"Bring your chairs and blankets, grab some food and hang out with us on The Terrace," Red Cliffs general manager Cory Ashby told St George News while promoting the mall's fall concert series. A mall manager telling people to bring blankets says a lot about where Red Cliffs Drive is heading. The businesses that opened here this October are built to keep you for the whole evening. Their calendars also line up, so one Saturday this month has more going on along this road than any other weekend this fall.
Six Courts and a Kitchen at the Promenade
The clearest example sits at 245 Red Cliffs Drive, Suite 3, inside the Promenade at Red Cliffs. The Pickle Pad was set to start welcoming customers on Thursday, Oct. 15. Its St. George location page now says the venue is open.
The name suggests a court rental business, and the floor plan is much more than that. There are six climate-controlled pickleball courts, built on a cushioned CushionX surface instead of paint over concrete. Around the courts are a turf area with more than 20 free yard games, including cornhole, giant Jenga, foosball and ring on a string. The arcade adds basketball hotshot, virtual reality, claw games and golf simulators. Crave Social Eatery covers food and drink, with big-screen TVs, lounge seating, flatbread pizzas, wings, burgers, sandwiches, smoothies, and a curated selection of beer and wine.
The venue's own pitch, in a sponsored St George News feature, describes it as a place for groups where not everyone has to play, or even know how. Owner Jody Davis, who lives in Little Valley, put it simply in the same piece: "We want to create a pickleball community where people can come and socialize." He has been working on the St. George location since fall 2024. That means the project took about two years to go from idea to opening day.
A few practical details for your first visit:
- Drop-in play: weekdays, 8 a.m. to noon
- Leagues: expected to start in November, with tournaments and beginner lessons planned after that
- Hours: open seven days a week, and the location page listed Sunday, Oct. 18 hours of 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
- Memberships: members get free drop-in play plus discounts on court rentals, food and drink, and early joiners can lock in lifetime promotional pricing
- Phone: 435-256-8766
The weekday morning hours are for regular players. Everything else on that list is built for the evening.
The Terrace Was Designed for Exactly This
Farther along the same road, Red Cliffs has been moving the same way for longer. The mall at 1770 E. Red Cliffs Drive opened in 1990. It has more than 60 stores and nearly 450,000 square feet of retail space. The newer piece is The Terrace, an outdoor space with grass, waterfalls and built-in seating. The mall calls it the centerpiece of a rejuvenation project, and it was designed specifically for community events.
The fall Concerts on The Terrace started Sept. 26 with The Famous Unknowns, then Fast Eddie played Oct. 3 and Groovonix played Oct. 17. Two shows remain, and both are on the mall's events page.
- Saturday, Oct. 24: The Last Light, a seven-member group of Southern Utah musicians playing reggae, rock, fusion and funk
- Saturday, Nov. 7: The Mixx, a six-member classic rock band, closing the season
Each concert runs 7 to 9 p.m. and is free. Seating is limited, which is why the mall suggests a chair or blanket for the grass near the stage. During performances you can eat from Street Eats, Roni's Mac Bar, Galbi Grill, Jay Bird's Nashville Hot Chicken and Back Porch.
Back Porch is the newest addition. Ashby described it as "a great game day spot" with "a full kitchen bar and a huge patio." Back Porch opened Aug. 10. A big patio added just as St. George heads into its best patio months fits the rest of this story. The mall also opened a Lids store, which carries licensed NFL and basketball gear, so you can buy the jersey and watch the game in the same building.
Malloween returns Saturday, Oct. 31, from 5 to 7 p.m. with a Harry Potter theme, crafts, games, live music, giveaways and indoor trick-or-treating. It is free.
Dessert at the Far End of the Drive
The third new arrival fills the gap that comes after dinner. Brooker's Ice Cream was scheduled to open Oct. 17 at 2654 E. Red Cliffs Drive, behind Texas Roadhouse, according to the Southern Utah Tribune's October roundup. Earlier in the month the brand's St. George location page still said "Coming Soon," so check it for hours before you go.
Brooker's is not a soft-serve stop. Founder Brian Brooker built it as a super-premium ice cream business inspired by towns along the Appalachian Trail and by Italian gelato, and the whole shop is themed around America's founding era. The company menu leans into that theme with flavors like Franklin's Black Raspberry Republic and a seasonal Priscilla Alden's Caramel Cornucopia. The brand says its lineup rotates and isn't comprehensive, so the St. George case may differ.
With Brooker's in place, Red Cliffs Drive has somewhere to end the night. Pickle Pad at one end, The Terrace in the middle and Brooker's behind Texas Roadhouse make up a full evening along one road.
Saturday, October 24, Is When It All Lines Up
Most weekends this fall, these places run on their own schedules. On Saturday, Oct. 24, three of them host events on the same day, and a new dessert stop sits at the end of the road.
- Morning at D1 Training, 1552 E. Gateway Drive. The athletic training facility holds its grand opening with vendors, giveaways and facility tours, and the event listing runs it until 2 p.m. D1's St. George page describes adult and youth programs with weekday and Saturday class blocks. It also says founding members will help shape the schedule, so opening day is when that membership starts forming.
- The same day at The Pickle Pad. The venue's first event is a fundraising pickleball tournament co-sponsored by 5D Cancer Services. If you're not playing, the yard games and Crave Social Eatery are open to everyone in the building.
- Early evening on The Terrace. Grab dinner from one of the five food vendors, set your chairs on the grass, and stay for The Last Light from 7 to 9 p.m.
- After the show at Brooker's. If the shop is open by then, it's the last stop of the night, just east on Red Cliffs Drive.
That one day takes you through an athletic club's opening, a charity tournament, a free concert and dessert, all on one road.
What's Left on the East Side Calendar
After Oct. 24 the schedule thins out quickly, and each date has its own reason to show up.
- Thursday, Oct. 29: The Pickle Pad's official grand opening, with live radio broadcasts, giveaways and a ribbon cutting
- Saturday, Oct. 31: Malloween at Red Cliffs, 5 to 7 p.m.
- November: Pickle Pad leagues expected to begin
- Saturday, Nov. 7: The Mixx closes the fall Concerts on The Terrace season, 7 to 9 p.m.
The Terrace season ends with The Mixx on Nov. 7, and the climate-controlled courts, arcade and sports bar at the Promenade stay open seven days a week after that. Pickle Pad leagues start in November, and the last free concert on The Terrace is Saturday, Nov. 7, at 7 p.m.
We follow what opens across Greater St. George because it shapes how each part of town feels day to day, and this October brought a run of new openings to the east side. If you'd like a local's view of the Red Cliffs Drive corridor or anywhere else in Southern Utah, Dustin & Angie Hammer would be glad to share what we're seeing. Contact Us anytime.