A Berlin-style döner bakery known for its organic, house-baked bread is planning to open a larger outpost at 1348 3rd Street Promenade, taking over a space that has sat mostly empty since Trimana and a convenience store previously occupied it. BROT Döner Café & Bakery would offer handmade food, artisan pastries, desserts, coffee and döner sandwiches, according to the concept's plans, though no opening date has been announced.
The Santa Monica location would be a larger version of BROT's existing shop at 6323 Hollywood Boulevard, according to Santa Monica Mirror, whose reporting on the project was authored by Carlos Reyes. That original Hollywood location, per The Hollywood Partnership, specializes in German-style döner kebab served on organic, house-baked bread with Halal meats. The new Promenade storefront comes in at roughly 2,200 square feet of ground-floor space, according to CommercialCafe.
What's on the Menu
The Santa Monica menu is expected to mirror the Berlin-style concept BROT built in Hollywood, with beef, chicken and falafel brot sandwiches served on house-baked bread. Signature sandwiches are priced from about $10.45 to $11.45, the Mirror's report notes. Beyond the core döner, the menu also includes lavash wraps, rice boxes, fries, baklava and drinks such as ayran.
Berlin-style döner kebab — rotisserie-grilled meat, fresh cabbage and house sauces served on flatbread — has been spreading across Southern California in recent years, with dedicated shops opening in both Los Angeles and San Diego, according to Marco Polo City Guides. Hoodline covered part of that wave in 2023 when it reported on Pacific Beach's döner kitchen arrival.
A Promenade Looking to Refill Empty Storefronts
BROT's arrival lands squarely in the middle of a broader push to remake the Third Street Promenade, which has struggled with street-level commercial vacancy between 25% and 30% by early 2026, with the residential-facing 1200 block seeing vacancy rates as high as 38%, according to Santa Monica Mirror. In response, the Santa Monica City Council approved a $3 million downtown revitalization package in April 2026 that eliminated the $1,000-per-seat wastewater fee for new restaurants, streamlined sidewalk dining permits and expanded the Promenade's Entertainment Zone district-wide, per CBS News.
That Entertainment Zone dates back to May 2025, when the city council enacted an ordinance allowing adults 21 and older to consume alcohol outdoors on weekends along the 1200 to 1400 blocks under California Senate Bill 969, according to the city's own program page at santamonica.gov. A city staff report in April 2026 found the zone hosted 22 events in its first six months, meaningfully lifting event-day food and beverage sales even as non-event foot traffic continued to face headwinds, per Santa Monica Next.
Fast-Casual Newcomers Reshape the Tenant Mix
BROT isn't the only quick-service brand chasing space on the corridor. Taco Bell Cantina and Raising Cane's both signed leases along the Promenade in early 2026 to fill long-vacant retail slots, according to Santa Monica Mirror's reporting on the shift. Santa Monica Councilmember Lana Negrete flagged the project's progress in a June 2026 constituent update, noting that official coming soon signage for BROT Döner Café and Bakery had already gone up on the 1300 block, according to MyGovTools.
The Promenade itself has been reshaping its identity for decades. It was converted into a pedestrian-only mall back in 1965 and underwent a $10 million redesign in 1989 that introduced its now-signature topiary dinosaur sculptures across the three-block stretch, according to Downtown Santa Monica. Whether BROT's blend of artisanal pastry and quick-service döner can help fill the corridor's emptier blocks remains to be seen, since no opening date for the Santa Monica location has been set.
