Suite B101 and Suite B-109 are a few doors apart at 1895 E. Rodeo Walk Drive. A Bobby Flay burger counter opened in one this spring and a New York bakery in the other. Next door to the bakery, at a Highland Drive address, a bagel shop has signed on. Those openings got the headlines. The other 2026 arrivals at the former Cottonwood Mall site tell a different story, though. There's a veterinary clinic open every day of the year, a coworking floor in the old Macy's, and a new set of permitted uses that covers salons and tutoring centers. For a long time the site was somewhere you drove to on purpose. More and more, it's built around the trips Holladay makes every week.
The dessert and lunch row on Rodeo Walk
The quickest way to see the change is to walk Rodeo Walk Drive from one end to the other.
Bobby's Burgers by Bobby Flay came first. Its grand-opening ribbon cutting was March 27, and Fox 13 reported the restaurant officially open by April 8. It's a fast-casual counter with seven burgers made from Certified Angus Beef, plus a Beat Bobby Flay veggie burger, a fried chicken sandwich, and milkshakes. According to the developer's announcement, pistachio is Flay's favorite shake. This is the chain's second Utah location. The first is at University Place in Orem, so this is the closest one for the east bench.
Magnolia Bakery opened June 1 at 10 a.m. in Suite B101. The bakery started in Manhattan's West Village in 1996 and is best known for its banana pudding and cupcakes. The Holladay shop is the brand's first franchise location anywhere in the United States. Kirk Schneider, the franchise owner, said the company chose Holladay after touring the site. "Everybody agreed that Holladay Hills and this community is the right place to open this first franchise store in the country," he said.
MilkShake Factory is around the corner at 1920 E. Rodeo Drive, Suite D60. It was making milkshakes on June 2, when the Salt Lake Tribune stopped by.
That makes three dessert stops within a short walk, and two of them, Bobby's and Magnolia, opened this year. The bigger point is that these are quick stops. You can pick up a box of cupcakes after school or a burger on a weeknight. Nobody needs to plan an afternoon around them.
The 2026 arrivals that aren't restaurants
The restaurants were the visible part. Three other openings fit the errand pattern even better.
Trader Joe's opened a 13,397-square-foot store in October 2025, and it anchors the whole pattern. A grocery store brings people back every week. Every other business here is built to catch some of that traffic.
Sploot Veterinary Care opened May 13. It's the company's first clinic in Utah. The clinic offers primary and urgent care in one place and is open 365 days a year. For a pet owner, that means a limp on a Sunday morning can be seen at the same clinic that does the annual checkup, without a trip across the valley.
Kiln turned two floors of the former Macy's into a 52,000-square-foot flex office and coworking space. The developer's May update said tenants already included Mastercard, T-Mobile, Intuit, Penn Mutual and Assos. Kiln offers open seating, resident desks, private offices and custom studios. A workday brings people to the site at hours a shopping trip doesn't, and that weekday lunch crowd helps a burger counter and a bakery stay busy.
The Megaplex is one familiar anchor that sometimes gets listed with the new arrivals. Megaplex Holladay at Cottonwood is at 1945 E. Murray Holladay Blvd. It's been there since its renovation and grand opening in March 2017, when it opened with six auditoriums, a VIP room with concierge service, laser projection, heated recliners, and a cafe menu with crepes and waffles. The theater was there long before the new wave and gave it an evening draw to build on.
A quick reference to what's open and what's announced
| Business | What it is | Status as of Sept. 30, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Trader Joe's | Grocery | Open since October 2025 |
| Bobby's Burgers by Bobby Flay | Fast-casual burgers | Ribbon cutting March 27; open by April 8 |
| Kiln | Coworking and flex office | Open by early May |
| Sploot Veterinary Care | Primary and urgent vet care | Open since May 13 |
| Magnolia Bakery | Bakery and desserts | Open since June 1 |
| MilkShake Factory | Milkshakes | Open by June 2 |
| The Sicilian Butcher | Meatballs, pasta, charcuterie | Announced; no opening date published |
| PopUp Bagels | Bagels with dips | Announced; no opening date published |
| Megaplex Holladay at Cottonwood | Movie theater | Open since 2017 |
The developer's May announcement also lists Chipotle, Rio Acai and Vio Med Spa among the tenants already operating.
The August rule change that makes room for salons and tutors
Everything above was allowed under the rules that have governed the site for nearly two decades. Since 2007, a Site Development Master Plan has set which kinds of businesses can operate in the Holladay Hills mixed-use zone. This summer the developers asked the city to change that list.
KMW Development and Holladay Hills LLC applied to add "personal services" to the permitted-use table. The Cottonwood Heights-Holladay Times reported that the category would cover salons, tutoring centers and similar businesses, alongside the retail and restaurants already there. On July 16 the City Council opened a hearing and continued it without a vote. The hearing picked back up on Aug. 6. A summary of the meeting recording says no one else spoke at the reopened hearing and the council approved Resolution 2026-24 to adopt the amendment. The official record will be the approved minutes, which the city posts on its agendas and minutes page.
The wording changed along the way. An earlier city agenda packet called the proposed use "professional services." The Aug. 6 agenda and the resolution itself say "personal services," and the Times noted that the difference could affect which businesses qualify.
The change matters for the same reason Sploot and Kiln do. A haircut or a weekly tutoring session brings someone back on a schedule, the way a grocery run does. Adding that category gives the site's leasing more of the regular, repeat businesses that have filled out the past year.
Two openings still on the way
Two new tenants are announced, but neither has a published opening date. Treat them as coming, not open.
The Sicilian Butcher will be the first Utah restaurant for a concept with seven locations across Arizona, Texas and Tennessee. The menu centers on choose-your-own meatballs with hand-rolled meatballs, fresh pasta, and build-your-own charcuterie boards. It's backed by Savory Fund, the investment group behind Swig, Mo' Bettahs and Via 313 Pizzeria. Co-founder Andrew K. Smith described the experience as "sharing a five-foot charcuterie board across the table or simply enjoying a great plate of pasta." The May announcement didn't include a date or a street address. We haven't found a later update.
PopUp Bagels is coming to 4835 S. Highland Drive, next door to Magnolia Bakery. The Connecticut-born chain serves whole bagels with dips instead of sandwiches. Its motto is "grip, rip and dip." On Sept. 29 the Salt Lake Tribune reported that the company hadn't released an opening date. When it opens, that corner will have a morning stop to go with the dessert and lunch spots already there.
How much longer the buildout runs
The developer's project page estimates five to ten years for overall completion, depending on market conditions. It doesn't give a phase-by-phase schedule. The project is a joint venture of Woodbury Corporation, Millrock Capital and Ball Ventures. With the personal services category now reported approved and two restaurants announced, the next tenants will most likely add to the weekly-errand mix that 2026 started.
If you're curious how new neighbors like Trader Joe's, Sploot and Kiln could affect a home near Highland Drive and Murray Holladay Road, we're happy to talk it through with you. You can reach Nick and Kendall at The Berardi Team. Let's Get Started.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
