Tag: Openings and Closings

01/20/15 11:45am

Stuck on Sewer Line, Houston’s Oldest Bar Calls It Quits

Midtown, Nightlife, Openings and Closings

14 Comments

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Note: This story has been updated.

The Midtown joint long considered to be Houston’s oldest bar — except for that period 5 years ago when it closed for renovations —- closed down for good last night. This morning workers were removing furnishings from the building at 1006 McGowen St. and dismantling the front deck.Â Leon’s LoungeÂ ~~owner~~ operator Pete Mitchell, who ~~bought~~ leased the establishment from the daughter of Leon Yarborough (the original Leon had bought it, as La Bomba, in 1947), had been arguing with his landlord about the building’s condition: “The sewer line, which Mitchell said he thought it would take ‘massive’ repairs to fix, was a principal sticking point,” he tells reporter Chris Gray.

77002, Bars and Clubs, Openings and Closings

Last Night at Leon’s

Highland Village

01/14/15 1:30pm

Sorry, No Mattress Store Can Sneak into Highland Village Without Somebody Noticing

Openings and Closings, Quicklink, Retail, Shopping Centers

23 Comments

SORRY, NO MATTRESS STORE CAN SNEAK INTO HIGHLAND VILLAGE WITHOUT SOMEBODY NOTICING Mattress Firm, 3743 Westheimer Rd. at Weslayan, Highland Village, Houston Here’s a piece of hot retail news the likes of which has not been encountered since . . . well, since Swamplot broke the story that the Walgreens near the corner of Westheimer and Weslayan will be moving across both streets to the former Fresh Market spot: A reader has ID’d a new neighbor moving into the former Rice Epicurean shopping center, next to said future Walgreens. It’ll be . . . wait for it . . . a Mattress Firm going into the 3743 Westheimer Rd. address, as evidenced by the familiar red sign now glowing brightly above the future front door shown above. Intriguing bonus tip, for all you Highland Village area store-opening watchers to chew over: “There were two vacant spots in the center when Fresh Market was there and it looks like the other one is leased as there’s a sign in the window for construction but does not identify who is moving in.” Photo: Swamplot inbox

77027, Highland Village, Openings and Closings, Retail, Shopping Centers

Openings and Closings

01/05/15 5:00pm

Ruggles Green Closes on West Alabama, Plans To Reopen Next Door

Restaurants, Upper Kirby

8 Comments

Ruggles Green, 2311 W. Alabama St., Upper Kirby, Houston

Gables Upper Kirby, 2305 W. Alabama St., Upper Kirby, Houston The last day of business for the original Ruggles Green location, in the Persona Day Spa shopping center at 2311 West Alabama St. east of Kirby Dr. (above), was New Year’s Eve. But the restaurant claims it won’t be gone from the neighborhood for too long. A new Ruggles Green is scheduled to open up in the street-facing retail space on the ground floor of the Gables Upper Kirby apartments going up next door (portrayed above left), once construction on that project is finished. That’ll be this spring, a note on the Ruggles Green website promises. The new address, 2305 W. Alabama St., will be one door down fromÂ the formerÂ Mission Burrito, recently renamed Ãœberrito Mexican GrillÂ to avoid tortilla torts.

Meanwhile, up in The Woodlands, a brand new Ruggles Green in the shopping center at 2501 Research Forest Dr. is scheduled to open any day now — “whenever the chairs arrive,” the company’s Facebook page declares. Here’s a pic of that standing-room-only (for now) location:

But First, The Woodlands

77098, 77381, Apartments, Openings and Closings, Restaurants, Retail, The Woodlands, Upper Kirby

01/05/15 2:45pm

USPS Now Says It Will Close and Sell the Heights Post Office

Houston Heights, Openings and Closings, Public Buildings, Quicklink

29 Comments

USPS NOW SAYS IT WILL CLOSE AND SELL THE HEIGHTS POST OFFICE A new public notice taped to the door of the Heights Finance Station post office at the corner of Heights Blvd. and 11th St. last Friday indicates the U.S. Postal Service has moved on from “considering” moving out of the property and is now prepared for a full-on “disposal” action: “This property has been determined by the Postal Service to be excess and is no longer necessary for Postal operations,” reads the notice, which also indicates that “Postal Service policy requires the property to be sold at Market Value.” Though public comments are still being encouraged, it typically takes more than a few discouraging words to prevent a local post office from shutting down. The 6,161-sq.-ft. building at 1050 Yale St. sits on more than an acre of land. [Previously on Swamplot] Photos: Swamplot inbox (post office); Nick Panzarelli (notice)

77008, Houston Heights, Openings and Closings, Public Buildings

Energy Corridor

12/30/14 10:00am

Cornelius Nursery Uprooting from Energy Corridor Location

Openings and Closings

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Last chance for those seeking to buy pansies, raspberry bushes and fig trees near the corner of N. Dairy Ashford Dr. and the Katy Fwy, as the location of Cornelius Nursery that has stood there for decades is closing down in a matter of days. “Most likely on the fourth,” an employee says, but possibly as early as Friday.

