Thomas Hill Organics expands to San Luis Obispo

Paso Robles bistro Thomas Hill Organics plans to open a location in downtown San Luis Obispo as part of the Chinatown project. Farther up Monterey Street, gourmet take-away SLO Provisions is expanding next door to allow more seating for customers.

The new Thomas Hill Organics restaurant will be located in an upstairs promenade near the corner of Monterey and Chorro streets. The approximately 4,400-square-foot area will include both dining room and patio seating, in addition to a large kitchen, said owner Debbie Thomas.

The San Luis Obispo restaurant will feature the same farm-to-table local organic cuisine as the Paso Robles one, she said, adding that the menus will be similar, with slightly more options at the San Luis Obispo location.

The San Luis Obispo restaurant’s interior may also be different, possibly more sophisticated than the other location, Thomas said. The space will include an indoor pizza oven. She declined to disclose her investment in the new location.

Thomas said she signed a 10-year lease for the space, owned by Copeland Properties. She plans to employ about 45 employees in San Luis Obispo — 30 percent full-time, 70 percent part-time workers.

The Paso Robles Thomas Hill Organics opened in January 2009. Thomas declined to disclose the restaurant’s annual sales and profits.

The Chinatown project will bring additional retail, apartments and a hotel to downtown San Luis Obispo. The two-story retail segment of the development includes 37 residential units on the second floor of existing historic buildings, along with 50,310 square feet of retail space and 2,780 square feet of office space.

Clothing retailer H&M plans to open its first San Luis Obispo County location as part of the development.

The Monterey Street component of the project, including Thomas Hill Organics and the retail stores, is slated to open around November, said the project’s architect, Mark Rawson.

SLO Provisions, which opened in October 2015, is expanding next door into Suite A at 1255 Monterey St. About 1,200-square-feet will be added to the eatery’s current space of about 1,100 square feet, said Steve Bland, who owns the business with Dwyne Willis.

The expansion will allow the primarily take-away restaurant to offer seating; the eatery will also add wine and beer to its menu. Bland said the new space is slated to open around the beginning of February. He declined to disclose expansion costs.

SLO Provisions has a staff of six employees, a mix of both full and part-time. Bland expects to hire one or two additional part-time employees after the expansion.

This story was originally published January 27, 2016 at 3:29 PM with the headline "Thomas Hill Organics expands to San Luis Obispo."