Santa Cruz Avenue, downtown Menlo Park

Santa Cruz Avenue is the kind of main street most Peninsula towns lost decades ago. It is a few blocks long, lined with low storefronts, cafe tables and street trees. Nothing is taller than a few stories and nothing is far from free parking. You can walk the whole downtown stretch in ten minutes, though most people take an hour because they stop for coffee or wander into Kepler's.

The street begins at El Camino Real a block from the Menlo Park Caltrain station. It runs west through downtown before turning into a residential road toward the hills. This page covers the downtown blocks. Our Menlo Park guide covers the rest of the city and our guide to where to eat in Menlo Park goes deeper on restaurants.

How downtown is laid out

Downtown Menlo Park is a tight grid. Santa Cruz Avenue is the spine. Menlo Avenue runs parallel to the south and Oak Grove Avenue to the north. Short cross streets such as Chestnut Street, Curtis Street, Doyle Street, Evelyn Street and Crane Street link them. Behind the storefronts on both sides sit the city's numbered parking plazas, which act as the downtown's back door. Most people park in a plaza and walk through a passage to the avenue.

El Camino Real forms the eastern edge. It carries the through traffic, while Santa Cruz Avenue stays slow. The Caltrain station sits just east of El Camino, with its 1867 wooden depot still on the platform. Fremont Park, a small green at Santa Cruz and University Drive, is where the city holds summer concerts and lights a big oak at the holidays.

Kepler's Books

Kepler's is the anchor of downtown for many people. The store sits at 1010 El Camino Real in the Menlo Center, at the corner of Santa Cruz Avenue. Peace activist Roy Kepler founded it in May 1955. His son Clark Kepler ran it from 1980. The store moved to its current location in 1989.

Kepler's nearly disappeared in 2005. It closed on August 31 of that year because of the pressures on independent bookselling. Community protests and a fundraising drive brought it back within weeks, with new community shareholders and a new lease. In 2012 it was restructured into two organizations that work together. Kepler's Books is a community-financed bookstore. Kepler's Literary Foundation is a nonprofit that runs author events, which you can find on keplers.org.

The store's own site lists longer hours from Tuesday to Saturday and shorter hours on Sunday and Monday. Check before an evening visit. Our bookstores guide compares Kepler's with the bookstores on the Palo Alto side.

Shops and services

Santa Cruz Avenue is a neighborhood shopping street more than a destination mall. The mix leans toward things locals use every week: cafes and bakeries, banks, salons, home and interior design shops, clothing boutiques and gift shops. The city describes downtown as a mix of eateries and shops serving locals and visitors, with convenience stores and interior design services among them.

A few landmarks help you get your bearings:

• Kepler's Books and Cafe Borrone share the Menlo Center plaza at El Camino Real.
• Draeger's Market, an upscale grocery with a bakery and deli, has its Menlo Park store downtown.
• Mademoiselle Colette bakes French pastries at 816 Santa Cruz Avenue.
• Amici's East Coast Pizzeria is at 880 Santa Cruz Avenue.
• The British Bankers Club tavern and rooftop is at 555 Santa Cruz Avenue.
• The Guild Theatre on El Camino Real reopened in 2022 as a live music venue. See our live music guide.

The street has been changing. In July 2026 the City Council adopted rules that allow a wider range of ground-floor uses on Santa Cruz Avenue, including offices and personal services. Expect the mix to shift over the next few years.

The Sunday farmers market

The city lists the downtown farmers market every Sunday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Santa Cruz and Menlo avenues. It sets up in the parking lot on Chestnut Street between the two avenues and runs year-round, rain or shine. The Almanac reported in 2017 that the market had just marked its 25th year and that the Menlo Park Lions Club hosted it. Expect fruit, vegetables, eggs and more. A local family guide also notes knife sharpening on the first Sunday of each month.

Because the market takes over a parking lot, Sunday mornings are the one time downtown parking gets tight. Park a block or two away or walk from the train. For Palo Alto's own Saturday and Sunday markets, see our farmers markets guide.

Parking plazas explained

Downtown Menlo Park runs on free parking. The city lists eight public parking plazas plus street spaces, about 1,440 free spaces in all. The rules, as published by the city in 2026:

Time limits are enforced from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday. Always read the signs, since a few spaces carry special rules. The city's downtown parking page has the current map.

Two longer-term changes are worth knowing about. The city is resurfacing and renovating Plazas 7 and 8. Under its 2023 to 2031 Housing Element it is also considering some city-owned downtown lots for housing. Parking counts and locations could change as those plans move forward.

Outdoor dining and the new plaza

Outdoor tables are a big part of the street's appeal. Menlo Park's Streetary program lets restaurants, cafes and bars set up seating along Santa Cruz Avenue under city design standards. The program has proven especially popular downtown. The city is also building a public plaza on the 600 block of Santa Cruz Avenue as a place to sit with coffee, eat lunch or hold small events, with custom tables, chairs and benches.

Events through the year

• Summer: free concerts in Fremont Park, July through August.
• October: Halloweek, with pumpkins, parades and trunk-or-treat.
• Holidays: Light Up the Season, with the lighting of the oak tree in Fremont Park.
• Every Sunday: the farmers market.

The city posts dates each year on its downtown page.

Getting there from Palo Alto

1. Caltrain: Menlo Park is one stop north of Palo Alto in the same fare zone. Walk west from the station across El Camino Real and you are on Santa Cruz Avenue in two minutes. Not every train stops at Menlo Park, so check the timetable.
2. Bike: Ride north from downtown Palo Alto. It is flat and about a mile and a half. Our biking guide suggests quieter routes than El Camino Real.
3. Car: Take El Camino Real north across San Francisquito Creek. Turn left on Santa Cruz Avenue or one of the cross streets and look for the parking plaza signs.
4. Bus: SamTrans buses on El Camino Real link the Palo Alto Transit Center with downtown Menlo Park.

If you want to stay within walking distance, our page on staying in Menlo Park or Mountain View lists hotels near the station. You can also compare hotels near downtown Menlo Park.

Pair it with nearby stops

Santa Cruz Avenue makes a good half-day with other Menlo Park sights. Allied Arts Guild, with its 1929 Spanish Colonial buildings and gardens, is a short drive south near the Palo Alto line. Compared with University Avenue in Palo Alto, Santa Cruz Avenue is smaller and quieter, with easier parking and fewer chain stores.

Frequently asked questions