The nursery and parking lot sprawl across about 3 acres of Energy Corridor land at 1200 N. Dairy Ashford Dr. According to online property records, Calloway’s Inc., the nursery company with which Cornelius merged, sold the property to an entity called 1200 North Dairy Ashford LLC earlier this month.

Two Swamplot readers heard differing tales regarding the property’s fate:

Horticultural Institutions

77079, Energy-Corridor, Nurseries, Openings and Closings

12/22/14 12:46pm

Sprawl Vortex at S. Shepherd and W. Alabama Will Turn Roeder’s Pub into Drive-Thru, Cat Clinic Houses into CVS

Montrose, Openings and Closings, Retail, Shopping Centers

46 Comments

shep-alabama-cat-demo

As of December 10 heavy equipment was already on site at the southwest corner of W. Alabama St. and S. Shepherd Dr., where a bevy of venerable-by-Houston-standards small businesses — including quirky jewelers Fly High Little Bunny, laid-back Roeder’s Pub,Â a cat clinic and stray adoption center, and late-night hang Ruchi’s Taqueria — are eating it to make way for a CVS and a roughly 24,000 sq.-ft. pad site.

Back when news of the development broke, some Swamplot commenters criticized it, site-plan unseen, as overly suburban-looking for its location, just across W. Alabama from the old theater and adjoining strip mall that now houses Trader Joe’s.

And now developers Read-King have released the site plans:

Shepherding In A Katyville Corner

77098, Demolitions, Openings and Closings, Proposed Develoments, Retail, Shopping Centers, Westlawn Terrace

12/17/14 12:00pm

Coming Soon in a Much-Recycled Fannin St. Landmark: 3-Story Sports Lounge The Vanderbilt

Lower Midtown, Midtown, Restaurants

43 Comments

3704-fannin-st

Next up at 3704 Fannin, known to some as the old Evelyn Wilson Interiors building, The Vanderbilt Sports Lounge.

It’s a block or two from the bustling Ensemble MetroRail stop and the under-construction Mid Main mixed-use development.

Once complete, the Vanderbilt promises 55 teevees airing football, baseball, basketball, hockey, soccer, boxing, and UFC, an “upscale menu,” and a third-floor cocktail lounge with a panoramic view of the city.

The building is owned and being renovated by Cody Lutsch of Fat ~~Properties~~ Property, a frequent Swamplot commenter and until now, known more as a purchaser of aging Inner Loop apartment buildings.

Lutsch sent us a few pics of the Vanderbilt’s ongoing renovations, along with a few “before” shots:

Fannin The Flames

77004, Bars and Clubs, Lower Midtown, Openings and Closings

Cottage Grove

12/03/14 10:03am

Crescent City Coffee Chain on the Rise in Cottage Grove

Openings and Closings, Restaurants

3 Comments

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Here’s a look at Houston’s upcoming second location of the New Orleans-based PJ’s Coffee chain. The banner is up and workers are inside the new mini-strip mall at the Cottage Grove corner of Larkin St. and Durham Dr., just south of Yuppie Dog pet care, and just north of a taco truck-friendly parking lot and a Wendy’s, and just across the Katy Fwy. from looming competition in the form of a strip-mall Starbucks.

Caffeine Fix

77007, Cottage Grove, Openings and Closings, Restaurants

12/02/14 2:00pm

Down House’s Chris Cusack and Downtown Bar King Brad Moore Team Up with Renowned Bartender Leslie Ross on Yale St.

Nightlife, Sunset Heights

14 Comments

Johnnys-gold-brick-owners-2518-yale

Brad Moore and Ryan Rouse have joined forces with the newly-enhanced Treadsack restaurant group to take over the former Boom Boom Room space at 2518 Yale from building owner Jackie Harris. Johnny’s Gold Brick will be the name of the new bar.

Treadsack principal Chris Cusack, (pictured second from left) whose group includes Down House in the Heights and Brooke Smith ice house D&T Drive Inn, says that he hopes Johnny’s Gold Brick will be the sort of place where you can get “decently-made cocktails, but also a shot and a beer, and be totally accessible and easy to be in.”

Leslie Ross (pictured second from right), who earlier this year competed for title of America’s Most Imaginative Bartender in Las Vegas, left Triniti Restaurant’s Sanctuari Bar to join forces with Treadsack earlier this month and will be heading up bar operations.

Gold Bricking It

77007, Bars, Openings and Closings, Sunset Heights

Hermann Park

12/01/14 3:30pm

Fine Dining, 24-Hour Room Service and Butlers Toting Wine Coming to Mosaic on Almeda Rd.

