Town & Country Village

Town & Country Village is the shopping center Palo Altans use without thinking about it. It sits at the corner of El Camino Real and Embarcadero Road, across from Palo Alto High School and the edge of the Stanford campus. The buildings are low, the roofs are red tile and the walkways wind under old oaks. Locals come for Trader Joe's, a bagel, a birthday card or a new pair of running shorts and are back in the car in 30 minutes.

It is smaller and more personal than Stanford Shopping Center a mile to the north. There are no department stores. Instead you get specialty apparel, home goods, stationery, a bookstore, a pharmacy and more than 20 places to eat. This guide covers the history, what is there today and the practical details. For the bigger picture see our Palo Alto shopping guide.

History: Palo Alto's first shopping center

Town & Country opened in 1953. Its developer was Ronald Williams, a Palo Alto resident who lived from 1908 to 2001. He built on a 14-acre parcel known as the Greer property, land that had once been part of the Mexican-era Rancho del Arroyo de San Francisquito. Bayshore Construction did the building work.

The design was the point. Williams kept somewhere between 70 and 100 mature oak trees and built around them. The buildings used salvaged timber from old logging trestles, which gave the center its rustic early western look. The original plan had about 100,000 square feet of shops and 1,200 parking spaces. By 1957 about 75 shops were open and there was a children's play area. Williams went on to build similar outdoor centers elsewhere, including one in San Jose that opened in 1959.

Early tenants are part of local memory. AE Cramer's Toy Box, Hinkley's Fine Men's Wear, Stickney's Hick'ry House and an Edy's Ice Cream shop were among them. The Village Cheese House made sandwiches here from 1959 until 2019, a 60 year run that many longtime residents still mention.

By the late 1990s the center had slipped. Two anchor tenants, the Hickory House and John's Town & Country Market, had closed and their spaces sat empty for a time. In 2004 the San Francisco firm Ellis Partners bought the center from Williams's heirs. Over several years it renovated the buildings while keeping them open, restoring the tile roofs, heavy wood beams and columns and protecting the oaks. Trader Joe's moved into a new building as part of that work. Ellis Partners puts the center at about 177,000 square feet, including 26,000 square feet of offices on the second floors.

Shops at Town & Country

The list below comes from the center's own shops and restaurants directory in October 2026. Tenants change, so check it before a special trip.

Apparel and shoes

Fashion is the biggest category, mostly smaller brands with a relaxed California feel. The directory lists Athleta, Evereve, Everything But Water, Faherty, J.McLaughlin, Johnny Was, Margaret O'Leary, Marine Layer, 27 Miles Malibu, Fillmore & 5th, Lingerie République, Marigold Row and Ruti. Tennis Town & Country has sold racquets, strings, shoes and apparel for tennis and pickleball players for more than a decade. The Stanford Shop sells Stanford-branded apparel and gifts.

Books, paper and gifts

• Books Inc. at 74 Town & Country Village sells new books for adults and children and hosts author events. More in our bookstores guide.
• Paper Source sells cards, wrapping paper and stationery.
• diptyque sells candles and fragrance.
• Framebridge handles custom framing.
• CardVault by Tom Brady sells collectible sports and trading cards.
• Briggs & Riley sells luggage from Building 3, Suite 108.

Home

Serena & Lily opened a design shop here in November 2023 with indoor and outdoor display space. Hudson Grace sells tableware and home goods. Sur La Table carries cookware and kitchen tools. There is also a KOHLER Signature Store for kitchen and bath fixtures.

Beauty, wellness and services

Beauty tenants include Bluemercury, LaBelle Day Spas & Salons, Rowan and 18 | 8 Fine Men's Salon. Fitness studios include CorePower Yoga and Lagree Fitness Club. Practical stops include CVS Pharmacy, two optical shops, a Chase bank branch and The UPS Store, which is handy if you want to ship purchases home.

Trader Joe's

Trader Joe's is the busiest single store in the center. It occupies its own building, listed in the directory as Building 6. It sells the chain's familiar mix of private-label snacks, frozen food, flowers, wine and pantry staples. The lot nearest the entrance gets crowded at lunchtime and on weekend afternoons. Weekday mornings are the calmest time to shop. Our groceries guide compares it with the city's other markets.

Food and coffee

Town & Country has become one of Palo Alto's main daytime food stops, especially for students and parents from Paly across the street. The directory lists more than 20 places to eat and drink.

• Bread and breakfast: Manresa Bread, the bakery that started in Los Gatos, sells naturally leavened loaves and pastries. Boichik Bagels makes New York style bagels. Douce France and Hatched are also on the list for a morning stop.
• Lunch and dinner: Gott's Roadside for burgers, Howie's Artisan Pizza, Telefèric Barcelona for Catalan tapas, Wildseed for a fully plant-based menu, Mamahuhu, Asian Box, Sushi House, Oren's Hummus Express, Lulu's Mexican Food, Roost & Roast and Poké House.
• Drinks and sweets: Peet's Coffee, Boba Guys, Jamba, Palmetto Superfoods, SWEET55, Kara's Cupcakes, Antoine's Cookie Shop and The Penny Ice Creamery.

Most of these are counter service with outdoor tables under the trees. Telefèric and Howie's work for a sit-down dinner. For more on the bakeries see bakeries and desserts. Our food and drink guide covers the wider dining scene.

Parking and getting there

The center's address is 855 El Camino Real. You can enter the lots from El Camino Real and from Embarcadero Road. Parking is in surface lots in front of and behind the buildings. Some areas carry posted time limits, so read the signs. The most crowded spots are near Trader Joe's and the restaurants at lunch.

Without a car, the Palo Alto Transit Center beside the Caltrain station is within half a mile, about a 10 minute walk along El Camino Real. VTA buses on El Camino Real stop nearby. Stanford's Marguerite shuttle also serves the area. The center sits at a busy intersection, so use the signals at Embarcadero Road rather than crossing El Camino mid-block. Our getting around guide covers buses and the train.

Housing plans behind the center

Like much of Palo Alto, Town & Country is part of the debate over new housing. In November 2025 owner Ellis Partners proposed two apartment buildings on the parking lot behind the center. At a prescreening on February 2, 2026, the City Council gave favorable early feedback on a plan for 158 apartments in two seven-story buildings with 315 parking spaces at 44 and 88 Encina Avenue. Council members flagged traffic on El Camino Real and Embarcadero Road and the risk of parking spilling into nearby streets. A separate 10-townhouse project at 70 Encina Avenue had already been approved.

The prescreening is an early step. A formal application still needs city approval before anything is built. The proposal covers the parking lot behind the center rather than the shop buildings. Watch Palo Alto Online and the city's planning pages for updates.

Nearby

Town & Country makes a natural first stop before Stanford. Palm Drive and the Main Quad are a short drive or a longer walk away. See visiting Stanford. Downtown University Avenue is about a mile north. Hotels along El Camino Real put you within walking distance of both shopping centers. You can compare hotels on El Camino Real if you want to stay close.

Frequently asked questions