Swamplot Archives by Tag: Grocery Stores

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Comment of the Day: H-E-B in the Heights

October 28, 2009 – 2:46 pm
   

“. . . Other good Heights grocery news is that HEB is seriously considering opening a store on Heights BLVD. just across the street from The Art Car Museum.” [EMME, commenting on Expanded Heights Kroger: Now Wider Than Wide Angle]

2:46 pm | 25 Comments | Read more about Comments, Neighborhoods: Houston Heights, Proposed Developments, Quicklink, Retail
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Expanded Heights Kroger: Now Wider Than Wide Angle

October 28, 2009 – 1:00 pm

How big is the newly expanded mega-Kroger on 11th and Shepherd? So big that a Swamplot reader standing in the parking lot couldn’t fit the entire store in one photo. The best attempt, above, shows the place is “too big to do that now.” At 96,000 sq. ft., the Merchants Park Shopping Center Kroger at 1035 N. Shepherd is now apparently the largest grocery store inside Houston city limits.

The new section of the store opened last Friday, reports our reader,

to much rejoicing in the Heights. Both the new and the old section of the store is in use. I assume now that the new part is open they will begin renovations on the old part of the store.

The new part of the store has a Starbucks, large produce section & bakery, Mediterranean bar, hot food bar, and prepared foods section.

More reader-submitted pics from inside and out:

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1:00 pm | 9 Comments | Read more about Neighborhoods: Houston Heights, Redevelopment, Renovations, Retail, Shopping Centers
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Friday, August 7, 2009

What H-E-B Got That Kroger Don’t Got: Working All the Angles in the West U Grocery Showdown

August 7, 2009 – 10:10 am
   

Reporting live from the Battle of Buffalo Speedway, Allison Wollam scrutinizes the new Buffalo Market arsenal: “’We are based in Texas so we have certain items that we know Texans eat,’ [H-E-B Houston president] McClelland says. ‘We have an inherent advantage because we know how Texans think better than a grocer based …. anywhere else would know.’ For example, McClelland points out that H-E-B carries a brisket that can be fully cooked in 45 minutes that garnered more than $25 million in revenue for the chain last year. The grocer also offers crawfish sushi as well as Texas-shaped cheese and hamburgers.” Plus, why campus might seem a bit tighter this year: “Because parking is also limited, the grocer has reached an agreement with nearby Rice University to allow its employees and vendors to park on the campus parking lot and be shuttled to the store.” [Houston Business Journal; previously on Swamplot]

10:10 am | 40 Comments | Read more about Neighborhoods: Rice University, Neighborhoods: West University, Parking, Quicklink, Retail
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Thursday, August 6, 2009

Comment of the Day: Secrets of the Discount Meat Shopper

August 6, 2009 – 3:20 pm
   

“One thing one Kroger’s has over any other store is the incredible markdowns on meat but I will never tell which one because then the place would be overwhelmed. Some of us keep charts. So we know what will be marked down when. . . .” [Matt, commenting on Opening Day: H-E-B Buffalo Market Stampede Begins]

3:20 pm | Add a Comment | Read more about Comments, Quicklink, Retail
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Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Opening Day: H-E-B Buffalo Market Stampede Begins

August 5, 2009 – 5:28 pm

Fresh from a first visit to the new butterfly-roofed, design-pedigreed H-E-B Market on Buffalo Speedway at Bissonnet — which opened to the public bright and early at 6 o’clock this morning — a reader writes in with a report:

There were uniformed traffic directing cops with loud whistles herding eager shoppers into the parking lot. In the entry way, I was greeted by HEB Buddy, some kind of a brown bag cartoon character. The store was packed and had a carnival-like atmosphere. HEB was well-prepared with quadruple staff greeting and answering questions. The buffalo speedway side seems to be more of the Central Market stuff, like Cafe On the Run, bakery, fish market, etc. And the rest of the store feels more like an HEB with Central Market products integrated throughout. As a regular shopper at Central Market, I think having some cheaper alternatives nearby will save me money.

More photos, plus . . . the downside:

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5:28 pm | 33 Comments | Read more about Neighborhoods: West University, New Construction, Openings and Closings, Retail
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Thursday, July 2, 2009

Comment of the Day: The Supermarket Standstill in Timbergrove

July 2, 2009 – 4:26 pm
   

“Outside of internal remodels, they can’t do anything with the [H-E-B] Pantry location [at T.C. Jester and 18th St.] except leave it. The Shopping center along with the one located across the bayou (old K-Mart) are located in the Floodway (not just floodplain). There isn’t much they can do [to] those [sites.] HEB would need an entirely new location.” [kjb434, commenting on Buffalo Modern: The New H-E-B in West U]

4:26 pm | 1 Comment | Read more about Comments, Development Restrictions, Flooding, Neighborhood Restrictions: Timbergrove Manor, Quicklink, Shopping Centers
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Buffalo Modern: The New H-E-B in West U

July 2, 2009 – 9:17 am

Two new buildings designed by regional architecture stars Lake/Flato Architects will open in Houston in the next couple of months: Rice University’s new swimming-pool and palm-tree festooned Wellness Center . . . and this sleek new H-E-B on Buffalo Speedway and Bissonnet.

