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?
Does anyone know have a link to the press release? Wasn’t able to find anything online.
No press release that we’ve seen — updated to add the link to the marketing document though, for your perusing pleasure.
So the Galleria is losing the Saks facade designed by Philip Johnson, but they are adding Shake Shack.
It’s a curved wall clad in the day’s cheapest material, coral stone, I think the world of architecture can bear the loss.
The “coral stone” is actually Johnson’s reference to the Texas limestone once customarily used on monumental buildings in Houston like City Hall, and the original buildings at UH and the Baylor College of Medicine. It was certainly more expensive than the beige or brown brick that was on other department stores built at the time (late 1970’s). Today the cheapest stuff to build high-end retail is synthetic stucco and metal sandwich panels, which I’m sure is what we’ll see used at this upcoming remuddle of the Galleria.
This is certainly great news. I love Shake Shack, but I do hope their next Houston location will be a more accessible location. Driving the Uptown traffic to find parking at the Galleria for something quick like Shake Shack is pretty absurd, but totally makes sense if you’re already there, shopping. So it is a great location, considering the Houston Galleria is the largest shopping complex in Texas.
But maybe the next will be some place, like Discovery Green park?
Hope there’s room for a Bork.