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Former Fast Food Locations in Texas


IronTiger

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Purpledevil, if you've never been to the Texas Room at the Ideson building, it probably bears mentioning that the procedures there are a little different than the regular library due to the rarity of the materials it houses. You have to sign in at the entrance to the Texas Room, and backpacks or other bags are not allowed inside (lockers are available to store your belongings in while visiting). Also, ink pens are not allowed, only pencils. Laptops and tablets are OK. 

 

As you might expect, the reference librarians are extremely knowledgeable and helpful. Let them know it's your first visit and what your areas of interest are, and they'll point you in the right direction. 

 

 

Ah, yes. Thank you for mentioning that. I had forgotten about those special procedures. Would be good for Purpledevil to know that in advance before going. The first time they asked me to sign in and list what I was looking for, I was a little taken aback for a moment. They don't ask that at the regular library and at first I was a little put off by their asking.

 

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Talking abut those flea markets, I picked up a copy of Houstonia magazine recently that detailed the best Tex-Mex and Mexican restaurants in Houston.

The article was fatally flawed, in my professional opinion (B.A. Journalism - UH), because quite a bit of it was written by Robb Walsh. Nothing against Walsh - he is an expert on Tex-Mex food and has written many books on the subject and of course, authored numerous reviews for the Houston Press. Unfortunately, he is also now a part owner of a Tex-Mex restaurant (El Real), so that should disqualify him now as an impartial reviewer.

However, putting that aside, the article is divided into Tex-Mex (which supposedly Walsh didn't write, nudge-nudge, wink-wink) , Regional Mexican and Seafood. Under the Regional Mexican, Walsh did list such renowned places as Hugo's AND, believe it or not, Taqueria Buey y Vaca, which just happens to be in the food court of the Airline flea market of the same name.

Houstonia Magazine of course isn't great, mostly because it's written by a bunch of bloggers masquerading as journalists.

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Houstonia Magazine of course isn't great, mostly because it's written by a bunch of bloggers masquerading as journalists.

 

Perhaps not, but it sure beats looking at some thinly disguised real estate magazine while at the doctor's office.

 

Not sure where you live, but whenever I go to my doctor or my wife's doctor in either Sugar Land or Katy, there must be a million different ones, all with the same ads for either real estate agents or other doctors, and all with "articles" on said agents or doctors obviously written by a PR agency.

 

So yeah, Houstonia may not be a paragon of journalism, but there certainly are worse things to read.

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Ah, yes. Thank you for mentioning that. I had forgotten about those special procedures. Would be good for Purpledevil to know that in advance before going. The first time they asked me to sign in and list what I was looking for, I was a little taken aback for a moment. They don't ask that at the regular library and at first I was a little put off by their asking.

Thanks for the heads up, mkultra. I'd have been a bit startled myself upon my visit tomorrow. This is indeed my first visit to Julia Ideson, so everything will be completely foreign to me. That's why when Firebird mentioned it in his tip, I immediately thought of the downtown library, instead of this one. As horrible as this seems, I was blind to the fact that this resource even existed, and I'm a native. With my love of historical subjects, I'm surprised I never knew this library was in existence.

Maybe a silly question, but I'd feeling even sillier showing up without knowing this in advance, but is my standard library card sufficient to check-out materials, or is that even allowed? I didn't see anything mentioned when I got the information on the library.

Edit: Sunny's opened up my sophomore year in high school, and I remember it well. My great uncle used to set up a table there every weekend. It was quite a bit smaller, and not near as heavily Hispanic populated as it is currently. There is another old one, just south of West on the east side of Airline that's been there for years and years now, as well. Can not think of the name of it right now to save my life.

Edited by Purpledevil
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Maybe a silly question, but I'd feeling even sillier showing up without knowing this in advance, but is my standard library card sufficient to check-out materials, or is that even allowed? I didn't see anything mentioned when I got the information on the library.

 

I do not believe you can check out anything from the Texas Room. In fact, I am quite sure of it. They've renovated the place since I've been there last, but the second floor, when I was last there, was divided into two sections. On one side was a repository of books and materials you had to ask the receptionist to get for you. On the other side was the so-called Texas Room, which, in addition to tables and chairs, had the less valuable books, the directories, the maps, the Key Maps and the photographs. At the entrance was the small desk where you checked in. There was no place to check out anything. You could view whatever you wanted at the tables, but you could take nothing out of the room.

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Good to know. I kind of figured as much, but it certainly didn't hurt to ask. Thank you both so much for the great information!

 

The greatest history nugget I ever found at the Texas Room was a copy of the 1948 San Jacinto High School yearbook. What's so great about that, you ask? Well, as you may or may not know, I've researched and written an e-book on the history of the Aldine High School football team. (I used to post about it on here a lot in another long-since dormant thread on Aldine area history). Anyway, I had found via old newspapers and the UIL all of the scores for every regular season and playoff game Aldine has ever played, EXCEPT one. And that was a game against San Jacinto's B-team in 1947. (Back then, varsity teams would sometimes play against sub-varsity squads. Not sure why.) The game was not reported in any newspaper and the UIL does not have a result, just the fact that the game was played. The 1947-48 Aldine yearbook did not have a score. But the Texas Room had a copy of the San Jac yearbook and it did list that Aldine's varsity team beat San Jac's B-Team 20-0. Now, at last, I had every score for every game!

 

Last year I did find the same yearbook on Classmates.com. But in 2007, hey that was a big deal to me.