Strangely, the San Antonio architecture firm didn’t get the late-nineties memo that specified an Alamo flavored Mission Revival strip and shopping center style for the inner Westpark corridor, and opted instead for a modern-looking hangar with a reflective butterfly roof, lots of glass, and a bunch of eco-features. Plus, fancy foods:

Buffalo Market will feature a Central Market Cafe on the Run, offering gourmet to-go items; a cheese shop with, for example, 54 varieties of bleu cheese; 2,000 varieties of wine; and a sushi and cooking demo station.

Half of the 68,000-square-foot H-E-B store will be devoted to perishables. Typically, supermarkets give perishables about one-third of the store space, [H-E-B and Central Market President Scott] McClelland said. There will be less general merchandise.

Buffalo Market will be similar to the H-E-B/Central Market hybrid in The Woodlands, only it will be an updated version, he said.

A few more photos sent in by a reader:

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9:17 am | 43 Comments | Read more about Neighborhoods: West University, New Construction, Retail, Shopping Centers
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Thursday, March 19, 2009

Taking a Bite out of Whole Foods

March 19, 2009 – 4:07 pm
   

That new Whole Foods Market coming to Post Oak Blvd. in the Galleria may not end up being quite the giant originally envisioned, says Nancy Sarnoff: “Developer Ed Wulfe, who’s building the BLVD Place mixed-use project where the Whole Foods will go, recently said the parties are working on amending the lease to reduce the size of the store, originally planned for 80,000 square feet. Put in context, the Kirby Whole Foods is about 40,000 square feet and Central Market is about 75,000 square feet. An 80,000-square-foot store would have been on par with the company’s flagship market in Austin, where customers can eat at mini-restaurants, chose from hundreds of varieties of beer, cheeses and a seafood counter that smokes, slices and fries to order. In a related move, Whole Foods recently announced that it was keeping its store on Woodway and Voss open. The plan was to close it when the Post Oak store opened. [Houston Chronicle; previously in Swamplot]

4:07 pm | 8 Comments | Read more about Commercial Real Estate, Leasing, Neighborhoods: Galleria, Proposed Developments, Quicklink, Retail
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Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Heights Kroger Stats: Double Plus Goods

March 11, 2009 – 5:41 pm

Following up on Swamplot’s story from yesterday, the Houston Press’s Richard Connelly sizes up the bigger-and-better Kroger that’ll be going into the Merchants Park Shopping Center at the corner of North Shepherd and 11th St. in the Heights.

. . . says Kroger’s Gary Huddleston, the new place will be 96,000 square feet, more than double what the store is now.

That would make it the biggest Kroger in Houston, and almost as big as the 110,000-square-foot monsters the chain has opened in Pearland and Missouri City. . . .

The refurbished store should be finished in a year, he says. The current operation will remain open during the renovation, which will slow things down a bit.

Photo: Swamplot inbox

5:41 pm | 16 Comments | Read more about Demolitions, Neighborhoods: Houston Heights, Redevelopment, Retail, Shopping Centers, Strip Centers
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Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Stripped: Heights Kroger Knocks Its Neighbors

March 10, 2009 – 9:32 am

A reader sends in photos from the southwest corner of North Shepherd and 11th St., where the Kroger is getting ready to expand into the site of a few vanquished neighbors:

the gas station that was in front of the kroger was demolished earlier this year and within the past couple weeks part of the strip center next to the kroger has started to be demolished. I called the kroger last week and the lady on the phone informed me that they are expanding and the store is going to be very nice - will have a starbucks, sushi bar, salad bar, etc and a kroger gas station will be built where the gas station was demolished. heights area residents can’t wait!!

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9:32 am | 62 Comments | Read more about Demolitions, Neighborhoods: Houston Heights, Redevelopment, Retail, Shopping Centers, Strip Centers
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Thursday, January 22, 2009

Openings and Closings: Little Big’s, McMansion Kroger, McCain’s

January 22, 2009 – 4:19 pm

To counter the all-shutterings edition of Openings and Closings posted on Swamplot earlier this week, here’s a mostly debuts version:

  • Opening: With the opening of Bryan Caswell’s Little Big’s, Montrose’s late-night restaurant row is complete — at least on weekends, when the burger shack will be open until 3 a.m. Writes Katharine Shilcutt in Eating Our Words:

    In addition to sliders, fries and shakes, Little Big’s also offers wine and beer at extremely reasonable prices, which will all but ensure their popularity. Once the large, welcoming patio is completed, it’s a sure bet that this will be the new hot spot in Montrose.

    This Little Big’s is in the former Ming’s Cafe on Montrose just north of Westheimer; the next one will be in Hermann Park.

There’s more!

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4:19 pm | 9 Comments | Read more about Neighborhoods: Fresno, Neighborhoods: Houston Heights, Neighborhoods: Missouri City, Neighborhoods: Montrose, Neighborhoods: Sienna Plantation, Restaurants, Retail
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Thursday, May 1, 2008

Now Playing in the Kroger Dairy Case, with Live and Active Cultures

May 1, 2008 – 7:54 pm

You need to a flashplayer enabled browser to view this YouTube video

The location: the Kroger on West Gray, next to the River Oaks Shopping Center. The time: yesterday afternoon. The song: Eric Prydz’s “Call on Me.” The performers: SexyATTACK, along with a cast of butter- and egg-loving walk-ons.

You’d think this sort of grocery celebration would have gone over better at the Disco Kroger on Montrose, but that effort got shut down. No problems outside the Menil, though.

7:54 pm | 1 Comment | Read more about Attractions, Neighborhoods: Montrose, Neighborhoods: River Oaks, Public Art, Retail
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