A Local's Guide to Redding: What to Do (and Where to Go) When You're Hosting Visitors
By Dustyn Kellar, Owner & Lead Designer, CURATED by Kellar Design
If you're reading this, chances are you've either got out-of-town guests arriving soon, or you're one of the thousands of visitors coming to Redding, California for IRONMAN 70.3 Northern California this August. Either way, welcome! I've lived and worked in downtown Redding for years, and I get asked some version of "what should we do while we're here?" often enough that I wanted to put it all in one place.
Whether you're hosting family for the race, showing a friend around for the weekend, or just landed in Redding for the first time, these are my current favorites in downtown Redding.
If You're Already Near the Race, You're Near More Than You Think
A lot of the IRONMAN 70.3 Redding course runs right along the Sacramento River, past the Sundial Bridge and through the heart of downtown, which means if you're spectating, training, or just killing time between events, you're already standing in the middle of the best part of the city. Turtle Bay and the Sundial Bridge are the obvious stop, and they're worth it. But don't stop there.
Downtown Redding is small, walkable, and built for exactly this kind of in-between time. California Street in particular is the strip locals actually use: coffee, books, art, bikes, athletic wear, clothing and home goods, all within about five minutes of each other on foot. If you're hosting guests who want more to do outside of enjoying the outdoors and watching the race, this is where you send them.
The California Street Walk: Shopping for Visitors Who Don't Want an Outdoor-Only Trip
If you're hosting guests who'd like to shop and browse, or you're a visitor looking for something to do that isn't a lake or a mountain, here's the honest local list:
Theory Coffee — Redding's best-kept coffee secret isn't much of a secret anymore. Their beans are award-winning, and it's the right place to start any downtown walk.
Shop Around the Corner — A proper independent bookstore, the kind that's disappearing everywhere else. Perfect if you're a guest who wants a good summer read, or just needs a quiet twenty minutes.
Amy Donaldson Art Studio — Local artist gallery. Even if you're not buying, it's worth stepping inside. You may even catch her painting her next piece.
Chain Gang — If your bike needs anything before, during, or after the race, this is the local shop that'll take care of it.
Harmonie & Organic Pilates — Athletic wear, Althle, accessories and recovery essentials, which matters more than most visitors expect during a vacation and race week. If you're looking a drop-in Pilates class, this one will leave you shaking.
CURATED by Kellar Design — That's us. We're part interior design studio, part furniture and home goods shop, and the idea behind it is simple: come in to get inspired for your own space, and maybe leave with a piece of it and a little bit of a plan for living well when you get home.
A Few More Downtown Redding Favorites Worth the Walk
California Street is just one stretch of downtown. A few blocks over, there's more worth your time, and these are the spots that consistently earn the best reviews and atmosphere, not just the ones that show up first in a search.
Redding Public Market (Market Street) — One of the newest additions to downtown, and already considered a cornerstone of the area. It's a food hall built around local vendors — food, drinks, and small retail all under one roof, which makes it an easy stop if your group can't agree on one restaurant.
Odell Craft Barbecue — Texas-style barbecue with California craftsmanship, right on Market Street. It only serves the public Thursday and Friday, which locals have learned to plan around, and it’s worth doing the same.
From the Hearth — What started as a small local sourdough bakery has grown into one of the most-loved breakfast and lunch spots downtown. The bread alone is worth the stop, but the full menu holds up too.
Cinders Wood Fired Pizza — Neapolitan-style, wood-fired, and consistently one of the top-reviewed restaurants in Redding. An easy group meal if everyone wants something different.
New Clairvaux Vineyard Tasting Room
A genuinely unusual find: wine made by Trappist-Cistercian monks at a historic abbey, poured right here in a downtown tasting room. It's the kind of story that makes a simple glass of wine into a real conversation, but only open until 7pm, so stop by before dinner to start the night right.
Carousel — A locally owned women's clothing and gifting boutique with a genuinely well-curated selection. It's an easy add to your walk if you're shopping for yourself or picking up a gift before you fly home.
Ferris Wheel Kids — Carousel's sister store, right next door in the same historic building. A toy and children's shop with a play space built in, so the kids have somewhere to go while the adults shop.
For an Elevated Night Out
If your group wants somewhere with real atmosphere after a long day, not just a place to eat, but somewhere that feels like a destination, these are the two we point people to first.
FOMO — Downtown's upscale cocktail lounge, and easily one of the most stylish rooms in Redding. Craft cocktails, a small-plates menu, and an ambiance that shifts from a relaxed happy hour into a genuine night-out scene as the evening goes on. If you're looking for a date-night or girls'-night spot with an aesthetic that actually holds up, this is it.
