On the afternoon of Friday, Oct. 23, Anchorhead Coffee proprietor Jake sent a short note to the West Seattle Blog. "We passed our Health inspection today and we are gonna open tomorrow Saturday the 24th at 7 AM." That evening he added the regular schedule: "open every day from 6 to 6." Opening weekend would start at 7 to give the new crew time to settle in.
So the southeast corner of California and Alaska, the former Starbucks space, now has a 6 a.m. start every day. A block and a half away, the franchise owners building out 4706 California Ave SW have posted closing times of 11 p.m. and midnight. Between those two hours sits a holiday calendar that the West Seattle Junction Association has scheduled mostly for evenings. This December, the Alaska Junction keeps longer hours than it did a year ago, and most of the new arrivals are set up for the late shift.
Midnight at 4706 California
The former Haymaker space at 4706 California Ave SW has been split into two storefronts, one for Dave's Hot Chicken and one for Gong Cha. Both franchises belong to the Keshap Group out of Kirkland. Sana Keshap is opening the Dave's stores, and her sister Prachi Keshap is bringing Gong Cha to Washington.
The hours set this block apart. In its October report on the two openings, the West Seattle Blog described the stretch as a place "where restaurant food options are limited after 10 pm." Dave's plans to stay open from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and from 10 a.m. to midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. Sana Keshap told the blog the grand opening would come no later than Nov. 13, with a soft opening the day before.
Gong Cha is the Taiwanese bubble tea brand with more than 2,000 stores worldwide, and this is its second store in Washington. The plan was a long soft opening starting Nov. 12 or 13, then grand-opening days on Dec. 3 and 4 with buy-one-get-one specials on select drinks. Prachi Keshap told the West Seattle Blog that the company's Capitol Hill shop gets busiest from about 9 or 10 p.m. into the early morning. She expects West Seattle to keep a different schedule, so the shop will start on Dave's hours and adjust from there.
Gong Cha's planned grand opening falls on Thursday, Dec. 3. That is also the first Shop Late night of the Junction's holiday season. Both bring people to the block after dark on the same evening.
A few blocks off the main corner, Mo's Dough launched vegetarian Neapolitan pizza for takeout at Distinguished Foods, 4611 36th SW, on Oct. 23. As of early November it was serving Friday evenings and Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 9 p.m., with walk-up ordering and covered, heated outdoor seating. Starbird Chicken opened at 4755 Fauntleroy Way SW on Sept. 28.
The Places That Left Were Built Around Daytime and Dining Rooms
The arrivals lean late, and so did the reasons for this fall's departures. Portage Bay Café's last day at 4725 42nd SW was Sunday, Oct. 25, almost four years after the local mini-chain came to West Seattle. Owner Amy Fair Gunnar told the West Seattle Blog that the breakfast and brunch café's basic problem, given the "soaring costs" of running a restaurant, was too little indoor seating to carry it through fall and winter. She also cited the Washington Hospitality Association's count of about 2,000 restaurant closures statewide this year. Staff are being placed at the chain's other four locations, according to the same report.
That space has turned over before. Agave Cocina held it for three years before Portage Bay, and Fresh Bistro had it for nine years before that.
Kizuki Ramen at 42nd SW and SW Alaska also closed on Oct. 25. The landlord's leasing representative told the West Seattle Blog that a local West Seattle restaurant group has signed for the space and plans to open a new concept there in 2027, after a remodel.
Mashiko is staying in the area under a new name. The sushi restaurant's last Junction night was Oct. 19. It is moving to 9640 16th SW in White Center as Mashiko Tsugu, and the owners have said they hope to reopen by the end of the year, depending on how fast permits come through.
For anyone who eats out on 42nd SW, two well-known sit-down rooms on that side of the Junction are dark for the season. Most of the new activity is on California Avenue.
