-  12 Stonegate Dr. [HAR]
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SIMON SAYS: SHAKE SHACK IS DEFINITELY COMING TO THE GALLERIA 
It’s confirmed: A Shake Shack will be coming to the Galleria’s west end (currently undergoing extensive cosmetic procedures that will relocate Saks 5th Avenue and open up new retail space). A description of the project included in a marketing document from mall owner Simon Property Group mentions Shake Shack as one of 35 “luxury retailers and feature restaurants” coming to the reconfigured space. Speculation that the burger chain would make its Houston debut at the Galleria intensified last month following Simon’s publication of a rendering showing the restaurant in place among the mall’s updates. [Simon Property Group] Image: Simon Property Group
What’s Cooking in Uptown?
COMMENT OF THE DAY: DO YOU SELL YOUR CAR, OR TAKE THE TRAIN? 
“If I had a car, then I probably wouldn’t be riding Metro. Unless I was riding Metro wondering what to do with my car. But then, if I had a car, I probably wouldn’t be riding Metro or find myself driving on Main St. in downtown Houston. But then — if I had a car and was riding Metro — then I might be pondering what to do with my car. Sigh . . . I think I’ll just check Facebook and think about this later.” [Toby, commenting on Down on Main St., Where an Auto Billboard Has Moved In Next to the Home of Easy Credit] Illustration: Lulu
Thanks go to today’s Sponsor of the Day: historical fencing school Sword to Sword.
Sword to Sword is the only school in the Houston metro area to offer historical European martial arts classes, covering the 13th through 18th centuries with German longsword, Italian rapier, dagger, saber, wrestling, quarterstaff, and other fighting traditions of the medieval and Renaissance periods. The school holds classes evenings and weekends, 5 days a week, in 2 locations: At 1212A Cedar Post Ln. near Blalock and I-10 and across I-45 from The Woodlands at 27326 Robinson Rd. Suite 112.
The school tries to foster a club-like atmosphere, with students helping each other to train hard and have fun. Loaner equipment is available for newcomers, and coaching is available at all levels — from novices who’ve never held a sword before all the way to competitors in international tournaments. Weekend and weeknight classes are available; they cost $40 per 2-hour session or $120 per month for unlimited attendance. Friday night sessions are typically followed by a BYOB social. More info is available at the Sword to Sword website.
Becoming a site sponsor is a great way to reach Swamplot readers. Want to find out more? Contact us on the Swamplot sponsorship line.
Sponsor of the Day
INTERNATIONAL FANFARE MARKS GRAND OPENING OF NEW GAS STATION NEAR HOBBY 
Mexico’s nationally-owned Pemex has chosen the corner of Park Place Blvd. and Dover Ave., 1 block southwest of I-45, as the location of its first gas station outside of Mexico. Yesterday’s grand opening included a visit from the governor of the state of Campeche, one of Mexico’s most prominent oil-producing regions, as well as a performance by a mariachi band. Jordan Blum writes: “The new station includes what Pemex calls a ‘taco shack’, but other items in its convenience store are typical of such shops in the United States, and the gasoline is U.S.-produced. The fuel on Thursday was among Houston’s cheapest, at $1.55 cash per gallon of regular and $1.59 for credit card purchases.” [Houston Chronicle] Photo: Univision
Looking for an overview of the new site of UT’s recently-announced Houston campus? Your best bet may be to stop in at the Wildcat Golf Club, located directly across Holmes Rd. from the site of UT’s planned purchase. Native Houstonians may experience a touch of vertigo trekking up the club’s grassy peaks to catch the view of NRG Park and downtown (see above) — hills on the site reach more than 115 feet above sea level in places. (Downtown, for comparison, stands at roughly 50 feet, and the big hill at Miller Outdoor Theater tops out around 65.)
