On Sunday, October 11, One Knoxville SC played its last regular-season home match of 2026 at Covenant Health Park, against Spokane Velocity. The team's next scheduled match, on October 17, is on the road. Over the next few weeks, sports will draw far fewer people to the stadium than they have since spring.
The storefronts along Stadium Way and East Jackson Avenue are on a different schedule. Several of the district's restaurants are projected to open this fall, as the field goes quiet. The stadium's calendar is also shifting to beer, a charity race, a holiday bike ride and a light show. This winter will be the first real test of whether the blocks around the stadium can run without a game to fill them.
Every Storefront Already Has a Tenant
In September, Inside of Knoxville reported from Berry Social's ribbon-cutting. Christi Branscom of Partners Development, who leases the residential and restaurant units in The Delaney, confirmed that every commercial space in the stadium district is now spoken for. Letters of intent cover the last two bays, though those concepts haven't been announced yet.
That means no space is waiting on a tenant. The remaining question is when each one opens. As of mid-October, here is where each one stands, according to the most recent reporting:
| Business | Address | What it is | Status as of the latest report |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iron Forge Brewing Company | 604 E. Jackson Ave. | Brewery and restaurant | Open since June 4 |
| Jackie's Dream | 498 E. Jackson Ave. | Restaurant | Soft-launched in early June |
| D1 Training and Tennessee Orthopaedic Alliance | 215 Florida St., Suite 1102 | Training and physical therapy | Open since April 3 |
| Berry Social | 122 Stadium Way | Açaí bowls and smoothies | Open since September 4 |
| Knox-Quila Cantina | The Delaney | Tacos and a 200-tequila list | Targeted end of September, not yet confirmed open |
| ParTee Golf | The Delaney | TrackMan golf bays, food, full bar | Expected in October |
| T-Ralph's Burgers & Fries | 122 Stadium Way | Burgers | Expected this fall |
| Disco Chicken & Donuts | 122 Stadium Way | Chicken and donuts | Expected this fall |
| Crispy Cones | 500 E. Jackson Ave. | Soft serve in fresh dough cones | Projected for early November |
| Jonathan's Grille | 406 Willow Ave. | Sports bar | Planned, no date announced |
Four places on that list are open now. Five more are expected before the year ends.
Opening Dates Kept Moving Later in the Year
The schedule started slipping before the first pitch. In March, Knox News reported that none of the stadium restaurants would be ready for the Smokies' April 2026 home opener and that the first openings were expected in the second or third quarter. Iron Forge and Jackie's Dream both opened in early June. Berry Social followed in September.
Each round of dates after that landed later. In July, Knox News put Knox-Quila Cantina's target at the end of September. On September 8, Inside of Knoxville still listed the restaurant among the tenants still to come, and the reporting gathered here doesn't confirm an opening since then. ParTee Golf's own website says "Opening September 2026" and also labels the venue "Coming Soon." A September 15 Knoxville Beer Board record showed the business still needed a certificate of occupancy and health department approval. WBIR describes T-Ralph's and Disco Chicken & Donuts as set to open "this fall." Both are second locations for brands that started at Kern's Bakery.
Crispy Cones is the latest projection on the list. On September 29, Knox News reported an early November opening at 500 E. Jackson Avenue, with no specific day. The concept started on Shark Tank. It cooks dough cones rotisserie-style, coats them in cinnamon sugar and fills them with spreads, ice cream and fruit. Local franchisee Brad Burcham owns the location.
These projected dates have already slipped before, so treat them as estimates. Knox-Quila's end-of-September target has already passed unconfirmed, and the October and "this fall" estimates don't name a day. If the rest hold, the stretch from Halloween to New Year's will have more places to eat around the stadium than the season did.
What's Already Open When Nothing Is Happening on the Field
The businesses open now were planned to work without a ticket. Knox News described Iron Forge's stadium location as a street-facing brewery and restaurant open to visitors who aren't attending a game. It opened at 5 p.m. on June 4. Inside of Knoxville made the same point in September. Iron Forge, Jackie's Dream, and D1 Training with Tennessee Orthopaedic Alliance on the ground floor of Yardley Flats are open "whether or not there's anything happening on the pitch."