Pipeline Craft Taps and Kitchen — A downtown favorite with a great tap selection and an atmosphere that works equally well for a casual dinner or a longer night with a group. Consistently one of the better-reviewed spots downtown.
Taroko — A modern Asian fusion restaurant and cocktail bar built for exactly this kind of night — good for a celebration, a group, or a date, with a menu that spans ramen, dumplings, and dim sum alongside a genuinely well-designed cocktail bar, and they have live music every Saturday night from 7:oopm-9:00pm!
Boutiques With a Distinct Look and Feel
Beyond Carousel, a few more downtown boutiques are worth building into your walk if you care about a shop's aesthetic as much as what's on the racks:
Isla — A women's apparel and accessories boutique with a curated, editorial feel to its selection. It's the kind of shop where every rack looks intentional, not overstuffed.
Grit & Gals — Downtown's newest boutique, on the corner of Butte and Pine, with a distinct western-inspired point of view. Worth a stop if you want something with real personality, not the same pieces you'd find anywhere else.
Apricot Lane — Part of a boutique family, but the Redding location has its own local feel: apparel, jewelry, and accessories with an on-trend, put-together look that photographs as well as it wears.
Snacks & Sweet Treats While You Shop
A good shopping walk needs a good stopping point. A few local favorites worth building into the route:
Taste & See Creamery
Scratch-made ice cream and gelato on Market Street, with flavors that go well beyond the basics. The kind of stop that turns a shopping errand into an actual outing, especially with kids in tow.
La Joie Bakery — A French-inspired pastry shop on the corner of Market and Yuba, right next to Redding Public Market. Think laminated pastries, hand-made macarons, and cheesecake by the slice (if it’s left!) genuinely one of the more elevated bakery experiences in town.
Eden Bakery — Tucked near Theory Coffee, this is the kind of pastry stop most visitors would walk right past without knowing it's there. Worth pairing with your coffee stop at the start of the walk.
Hidden Gems Even Locals Save for Friends
The Squire Room
Open since 1958 and restored to its original mid-century glamour. Posted hours list Thursday through Saturday evenings, but the real-world pattern is looser than that; reviews and local posts describe it going dark for stretches with little notice, then reopening without much warning. Locals say the tell is the old outdoor sign: when it's spinning, they're open. Worth a walk-by before you plan a night around it, since this isn't the kind of place with a schedule you can count on, but that's exactly what makes finding it open feel like a win.
Anthony's Mediterranean Bar & Grill, the speakeasy — This is the real insider find: hidden behind a secret bookshelf door inside Anthony's, right on California Street. To gain access, you text ahead for an access code, and it's open Thursday through Saturday evenings only. It's the kind of spot that never shows up in a basic search because there's nothing to find online except a phone number. My personal recommendation is to go so you can experience the speakeasy!
Post Office Saloon & Grill — Downtown since 1976, with an award-winning craft cocktail program most visitors would never guess is behind such an unassuming name. Live music on weekends adds to the reason locals keep coming back.
Woody's Brewing Co. — A family-owned neighborhood brewery just across the tracks from the main strip, easy to overlook if you're not looking for it. Consistently ranked among Redding's best restaurants, with house-brewed beer and food that goes well beyond typical pub fare.
What Most Visitors Never Think to Search For
Here's the thing about being a local: the best recommendations rarely show up in a Google search for "things to do in Redding." A few honest ones:
Ask a shop owner, not just a search engine. Every business on California Street knows the other five. We send customers to each other constantly, and none of us are trying to sell you on our own spot over the next one.
Don't treat downtown as a one-time stop. Some of these buildings have real history behind them: old storefronts, original brick, decades of Redding stories layered into the block. You won't take it all in on one walk-through, and you're not meant to. Come back a different day, take a different street, notice something you missed the first time. Downtown rewards a revisit more than almost anywhere else in town.
We Made You a Map
Because "just walk downtown" only gets you so far without knowing what's actually there, we built an interactive downtown map that shows exactly what's within walking distance of CURATED, categorized, described in plain language, and built by people who live here, not a generic directory listing.
Explore the Downtown Redding Walking Map → https://downtown.curatedbykellardesign.com/
Whether you're hosting visitors for race week or just want a local's answer to "what should we do downtown," start there. It's the map I wish existed the first time someone asked me for a recommendation.
Hosting visitors in Redding? Save this guide, and stop by CURATED on California Street — we're always glad to point you toward what's next.