The golf club’s topography is a byproduct of its original gig as a major municipal landfill, operating for nearly two decades until 1989; clay and topsoil were imported to sculpt the waste heaps into today’s smoothly rolling hills and water features:
Houston Hill Country
- Redfin Launches New Home Value Estimate Tool in Houston [HBJ]
- The Houston Neighborhoods Where Rents Are Rising and Falling the Most [HBJ]
- New Temenos Building That Provides Services for the Homeless Opens Near Downtown [Houston Public Media; previously on Swamplot]
- The Last of the Blair House Apartments at 4139 Bellaire Blvd. [Houston Streetwise; previously on Swamplot]
- Dallas Firm CyrusOne Opens First Phase of Houston West III Data Center at Its Massive Campus in the Energy Corridor [HBJ]
- Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Expanding To Sugar Land’s Imperial Market [Houston Chronicle]
- State Officials To Detail Plans for Elevated Managed Lanes Along Loop 610 at Meeting Next Week [Houston Chronicle]
- Pemex Opens First Gas Station Outside of Mexico in Houston, More Planned [Houston Chronicle]
- Ranking the Houston-Area Suburbs with the Most Things To Do [Houston Chronicle]
Photo of Sunset Coffee Place: Marc Longoria via Swamplot Flickr Pool
Headlines
THE TIPLINE IS STANDING BY New combination auto-shop-and-pancake-house popping up in Westbury? If you’ve got the scoop, or even just a hint of one, Swamplot wants to hear about it! Send your tips and photos to Swamplot’s special email address, found here. And while you’re at it, be sure to like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and sign up for our email list.
- 922 Rochow St. [HAR]
DOWNTOWN ACREAGE SECURED FOR AUSTIN’S TALLEST AND WEIRDEST TOWER Meanwhile, in Austin: Land has been purchased for the construction of the proposed 58-story Independent highrise, also nicknamed “the Jenga Tower” for its unsettling offsets and angles. The Independent is planned to be the the tallest residential building in Austin, not to mention west of the Mississippi. You can take an animated tour through the structure’s floorplans and amenities in a dizzying video released by the developers. [Austin-American Statesman; Independent Austin]
Downtown light-rail riders: Your patronage of public transit isn’t enough. A giant billboard covering most of the facade of the 2-story building at 312 Main St. now urges passengers emerging from the northbound Preston stop to get rid of their vehicles altogether. The unassuming Houston Site Acquisitions storefront has scrapped its own above-door signage in favor of a story-high ad for Texas Direct Auto, complete with oversized doggie in the window.
Large-scale advertising for businesses not currently in the building is nothing new for this block of Main St.: Just next door, the sky-high neon above perpetually hungover neighbors Dean’s and Notsuoh still heralds the days of credit clothing retail. But the Texas Direct Auto ad incorporates the structure of the building itself, placing the large image of a small dog behind an actual window visible through a cutout in the wrap:
Sell Your Car! No Money Down!
COMMENT OF THE DAY: THE SUBTLETIES OF PARKING LOT COMMUNICATION 
“The wide open parking lot does seem to say, ‘We’re more than ready to receive you’ from retailers that want to have an image as ‘convenient.’ In other situations, the tighter parking supply seems to communicate, ‘This is a popular place where many people like you find happenings worth attending.‘ CityCentre and Rice Village seem to be examples of the second category.” [slugline, commenting on Comment of the Day: Why It’s Still Blacktop Friday] Illustration: Lulu
Today’s Swamplot sponsor is The Durham House.
The Durham House debuted in late October, in the same porch-y building 2 blocks north of Washington Ave where 3 successive Louisiana-themed restaurants (Floyd’s Cajun Kitchen, the Mardi Gras Grill, and Woodrows Heights) previously served. With an all-new menu from veteran chef Don Schoenberg — focusing on local and Cajun cuisine as well as fare from bordering regions and beyond — and a major makeover, it’s now something entirely new. The interior of the 1,600-sq.-ft. space at 1200 Durham, which the proprietors say dates from the turn of the 20th Century, is lighter and brighter than before. Its whitewashed walls, corrugated tin accents, Edison bulbs over the bar, and white metal chairs all aim for a Southern, beachy ambience meant to jibe with the new culinary direction.
You can find out more details about the Durham House, find a link to a review or 2, and scan its food and drink menus on the restaurant’s website. And if you do get to enjoy a meal there, please let ’em know you heard about the place on Swamplot.
Interested in reaching Swamplot readers by becoming a site sponsor? Contact us on our special Swamplot sponsorship line.
Photo: Max Burkhalter
Sponsor of the Day
Cypress may be losing a piece of its history: 126-year-old Tin Hall, Harris County’s oldest and largest country dancehall (and perennial first listing among area attractions on the Cypress community’s Wikipedia page). The venue is slated to close its doors on New Year’s Day.
The 24,000-sq.-ft. facility sports a 4,400-sq.-ft. dance floor on the second story, and sits on 40 ac. of wooded land surrounded by suburbs on two sides and the Longwood Golf Club on another. The property was sold last December to an entity that shares a Woodway address with McGuyer Homebuilders.
A New Year’s Eve bash is billed as Tin Hall’s last public gathering — at least in its current locale. A spokesperson for the dancehall said on Facebook that they hope the hall can be moved in pieces and rebuilt:
Dancehall Blues
