diff --git a/src/app/components/side-panel/side-panel.component.ts b/src/app/components/side-panel/side-panel.component.ts
index 92145411..b535d9e3 100644
--- a/src/app/components/side-panel/side-panel.component.ts
+++ b/src/app/components/side-panel/side-panel.component.ts
@@ -265,7 +265,22 @@ export class SidePanelComponent implements AfterViewInit, OnInit {
     return this.selectedEvent() as Event | undefined;
   });
 
-  ngAfterViewInit() {}
+  ngAfterViewInit() {
+    // The eval tab container doesn't exist until appName is set and the template renders.
+    // Watch for when appName becomes available to initialize the eval tab.
+    if (this.appName()) {
+      setTimeout(() => this.initEvalTab(), 500);
+    }
+    
+    // Watch for appName changes to init when it becomes available
+    runInInjectionContext(this.environmentInjector, () => {
+      effect(() => {
+        if (this.appName()) {
+          setTimeout(() => this.initEvalTab(), 100);
+        }
+      }, { allowSignalWrites: true });
+    });
+  }
 
   /**
    * Dynamically create the eval tab. We must do this programmatically until
@@ -276,9 +291,10 @@ export class SidePanelComponent implements AfterViewInit, OnInit {
     this.isEvalEnabledObs.pipe(first()).subscribe((isEvalEnabled) => {
       if (isEvalEnabled) {
         const container = this.evalTabContainer();
-        if (!container) return;
-        container.clear();
-
+        if (!container) {
+          return;
+        }
+        
         const evalTabComponent = container.createComponent(
             this.evalTabComponentClass ?? EvalTabComponent, {
               environmentInjector: this.environmentInjector,