs, priced $18 to $24.
• Peking duck comes whole or half, with salt and pepper duck carcass or duck soup, for $48 to $88.
• Housemade dim sum includes soup dumplings, potstickers and shrimp siu mai at $15.
• Beer and wine are part of the plan. Mrs Khan didn't serve alcohol, and the chance to get a beer and wine license was one reason for the change of concept.

Dragon General is in its soft opening, with 12% off and no grand opening date yet. It's open Wednesday through Monday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 5 to 9 p.m. Li has said he's open to bringing back some Uyghur dishes once he trims the menu. Diners who miss the laghman may see a few of those dishes return.

The 600 block is being redrawn

The space downtown is still arguing over is right outside Dragon General's door. The 600 block of Santa Cruz Avenue has been closed to eastbound traffic since 2020. In June 2025 the council voted to keep it closed, partly because people use it so often as a gathering spot.

That changed at the Oct. 13 study session. The Almanac reported that most councilmembers now support piloting a third layout. Councilmember Drew Combs suggested running the pilot for six months to a year, then comparing the results with the other two layouts.

Mayor Betsy Nash told the council she had done a "complete 180" on the plaza plans. She pointed to upkeep around the plaza and to construction access for nearby projects, including a proposed six-story residential building at 800 Oak Grove Ave. and housing proposed on three downtown parking lots. She also said she would like to see a bigger pedestrian area someday, just not now. Councilmember Jeff Schmidt wanted to keep going with the permanent plaza.

The money is partly spent. City staff said about $61,000 has gone to furniture and $30,000 to a design consultant, leaving about $250,000 for the project. Under the current plans, the permanent plaza was expected to be finished by the end of 2027, which would have been the centennial year. City Manager Justin Murphy said the council still has to vote on reopening the lane at a future meeting. Until then, nothing on the block has changed.

The plaza's best showcase this year was Fourth Fridays, the free live music series from the nonprofit Downtown Menlo Fund. It ran July 24, Aug. 28, Sept. 25 and Oct. 23, and the October event went from 6 to 9 p.m. The Fund's page says next season's dates are still being finalized, so November and December have no Fourth Fridays. At the study session, Fund chair Marnie Foody said downtown business owners reported sales jumps on event nights. In the Almanac's account, she also said losing the plaza would limit the series, and that "we had hoped to build our series to a full schedule of events in 2027." Whatever layout the council picks will decide where that 2027 series takes place.

Dec. 4: an oak takes the pine's turn

The centennial kickoff is at Fremont Park, Santa Cruz Avenue at University Drive, rather than on the contested block. Shop local! Light Up the Season runs Friday, Dec. 4, from 5:30 to 7 p.m., rain or shine. It's free and open to all ages, with youth performances, centennial and winter-themed photo spots, and hot cocoa while it lasts.

The tree is the detail that fits the season best. The city says it will light "our beautiful Menlo Park oak tree as we give our beloved pine tree a well deserved break."

The city also asks people to shop and dine at downtown small businesses while they're there. Dragon General's lunch service ends at 3 p.m., and it reopens for dinner at 5, half an hour before the 5:30 tree lighting. Springline, at 1300 and 1302 El Camino Real, also lists a public 5th Annual Holiday Celebration for the next day, Dec. 5. Its calendar doesn't give a time yet.

Tony Ngai and the team at TN Realty follow downtown Menlo Park closely as the 600 block decision and the centennial plans move forward, and we're happy to talk about how those changes play out on the blocks around Santa Cruz Avenue, in English, Cantonese or Mandarin. Request your free neighborhood market report and home valuation.