Two dates bracket Thanksgiving week in Sebastopol this year. On Thursday morning, November 26, the town holds its first Turkey Trot, starting from the Community Center on Morris Street. Two days later, on Saturday, November 28, Cozy Plum serves its last plant-based burrito on McKinley Street.
Each one comes with a named local recipient. The race's net proceeds go to local youth grants and scholarships. The owner of Cozy Plum has said its last weeks of sales will go toward bonuses for his staff. Starting November 19, the City of Sebastopol pauses non-emergency construction downtown so holiday shopping isn't disrupted. Put together, the week is easier to follow by who gets the money than by the calendar.
Thanksgiving morning at 390 Morris Street
The Sebastopol Turkey Trot is brand new for 2026. It's organized by three local groups: the Kiwanis Club of Sebastopol, the Sebastopol Grange and the Sebastopol Gravenstein Lions Club. The Empire Runners event listing gives the date as November 26, 2026, at 390 Morris Street, and says net proceeds support local youth grants and scholarships.
Here's what registration looks like on the race's RunSignup page:
- 5K: $22.20, which includes a $2.20 signup fee. Starts at 8:05 a.m.
- Little Legs 2K: $11.60, which includes a $1.60 fee. Starts at 8 a.m. on a short, family-friendly out-and-back course.
- Registration deadline: 7 a.m. on race day, November 26.
- T-shirts: The cutoff for a guaranteed shirt was November 9. The organizers say a few extras may be sold on race day.
For a family of four, two adults in the 5K and two kids in the 2K comes to $67.60. Because the race lists "net proceeds" as the youth fund's share, the signup fees and race costs come out first. Whatever is left after that goes to local young people through three clubs that have run community programs in town for decades.
With the start at 8 in the morning, a family can be home before the oven needs attention. The Grange is also one of the three organizers, and it hosts its own event the weekend before. More on that below.
Saturday is Cozy Plum's last day on McKinley Street
Cozy Plum has fed vegan and vegetarian diners for nearly seven years. It started in Santa Rosa, ran there from 2019 to 2023, and then moved to Sebastopol, where it has spent the last three years. The Press Democrat reported that chef and owner Charles White III plans to close on November 28. He said the cost of running a brick-and-mortar restaurant had become too much, and he has accepted a position with Sonoma County.
White told The Press Democrat he wants every current employee, many of whom have worked there for years, to get a bonus from the sale. All sales before the closing will help make those bonuses bigger. Employees will also be offered the chance to work for the restaurant that's moving in. That means a plate of the vegan soy carne asada burrito or the butternut squash bowl this month goes partly to the people who cooked and served it.
The same article puts the restaurant's growth in numbers. By its second year in Santa Rosa, White said, Cozy Plum was doing about $1 million in sales, and that success was why it moved to Sebastopol. White also told the paper what the restaurant has meant to him:
"It's something that's changed me forever, and I'm never going to forget it."
Cozy Plum's website lists the address as 6970 McKinley Street. It lists hours of 11:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday, Tuesday and Thursday through Sunday, with Wednesdays closed. Thanksgiving falls on a Thursday this year, which makes the holiday-week schedule worth a call before you go. If those listed days hold, the last service days run from publish day through Saturday the 28th.
What's coming next in the space
Ming Gao and Kasey Liu own Shogun Japanese Restaurant in Santa Rosa. They told The Press Democrat they're finalizing a lease for the Cozy Plum space and plan a second restaurant there serving traditional Chinese food, including handmade dumplings and noodles. Liu said they plan to keep some vegetarian dishes, knowing the place Cozy Plum has held for plant-based diners in the area. They hope to start construction this winter and open sometime in February 2027.
"We're trying to do something different, and share what we love," Liu told The Press Democrat.
The city's part starts November 19
The third piece comes from City Hall. In a November 3 newsletter notice, the City of Sebastopol announced a holiday moratorium on non-emergency construction in the downtown corridor from November 19, 2026, through January 4, 2027. The city's stated reason is to make sure construction doesn't interfere with the holiday sales and activities of downtown businesses.
The city ran the same kind of pause in 2025. In practice, the town is putting road work and building work on hold for about seven weeks so that December spending reaches downtown shops and restaurants without detours in the way. The pause starts the Thursday before the Grange craft fair weekend and runs past New Year's.
The rest of the week, by day
The race and the restaurant are the two ends of the week. In between, most of the other events are run by local organizations and farms. Here they are in date order, starting a few days before the downtown pause begins:
| Date | Event | Where | Listed hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat., Nov. 14 | Wreath-making class with Flower Casita at Gold Ridge Organic Farms, with a farm tour, apple pie and cider | 3387 Canfield Road | 1 to 3 p.m. |
| Sun., Nov. 15 | HEAD WEST Marketplace at The Barlow | 6770 McKinley Street | 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. |
| Sat. and Sun., Nov. 21 to 22 | Sebastopol Grange Hall Craft Fair, 50-plus local vendors | Sebastopol Grange | 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. |
| Sat. and Sun., Nov. 21 to 22 | Ethic Cider Holiday Shopping & Tasting Event | 8490 Occidental Road | 11 a.m. Saturday to 5 p.m. Sunday |
| Thu., Nov. 26 | Sebastopol Turkey Trot | Community Center, 390 Morris Street | 2K at 8 a.m., 5K at 8:05 a.m. |
| Sat., Nov. 28 | Cozy Plum's planned last day | 6970 McKinley Street | Call ahead |
The Grange's event calendar lists the craft fair weekend first, then the Turkey Trot five days later, both on its home page. If you want to support one organization across the week, buying from Grange vendors on Saturday and signing the family up for Thursday's race both put money into its hall and its programs.
Ethic Cider's tasting weekend features local gifts, hot cider, new cider releases, and the cidery's aged apple brandy and pommeau. The same cidery started a different kind of local giving this fall. The Press Democrat reported in September that Ethic Ciders had opened a community apple press offering free processing for local growers on Tuesdays.
McKinley Street, from The Barlow to Cozy Plum
Three of this month's addresses sit on one short stretch of McKinley Street. HEAD WEST sets up at 6770 McKinley on November 15 and returns on December 20. Next door at 6780 McKinley, Suite 160, Wild Poppy opened its second, larger cafe and market at The Barlow in October. The Press Democrat listed its hours as Wednesday through Monday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. We wrote about how the two Wild Poppy locations split the week last month.
Farther up the street at 6970 McKinley, Cozy Plum counts down its final service days. In the same few blocks, one kitchen has just opened with a bigger footprint, another is closing, and a third is planned for February.
The next date on the town's calendar is Thursday, December 3. That evening the Sebastopol Area Chamber of Commerce holds its free annual tree-lighting celebration at Sebastopol Town Plaza, from 5 to 8 p.m.
Following Sebastopol week to week, from a new cafe on McKinley Street to a new race on Morris Street, is part of how Theresa Disbro helps clients understand the town she works in. If you'd like to talk about what downtown's holiday season and the changes on McKinley Street mean for your own plans in West County, schedule a personalized consultation.