Berry Social chose its spot for crowds. The shop sits at the base of The Delaney, just outside the stadium's west entrance. Owner Heather Jenkins told Inside of Knoxville that she and her husband Chad got "the pick of the litter" when they signed the lease, and that they picked the space partly because it's right where people line up to enter the stadium. The franchise comes from Arizona-based Berry Divine. The Jenkinses have adapted the menu and decor, which Heather described as "Miami meets Knoxville with a boho spin." The mural inside shows the Knoxville skyline with the Sunsphere drawn as an açaí berry.
The Stadium's Calendar Through December
With the last regular-season home match played, the stadium and the streets around it have these dates on the calendar for the rest of the year:
- Sunday, October 18: Old City Market on West Jackson Avenue.
- Saturday, October 24: Xul Kill The Lights Beer Fest at Covenant Health Park, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., with more than 100 breweries listed.
- October 30 to November 1: One Knoxville's schedule lists a playoff window, but it doesn't name an opponent, a time, or Covenant Health Park as the venue.
- Sunday, November 1: The Thompson Cancer Survival Center Race Against Cancer at Covenant Health Park. The survivor march starts at 2 p.m. and the race at 3 p.m.
- Saturday, November 28: Old City Market, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Saturday, December 12: Tour de Lights at Covenant Health Park, followed by the Smokies Winter Wonderland Light Show.
- Sunday, December 13: Old City Market, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Apart from the unconfirmed playoff window, every date on that list is about beer, running, shopping or the holidays. Each one also brings a crowd past the same storefronts that will spend the fall finishing their buildouts.
December 12 Is the Stadium's Holiday Kickoff
Visit Knoxville's event page shows the most detailed schedule of anything on the stadium's winter calendar. Tour de Lights, presented by Visit Knoxville and Bike Walk Knoxville, is free and runs from 3:30 to 7:30 p.m. Starting at 3:30, there are carolers, firepits, marshmallow roasting, children's activities and a mailbox for letters to Santa. Hot chocolate and beer are for sale, and the page says the local eateries at Covenant Health Park will be open. Costume contest judging starts at 5 p.m., and riders line up on Stadium Way at 5:30. The roughly five-mile group ride leaves at 6 p.m. and rolls through the Old City, the historic Fourth and Gill neighborhood and downtown. The Knoxville Community Band plays holiday music from 6 to 7 p.m., and costume awards and the prize drawing happen at 7:15.
A few details can trip people up. The free bike valet closes at 6 p.m., the same time the ride starts, so riders need to pick up their bikes before then. Costume contest registration is required. Rider registration is encouraged, and registered riders are entered to win a year of free bike service from Two Bikes. The maker market isn't coming back this year. Organizers point shoppers to the Old City Market the next day, December 13.
At 7:30 p.m., the Smokies Winter Wonderland Light Show is scheduled to open at the park. It's a separate event with its own admission and stadium policies. The light show's MiLB page lists a December 5 to January 5 run with no year attached and still calls the show "inaugural," so check that page again closer to December before planning around it.
More Openings Are Planned a Few Blocks Away
The district's growth reaches past The Delaney. Jonathan's Grille, the Nashville-based sports bar going in diagonally across from The Delaney at 406 Willow Avenue, revised its plans over the summer. A July proposal reported by Inside of Knoxville cut the building from three stories and 20,000 square feet to two stories and 11,200 square feet. No opening date has been announced.
In the Old City, Knox News's July reporting described several bars at different stages:
- Country Road, a honky-tonk and music venue at 300 W. Magnolia Avenue, said in late July that it planned to open later this year.
- The Jaguar Room, a cocktail bar at 224 N. Central Street, was aiming for the end of summer.
- House of Strays, a cabaret-influenced cocktail bar planned for 205 W. Jackson Avenue, hadn't announced a date.
- An unnamed cocktail bar from the owners of Brother Wolf is planned for 112 W. Jackson Avenue, the former Rala space, with no date announced.
All of those timelines date from July and hadn't been confirmed as of the latest reporting.
New neighbors near a stadium shape what it's like to live nearby the rest of the year. That's useful to know when your next move puts you near downtown Knoxville. Christina Branham follows these openings as closely as the listings around them. Search listings or contact Christina if you want an East Tennessee REALTOR® who can tell you what's opening around the corner.
