The back-alley Post Oak strip center corner previously occupied by a franchise of not-quite-ice-cream purveyor Tasti D-Lite appears now to be operating under the banner of New Orleans-based Merchant Cafe, whose signature noun list was spotted over the weekend by a reader in the shopping center. The new cafe is catty-corner to Berryhill Baja Grill, and flanked by Five Guys Burgers and Fries and The UPS Store. The city planning department  started issuing permits for a remodel of the space by September of last year, though some appear to have been given the OK as recently as October.Â
The vicinity’s softserve niche is currently filled by a branch of pay-by-the-pile California frozen yogurt shop Pinkberry, facing San Felipe right across Post Oak Blvd. Tasti D-Lite, meanwhile, appears to have largely pulled out of Houston altogether over the last few years, with a lone holdout franchise remaining in Katy.
- Previously on Swamplot:Â A Brief but Incomplete Guide to Houston’s Frozen Yogurt Landscape
Photo: jatorres
I was originally fascinated by the concept of Tasti D Lite–“ice cream” without the calories or guilt. What a great concept! Then, I learned that it all kind of tasted the same. Then, I started wondering what was actually in it. It’s been years since I went to one. Maybe it was a concept like clear beer that came and went.