Museum District, Openings and Closings, Quicklink, Restaurants

10 Comments

FINE DINING, 24-HOUR ROOM SERVICE AND BUTLERS TOTING WINE COMING TO MOSAIC ON ALMEDA RD. davis-st-restaurant-mosaic-almeda A reader sends in this photo of Davis St. at Hermann Park, a fine-dining establishment officially opening Wednesday on the ground floor of the Mosaic on Hermann Park at 5925 Almeda Rd. According to our reader this stretch of Almeda —across the street from the park’s golf course and south of Binz St. — is something of a restaurant desert. “I am eagerly awaiting more variety than Fuddruckers & Luby’s”Â the reader says. Mosaic residents can avail themselves of 24-7 in-room dining,Â as well asÂ Â “private wine storage with handpicked wines from around the world by our in-house sommelier featuring 24-hour access through our bonded butler service.” Non-Mosaic-dwellingÂ Houstonians will have to avail themselves of the restaurant’s fare in the dining room and during normal business hours. [Davis Street at Hermann Park]Â Swamplot inbox

77004, Mosaic on Hermann Park, Openings and Closings, Restaurants

11/18/14 10:45am

Sunset Heights Wine Bar The Boom Boom Room Will Close Forever This Friday

Openings and Closings, Sunset Heights

10 Comments

The Boom Boom Room, 2518 Yale St., Sunset Heights, Houston

The Boom Boom Room, 2518 Yale St., Sunset Heights, Houston Staff at theÂ Boom Boom Room, Jackie Harrisâ€™s funky wine bar and music venue at 2518 Yale St., will pour their last glasses of Pinot noir and dish out their final paninis Friday night. Harris, an artist and doyenne of Houstonâ€™s art car movement, tells Swamplot that a â€œgreat new restaurant-barâ€ — one run by â€œreal good Heights–Montrose restaurant people you all know and loveâ€ — will be setting up shop at the location in the not-too-distant future, but adds that she is not at liberty to disclose any further details.

Going Boom

77007, Bars, Openings and Closings, Restaurants, Sunset Heights

11/17/14 1:00pm

Hollywood Vietnamese Will Be Gone by Black Friday

Montrose, Openings and Closings, Restaurants

8 Comments

hollywood-vietnamese-closing

Hollywood Vietnamese and Chinese Cuisine will close down by the end of the month. Back in August plans came to light of a coming Farb Montrose full-block apartment complexÂ at 2409 Montrose Blvd., a one-acre site once home to Cafe Noche but occupied since 2007 by Hollywood. A sign posted on the door last week informs the public of Hollywood’s demise by the end of the month;Â several staff members told Eater Houston’s Jakeisha WilmoreÂ that Thanksgiving Eve will be its final day of service. How will Montrose late-night diners be able to cope without this vital pipeline to much-needed Lotus Delights, tofu spring rolls, and steaming bowls of ginger-laced Mama’s Hangover Chicken Soup? Turns out they won’t have to, at least not for long:

Phogeddabouddit

77006, Montrose, Openings and Closings, Restaurants

11/12/14 4:00pm

Last Call for the Boneyard Drinkery

Openings and Closings, Quicklink, Washington Ave

17 Comments

LAST CALL FOR THE BONEYARD DRINKERY Boneyard-bye-bye It wasn’t the first Houston ingesting establishment to be permitted by the city to allow canine companions and their owners to co-lounge on its patio (that honor belongs to the now-shuttered Ziggy’s on Fairview) but with its attached 7,000-sq.-ft. dog park, the Boneyard Drinkery lived up to its reputation as the quintessential outdoorish hangout where panters, drinkers, and occasional barkers all could coexist in relative harmony. And now, after 4 years, it’s closing. A note posted to the Boneyard Facebook page indicates the property at 8150 Washington Ave. is being sold, and the bar and park will both close on November 30th. “Due to the size of property needed for this concept,” reads the note, “and the outrageous increase of property value in Houston over the last few years, we will not be relocating.” [Facebook; Photo: Boneyard Drinkery via Facebook]

77007, Bars, Dog Runs, Openings and Closings, Washington Ave.

11/06/14 4:00pm

Supermercado de Walmart, America’s First and Last Latino-Themed Walmart Grocery Store, Has Closed Down for Good

Openings and Closings, Retail, Spring Branch

14 Comments

supermercado-walmart-long-pt

Supermercado de Walmart, 7690 Long Point Rd., Spring Branch, Houston Houston’s (and America’s) first Walmart grocery store named and designed to cater to Latinos shut its doors at the end of last week. Supermercado de Walmart opened 5 years ago in Spring BranchÂ in a convertedÂ 39,000-square-foot Neighborhood Market-style store at 7960 Long Point Rd.,Â amid a fanfare of mariachi music and a smorgasbord of free food and drink samples. Those days are long gone: A reader sends in a pic (at right) of the far more offhand sign taped to the glass door.Â