Walk Thames Street from the north end of downtown toward the harbor this fall and the buildings look the way they did a year ago. The sign at 205 Thames St. says East Landing, where Baba Sushi used to be. Up on Hope Street, 448 Hope now holds Don Taco & Tequila, in the former Bristol Oyster Bar space. Out at Hope and Gooding, the plaza building that housed a Dunkin' now holds Dean's Deli. At 411 Thames St., the waterfront restaurant that opened as Quito's in 1954 has new owners, a new name and a patio being winterized.
Nearly every dining change in downtown Bristol this year happened inside a room people already knew. The town kept its addresses and changed the kitchens. The change that matters most heading into November is at 411 Thames, where a room that typically reopened each March is being prepared to stay open through the winter.
The rooms that changed hands
The clearest way to see 2026 is address by address. Here is where things stand as of late October 2026.
| Address or location | Before | Now | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 205 Thames St. | Baba Sushi | East Landing | Open since July 24, 2026 |
| 448 Hope St. | Bristol Oyster Bar | Don Taco & Tequila | Open |
| 8 Gooding Ave. | Dunkin' | Dean's Deli | Serving by mid-September |
| Thames St. | Tong Phoon | The Phanta's Thai Cuisine | Renamed, same menu |
| Gooding Ave. | Qhali Kitchen | Qhali Bar and Grill | New owner, new menu |
| 411 Thames St. | Quito's | Q's Waterfront by O.M.G. | Announced, opening pending licenses |
| Hope St. | Le Central | No successor announced | Closed Sept. 3, 2026 |
EastBayRI.com described the first wave in May as "a lot of activity (and in some cases a lot of inactivity)" at downtown Bristol restaurants as high season arrived. Most of what that article described as coming soon is now open. One change was still unsettled in May and is only now getting close to resolved.
What the new kitchens actually serve
East Landing, 205 Thames St.
East Landing started as a Narragansett-based food truck, and the Thames Street space is its first brick-and-mortar restaurant, according to EastBayRI.com. The menu preview in that story was creative comfort food: braised short rib over cornbread pudding, and a grilled cheese with brie, arugula and hot honey.
The restaurant announced it would open July 24, 2026. In early October it posted that it had new hours and was serving lunch from noon to 3 p.m. Its OpenTable page currently lists noon to 9 p.m. on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday, and noon to 10 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, with no Tuesday hours shown. The hours have changed more than once since opening, so check before you go.
Don Taco & Tequila, 448 Hope St.
Bristol Oyster Bar closed its Hope Street restaurant in March. WPRI reported that owner Jordan Sawyer called the closure "a pause as we regroup" while he searched for a new home, and that he planned to bring the farm's oysters to pop-ups at local eateries and breweries. The team also planned to grow Coastal Catering, the East Bay Restaurant Group's catering arm. A new location had not been announced as of late October.
The space went to the owner of Nacho Mamma's and Spaghetti Lane in Barrington. EastBayRI.com described the new place as a return of a version of the Nacho Mamma's that used to be on State Street, now with cocktails and an upgraded room. Don Taco & Tequila opened this year and serves Monday through Saturday from 4 to 9:30 p.m. It is closed Sunday.
Dean's Deli, 8 Gooding Ave.
Dean's Deli took the former Dunkin' in the plaza at Hope and Gooding. It was posting about football-day service by September 13. Its listed hours are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday and Wednesday through Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, with no Tuesday hours shown.
Two renamings on the same blocks
The Thames Street restaurant that was Tong Phoon is now The Phanta's Thai Cuisine. EastBayRI.com reported that the Thai noodles and curries should stay the same apart from the name. On Gooding Avenue, the Peruvian restaurant Qhali Kitchen has a new owner and is now Qhali Bar and Grill. The menu it submitted to the town council leaned toward wings and burgers. These two rooms show the range of this year's changes. In one, only the sign changed. In the other, a new owner kept the name and changed most of the menu.
The waterfront room that skipped spring
Quito's dates to 1954. EastBayRI.com reported in May that it typically reopened for the season in March, and that this year there had been no sign of activity by mid-May. Downtown went through the 2026 summer without it.
In August, three hospitality partners bought the property: Frank Martucci, Adam "Opie" Oppenheimer and Anthony Guaetta. They plan to reopen it as Q's Waterfront by O.M.G., according to EastBayRI.com's September 23 report. The article's subhead summed up the plan as owners who "plan to open the doors soon, stay open year-round." The partners told the paper they are refreshing the restaurant and winterizing the outdoor patio before opening.
That one detail changes Bristol's calendar. For decades, 411 Thames was a spring-to-fall address, and a waterfront seafood dinner downtown fell off the winter options. A winterized patio and a year-round plan put it back on the list for January.
The menu, as described to EastBayRI.com, is modern New England waterfront dining. It will be seafood-forward, with a broad range of non-seafood dishes and a creative beverage program. Martucci, a Bristol resident, told the paper:
"Our goal is to respect the history and connection this location has with Bristol while creating something new for the community."
The partners have a lot of experience. EastBayRI.com reported that Martucci spent more than 25 years in hospitality leadership, including as Corporate Director of Food, Beverage & Nightlife for Bally's Corporation. Guaetta is a Johnson & Wales culinary graduate who served as Lead Beverage Trainer at Bally's Lincoln. Oppenheimer is an award-winning bartender who organizes the Flip Out On Cancer charity event. Rhode Island Monthly's October 15 Diner's Update also listed the ownership change at 411 Thames St.
Q's was not open yet when the Diner's Update ran. It will open once state and local licenses are in place, which the owners put at later this fall. The owners are posting opening news on Facebook as Qs Waterfront by OMG and on Instagram as @Qs_Waterfront_by_OMG.
The two addresses still waiting
Two open questions remain on the map.
- Le Central. The Hope Street bistro closed September 3. Chef Jesse James had owned it for more than 20 years, according to Rhode Island Monthly. No new tenant had been announced as of late October.
- Bristol Oyster Bar. The restaurant left 448 Hope St. and said it plans to return in a new space. Until then, its oysters are meant to turn up at pop-ups around town.
Based on how this year went, both stories are more likely to end with a new name on a familiar door than with a new building.
When the new rooms get their first winter test
The next five weeks bring the first stretch of the cold season with this new lineup in place, and the downtown calendar puts foot traffic on Hope and Thames Streets on specific days. Explore Bristol's calendar lists these dates:
- Saturday, November 7: Linden Place's Autumn Artisan Market
- Friday, November 20: the downtown Bristol Holiday Preview
- Saturday, November 21: Santa's House opens
- Saturday, November 28: Small Business Saturday
Hours matter more on those days. East Landing currently opens at noon, Don Taco & Tequila opens at 4 p.m. and closes Sundays, and Dean's Deli shows no Tuesday hours. If Q's gets its licenses before the Holiday Preview, 411 Thames will have a lit waterfront room in late November for the first time in years.
Brian grew up in Bristol, and he follows these changes because they shape what daily life on Hope and Thames Streets looks like for the people who live there. If you'd like to know how the downtown changes this year are showing up around the streets you care about, Brian Jodoin is happy to talk it through over coffee at one of the new spots. Start your home journey with a conversation.
