Santa Monica welcomed two new restaurant openings in as many days this week, with Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers cutting the ribbon on the Third Street Promenade and The Win~Dow burger concept debuting at 930 Montana Ave., adding more than 100 jobs and fresh dining energy to a city actively working to revitalize its economic core.
Mayor Caroline Torosis was on hand for the Raising Cane's opening, calling the arrival of the Louisiana-based chain a milestone moment for a downtown that has been working to rebuild commercial momentum.
"We are so excited about how many folks have been apparently lined up since 8 p.m. last night to get their chicken," Torosis said. "From an economic development perspective, the city's been working really hard on returning economic activity to our downtown."
Torosis noted that the new Raising Cane's location is expected to create 100 local jobs and said the timing aligned with a broader burst of civic activity downtown, including a newly opened FIFA store, World Cup festivities and Pride on the Promenade events scheduled through the weekend.
Katie Zika, membership director for the Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce, which represents more than 600 member businesses, echoed the mayor's enthusiasm.
"This brings opportunities, investment and everything not just to downtown, but to all of Santa Monica," Zika said. "Congratulations, and thank you so much for choosing Santa Monica."
Restaurant leader Dustin Fossum said his team pushed hard to open the Promenade location as quickly as possible without cutting corners on quality.
"We've been so excited to be in Santa Monica for so long," Fossum said. "Once we got this location, we made it happen as fast as possible."
Fossum said the interior was deliberately designed to reflect the local community, a practice Raising Cane's follows at all of its locations. The Santa Monica outpost features disco ball surfboards on the ceiling crafted by a local artisan and murals drawing from the chain's origins.
"If you go into any Canes anywhere in the world, they're going to have various decorations that are part of the community it's within," Fossum said. He noted the mural behind the counter pays homage to the chain's very first location, where workers discovered an old bakery mural behind the walls that inspired the restaurant's signature logo styling.
A day before the Cane's ribbon cutting, The Win~Dow drew crowds around the block when it opened its new Santa Monica location at 930 Montana Ave., taking over a space previously occupied by the Go Get Em Tiger coffee shop. The 50-seat restaurant was designed by the Klein Agency and features murals by Los Angeles artist KC Haxton.
The Win~Dow has built a devoted following since founders Paul Hibler and Jeff Goodman launched the concept in Venice in March 2019 as a walk-up window attached to their upscale Rose Avenue steakhouse, American Beauty. The restaurant was built around a single, purposefully affordable cheeseburger — a flat-top griddled patty smashed with onions, topped with American cheese, pickles and a pink house sauce served on a soft potato bun. It launched at $3.95 and has risen incrementally to around $4.50.
The concept earned early recognition from Eater LA, which named it the No. 1 new burger in the city, and claimed the top prize at LAist's 2025 Tournament of Cheeseburgers. The chain operates under parent company American Gonzo Food Corp., which also oversees Pitfire Pizza, Superba and Pie Society.
The Santa Monica outpost expands on the original concept with a weekend breakfast menu featuring burritos and egg-topped burgers, with service beginning at 9 a.m. The full menu runs about nine items, including a vegetarian option, fried chicken sandwich, fries, shakes and soft-serve.
The back-to-back openings arrive as Santa Monica officials have been touting a broader economic realignment strategy aimed at filling vacant storefronts and attracting new commercial investment to the city's most prominent retail corridors. City leaders have pointed to new business openings as evidence that downtown Santa Monica is regaining its footing following years of post-pandemic commercial disruption.