A Holiday Calendar That Starts After Work
The West Seattle Junction Association's 2026 Hometown Holidays schedule runs from late November through Dec. 22. Nearly every Junction-wide event lands on a Thursday evening or on Saturday afternoon and evening. Every Hometown Holidays event is free.
| Date | When | What's happening | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat., Nov. 28 | 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. for The Works | Small Business Saturday, plus The Works Seattle grand opening | Junction shops; The Works at 4540 California SW |
| Thu., Dec. 3 | Evening | Shop Late with Santa and his elves, live music from Better as Brass, West Seattle Book Club | Participating merchants, including Snapdragon, Easy Street Records and Darby Winery |
| Sat., Dec. 5 | 4 to 8 p.m. | Hometown Holidays festival, Night Market and tree lighting | SW Alaska St between 42nd and California Ave SW, including Junction Plaza Park |
| Dec. 8 to 22 | Store hours | Nutcracker Suite selfies | Curious Kidstuff |
| Thu., Dec. 10 | Evening | Shop Late with Santa's elves, the Figgy Pudding Carolers, Art Walk | Participating merchants |
| Sat., Dec. 12 | Store hours | Santa and his elves | Curious Kidstuff |
| Sun., Dec. 13 | Market hours | Kiwanis Cocoa & Coat Drive with free cocoa from Husky Deli | Farmers market, near the All-Ways intersection |
Dec. 5 is the main event. The association's schedule, which it notes is subject to change, runs like this:
- 4:00 p.m. The festival begins and the Night Market opens
- 4:30 p.m. Endolyne Choir
- 5:00 p.m. School of Rock
- 5:30 p.m. Pet Costume Contest
- 5:45 p.m. Metropolitan Singers carol
- 6:00 p.m. Tree lighting, with carolers
- 6:15 p.m. A holiday DJ takes over
- 8:00 p.m. The Night Market closes
The festival also lists Santa, live music and a beverage garden. The Night Market closes at 8 p.m., and Dave's posted hours run to midnight on Saturdays. This is the first Hometown Holidays where that block has a kitchen planning to stay open four hours after the festival ends.
The Thursday events follow the Junction's monthly routine. West Seattle Book Club meets on the first Thursday and Art Walk is on the second, so Dec. 3 and Dec. 10 add Santa, music and carolers to nights that already draw people out.
The Daytime Anchors Are Still in Place
Two fixtures keep the Junction busy in daylight through the season. The West Seattle Farmers Market runs every Sunday year-round from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at California Ave SW and SW Alaska, according to Seattle Farmers Markets. On Dec. 13 the Kiwanis coat drive sets up there, and Husky Deli is donating free cocoa for anyone who brings coats or other warm clothes for people in need.
Small Business Saturday falls on Nov. 28 this year. The association's page lists the date as Nov. 29, but that is a Sunday, and Nov. 28 is the Saturday. It is also the grand-opening day for The Works Seattle at 4540 California SW, the former Seattle E-bike space. Proprietor Kellie Phelan has run the business in Fremont. She lives in West Seattle, and she told the West Seattle Blog she wants to work here too. The day runs from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and starts with a ribbon cutting.
Curious Kidstuff is the daytime stop for families. Its decorated Nutcracker Suite room is open for holiday-card photos from Dec. 8 to 22, and Santa visits on Dec. 12.
What Opens After the Lights Come Down
Several more changes are already scheduled for after the holidays. Take Care Yoga has signed a lease for 4747 California Ave SW, the former Junction Hot Yoga space, and is aiming to reopen it as a studio in mid- to late January 2027. The former Kizuki space at 42nd and Alaska is due to reopen in 2027 as a new concept from the local restaurant group that signed the lease. Mashiko Tsugu's permits will decide when the 16th SW location in White Center opens.
Through December, the Junction schedule looks like this: coffee at 6 a.m. on the southeast corner, the Sunday market at 10, Thursday Shop Late nights and Saturday's Night Market in the evening, and a chicken counter at 4706 California with posted hours until midnight on weekends.
If the Junction's turnover this fall has you thinking about your own move, toward the Junction or away from it, Milaina West Group can help you read a block the way you'd read a house, starting with what's open on it and when. Book a free consultation to start your Seattle move.
