Chandler Fashion Center Is Rebuilding Itself Around Tenants Malls Don't Usually Sign

Chandler Fashion Center lost two department stores in two years and filled both with businesses that don't fit the usual idea of a mall tenant. A sporting goods megastore took the Nordstrom. An arcade and bowling alley took the downstairs of the Sears, and a Filipino supermarket with its own food hall opened upstairs this summer. The restaurant row being built on the south end, with Din Tai Fung as its best-known name, won't serve a meal until 2027.

So the mall's 25th year is split. The part you can visit today grew out of its emptiest buildings. The part with the renderings is still behind a construction fence.

The empty anchors came back first

When Chandler Fashion Center opened in 2001, it replaced 320 acres of farmland on Chandler Boulevard near Loop 101. Its opening lineup was built for upscale shoppers: Arizona's first Apple Store, the state's second Nordstrom, a Cheesecake Factory, a 20-screen Harkins Theatres, California Pizza Kitchen, Williams-Sonoma and Pottery Barn. Then Sears closed in 2019 and Nordstrom followed in 2020.

Losing anchors usually means a mall is in trouble. Axios Phoenix pointed out that several Valley malls have closed in recent years as retailers cut back on physical stores. Chandler went a different way. Nobody tore the empty boxes down. Each one went to a tenant that a 2001 leasing plan would never have pictured.

Look at the table and a pattern shows up. The two large department store spaces went to experiences and groceries. The new full-service restaurants are going into buildings that were already restaurants. Monica Greenman, the center's general manager, explained the thinking to Axios: "It's about taking the risk." She added that bowling alleys and grocery stores aren't normal mall tenants. "But guests want this, so why not give it to them?"

Even the Axios reporter wrote that she had doubted the mall would survive Nordstrom's exit, and that it may have been the best thing that could have happened. Scheels arriving in 2023 restarted interest in the property.

Seafood City is the restaurant district that's open now

Most coverage of the redevelopment looks ahead to 2027. But the biggest new place to eat at Chandler Fashion Center opened this summer, and it's inside a grocery store.

Seafood City opened Thursday, July 30, as the chain's first Arizona location. The company started in National City, California, in 1989 and now has nearly 40 locations in the U.S. and Canada. Axios describes it as North America's largest Filipino supermarket chain.

The store covers nearly 66,000 square feet. Its seafood section has live tanks of lobster, crab and fish, plus open tables of fish on ice set up like a Philippine wet market, or palengke. Pick out your fish and staff will clean and gut it. If you want, they'll also fry it so you can eat it there. The mall describes the cook-to-order service as complimentary.

The food hall seats about 300 and has seven counters:

• Grill City
• Slurp Alley
• Sizzle
• Crispy Town
• Bakers Avenue
• Yelo Yelo
• Kakanin Korner

Phoenix New Times also reported plans for an eighth counter in the seafood section, focused mainly on crab, but gave no opening date. Seven counters in a single former department store is already more variety than many restaurant rows open with.

Round1 is one floor down in the same building. Between the two, the old Sears now offers bowling, arcade games, a full grocery run and dinner under one roof. In 2019 it was the building people worried about.

What's behind the construction fence

Construction on the south end has started, and you can see it. The mall's services page says the splash pad near Harkins Theatres is closed as construction begins on the new restaurant and entertainment area. A new splash pad will be built closer to the food court entrance. For anyone used to taking kids to the old splash pad on a warm afternoon, there isn't one on the property right now.

The schedule has already moved once. When the redevelopment was announced in December 2025, construction was set to begin in January. By late July 2026, Greenman told Axios work would start the next month. ABC15 reports that all the new additions are expected to be open by September 2027.

Here is what's planned. The porte-cochère outside the food court will close to traffic and become a covered gathering space with lawn games. The area between the food court and the movie theater will become a park with an expanded splash pad and room for music performances. Macerich's earlier announcement also listed expanded restaurant patios, a refreshed lawn and event area, more landscaping and shade, fire pits and lounge seating.

Some of the outdoor fun is still open. "Game On," a play area outside the food court entrance with an oversized chessboard and life-size Jenga, is still listed among the center's amenities. So is Kelsey Montague's "What Lifts You" mural near the lower-level SCHEELS entrance.

The 2027 restaurant row

Three restaurants have been named for the new district, and all three are 2027 openings.

Din Tai Fung will be the Taiwanese dumpling chain's second Valley location and is moving into the former BJ's Brewhouse. The mall promises its signature exposed kitchen where you can watch the xiao long bao being made.

Wagyu House is an all-you-can-eat yakiniku restaurant, and this will be its first Arizona location. It's moving into the former Kona Grill, with an opening planned for fall 2027. The menu covers American and Australian fullblood Wagyu as well as Japanese A5.

La Popular Cocina Mexicana began in Mexico City as part of Grupo Carolo. It came to the U.S. through a partnership with Eureka! Restaurant Group and opened its first U.S. location in Roseville, California, in 2022. It now has five California locations and one in Austin, so Chandler will be its first in Arizona. The target is fall 2027, and a suite hasn't been announced. The mall's preview menu includes ribeye tacos, ahi tuna tostadas, chicken mole poblano and churros, along with a lineup of agave spirits.

The mall says more restaurant names are coming in the next few months. Zara, Alo and Levi's are also listed for 2027. The construction start slipped seven months, so treat these dates as targets until doors open.

What opened inside this summer

Retail inside the mall kept changing while the outdoor work got going. KTAR reported that GARAGE and Johnny Rockets were set to open on Saturday, August 8, and that Fabletics planned to reopen after an expansion on August 27. The mall also lists J.Crew Factory, Swarovski and Peloton as new arrivals. Sephora, Foot Locker, Journeys and Kendra Scott are expanding their stores.

The fall calendar, and who's hosting it

The current event calendar shows the same pattern. Two of the bigger fall events are at SCHEELS, the store that moved into the Nordstrom building.

• Monday, October 5, 3 to 6 p.m.: Big Red's Birthday Party at SCHEELS
• Thursday, October 8, 6 to 8 p.m.: Chandler-Gilbert Community College fashion show
• Thursday, October 15: KeiKei Collective grand opening party
• October 16 through 25: Care Card shopping event
• Sunday, November 1, 7 to 9 p.m.: SCHEELS Fall Fashion After Hours
• Sunday, November 29: Community blood drive

The calendar doesn't list a 25th-anniversary event yet. The Santa photo page is taking reservations but hasn't posted 2026 dates. If you're planning around either, check back in November.

For more on what's changing across the city, see our looks at Downtown Chandler this fall and the restaurant turnover at Downtown Ocotillo, or visit our Chandler neighborhood page.

A shopping center that fills its empty anchor stores instead of losing them shapes the whole Chandler Boulevard and Loop 101 corridor around it. At Celina Acosta Real Estate Group, we follow changes like this because they affect how homes nearby are presented and priced. If you're curious how your home compares right now, request a free home valuation and we'll walk you through it, in English or Spanish.