North County San Diego is about to get a sentimental sequel. Greg Koch and Steve Wagner, the co-founders of Escondido’s Stone Brewing, are stepping back in to save the sprawling World Bistro & Gardens they built on Citracado Parkway back in 2006, just weeks before current owner Sapporo USA was set to shut it down for good.
The twist is that Koch and Wagner haven’t owned Stone Brewing since selling it to the Japanese beverage giant in 2022. When Sapporo turned around in August and sold the brand and most physical assets to Firestone Walker and Duvel Moortgat USA, the Escondido restaurant, brewery, and packaging plant were left out of the deal. Sapporo then announced it would close the entire Escondido campus, putting roughly 140 local jobs at risk, unless a buyer stepped forward.
That is where the founders came back in. Rather than watch the one-acre beer garden, complete with koi ponds, boulders, and fire pits, go dark, Koch and Wagner are taking over the restaurant themselves and relaunching it as an independent operation under a brand-new name, no longer tied to Stone Brewing. The current spot will serve its last meals under the old name on Friday, November 13, before transitioning to new ownership.
Do not expect a total overhaul. Koch has described the coming changes as “slight versus dramatic”: a shift toward a more formal, entree-focused menu, upgraded service and atmosphere, and a tap list that grows beyond Stone’s own beers to spotlight the wider craft brewing community, more than three dozen taps’ worth. The goal, in Koch’s words, is keeping the laughter-filled gardens that made the spot a destination while sharpening the experience around them.
For North County, the stakes go beyond nostalgia. By some estimates the venue has drawn upward of 500,000 visitors a year, making it one of the region’s biggest attractions and a steady source of local jobs and foot traffic for nearby Escondido businesses. A clean handoff, rather than a shutdown, means payroll, tourism dollars, and supplier relationships built over nearly two decades stay in the community instead of disappearing.
No reopening date has been set yet, and the brewing side of the new venture is still being worked out. But for a North County institution that looked headed for the history books this fall, a second act is now underway.
Source: San Diego Magazine
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