Popular SLO County restaurant known for its farm-to-table food closes suddenly
A longtime Paso Robles restaurant known for its farm-to-table menu has officially shut its doors after 17 years.
Thomas Hill Organics, with its pretty courtyard dining area and wine bistro at 1313 Park St., announced on its website that it was closing.
“After many years in the community, Thomas Hill Organics is closing operations,” its website read. “Thank you Paso Robles and everyone who has supported THO over the years.”
The restaurant opened in 2009, launched by Debbie Thomas and featuring a menu she once described as “creatively inspiring.”
“At the time I was part owner of a 10-acre organic farm,” Thomas recalled of the restaurant’s start in an interview with the San Luis Obispo County Visitors Guide in 2016. “It just seemed natural to start a restaurant utilizing the 900 fruit and nut tree production.”
Its closure was a surprise. Its last post on Facebook urged people to make reservations for Valentine’s Day.
It was not immediately clear what the reasons for the closure were. The Tribune reached out to the restaurant on social media and via phone, but did not receive a response as of Tuesday morning.
However, one of the owners has faced health issues in recent years.
A Go Fund Me was created in November to aid Thomas Hill Organics owners Mike and Lisa Espy after Mike’s cancer returned in 2025. The Espys bought the restaurant in 2022.
The restaurant also faced an unpredicted challenge after a car crashed through its facade in May 2024.
Restaurant known for its farm-to-table food
Thomas Hill Organics was known for its farm-to-table fare, attracting fans from across the Central Coast. The restaurant had gotten write-ups in outlets like Vogue and Daily Meal.
In October 2017, actor Will Farrell popped in for a meal at the restaurant during a visit to Paso Robles.
“I don’t know how he heard about us, but I was pleasantly surprised,” Thomas said at the time.
The restaurant previously ventured an expansion in downtown San Luis Obispo, but that location shuttered just over a year after opening.
Thomas Hill Organics founder sad to see restaurant close
On Friday, Thomas posted about the restaurant’s closure on Facebook.
“My heart is heavy today,” she wrote. “Thomas Hill Organics closed its doors yesterday, and while restaurants are just brick and mortar, this place was so much more than that to me and to so many others.”
Thomas wished the best to Mike Espy and his family as they navigate his battle with cancer.
“I’m incredibly grateful for the years, the memories, the people, the laughter, the chaos and the community that lived inside those walls,” she continued. “Thank you to everyone who was ever part of that story.”
She finished: “Wishing Mike strength, healing and to both all the love in the world.”
This story was originally published February 10, 2026 at 11:14 AM.
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