 

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You're speaking of 9410 North Freeway, of course. I can help you there. Here are all the restaurants I could find that have been at that location from its opening until I quit updating in 2008:

 

1974 - First Mate (seems it didn't last long and the site was vacant for quite some time)

1985 - Frenchy's (ate there quite a bit while in college)

1989 - Magic Wok

1993 - Bar-B-Que Express

1995 - Taquito Joe

2003 - Wings-n-More

 

Now, apparently it is a BreWingZ.

 

I can answer that one. Wings-N-More (which also apparently dates back to Wings-N-Things, get back to me later about that one) actually was two companies: "Mark Dennard's Original Wings-N-More" and a franchised Wings-N-More based in Houston. A year or so ago, the franchised WnM all became BreWingz, which is either because Mark Dennard pulled the franchise or the franchisee wanted to expand beyond Houston (I've heard both ways). The Wings-N-More in The Woodlands (as do the ones in my neck of the woods, of course) still operates because it WASN'T one of the franchised ones. And, on that subject, the original Wings-N-More in College Station was a Sambo's.

Edited by IronTiger
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Where was the Burger King at Veterans Memorial and Spears? It doesn't seem to be easily identifiable. To the northeast is nothing, northwest is a strip center with a gas station canopy, southwest is a gas station, and southeast is more stores, all in a strip mall configuration.

I have, however, figured out the Burger King at Town & Country Village: it was in a strip center at the northeast corner of West Belt Road/Sam Houston Tollway and Queensbury Lane. It shared the space with a Bonanza. This building was extant until around the time the rest of Town & Country Mall was demolished.

Just south of it was another building of a much newer vintage that appeared to be a chain restaurant of some sort.

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I do not believe you can check out anything from the Texas Room. In fact, I am quite sure of it. They've renovated the place since I've been there last, but the second floor, when I was last there, was divided into two sections. On one side was a repository of books and materials you had to ask the receptionist to get for you. On the other side was the so-called Texas Room, which, in addition to tables and chairs, had the less valuable books, the directories, the maps, the Key Maps and the photographs. At the entrance was the small desk where you checked in. There was no place to check out anything. You could view whatever you wanted at the tables, but you could take nothing out of the room.

 

 

and microfilm... or was when I was there, years ago. I was looking at Sanborn Maps on it, before they were digitized. You had to sign in, in pencil. The trip was priceless, just to visit the building, a real beauty. Enclosed porch was where the copy machines were placed. It had those map drawers / collections, as well. Take coins, just in case. It was old style when I went.

Edited by NenaE
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  • 2 weeks later...

Page updated with new format! There's a small error on the index (missing <hr> tag between Pizza Hut and Ponderosa Steakhouse). A few new restaurants have been added to the list, and restaurant suggestions have been added. Enjoy!

Thanks to all who helped out! Another update is coming in a month or so.

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Looks like I found another one, in an ethereal gas station location:

14647 S Main St, Pizza Inn, replaced in the last year or so.

Speaking of gas station locations, the McDonald's in the Exxon in College Station is being replaced with a Mooyah. Should add that.

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Wow, I never would have guessed that the River Oaks Plant House/Village Flowery was an old Jack in the Box. I plan on updating a few then adding Whataburger, Denny's, Jack in the Box, Quiznos, Grandy's, and by popular demand, Champs to the next update.

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By the way, 94 E Crosstimbers St is still a Jack in the Box, it was torn down and rebuilt in 2011. 

9602 Houston Dyersdale E Rd. is actually 9602 Mesa Road (probably old name for such) and...still a Jack in the Box!

 

If I added every rebuilt McDonald's, I'd have a very long list, for instance. :(

Edited by IronTiger
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That's a mistake, IronTiger. Chick-Fil-A was mostly in the malls down here. Whataburger was primarily a standalone burger joint, and had some really cool looking locations like the two big W shaped buildings on Crosstimbers. I think you're doing your project a disservice by switching, but that's of course, just my opinion.

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Well, I don't have any Whataburger listings at the moment, there are certain to be some cool ones but the only ones I have are:

 

- a strip mall location near Almeda Mall

- a location on the Katy Freeway that was torn down in 2005, tried to find the address in vain but couldn't find it

- a location in A&M's "Underground Food Court", which despite its name is only half a floor underground.
 

...and that's three locations.

 

Chick-fil-a I can at least name malls, plus that location on I-45 in the Baybrook Mall area that moved due to freeway construction.

 

It doesn't mean Whataburger will never be added, it just means the "adding its page" will be delayed.

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Gotcha. Well, Chick-Fil-A was in both Almeda & Northwest Malls. That's the only two originals I know. Greenspoint nor Northline had one. The new one on Crosstimbers was not part of the original Northline Mall's footprint.

Let me know when you move on to Whataburger. There's a couple up on the northside that are mere concrete slabs now, and only the memories remain (like the one on Crosstimbers across from Mister Car Wash). Others, like the E. Crosstimbers location near Bauman, may be something else currently, but still have that distinctive look of an old Whataburger.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Was the House of Pies on Kirby originally anything else? Seems kind of that way...

 

I think it's always been House of Pies. After that fire last year, the news articles mentioned that it had been there since 1967, and Historic Aerials doesn't show it to be there in the 1966 view.

Edited by JLWM8609
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  • 2 weeks later...

OK, maybe not quite on the month, but the list has been updated. It's more filled out but there's still a lot missing. If anyone can help me fill me in on old Whataburger or Grandy's locations, that'd be excellent. I also neglected to put down Quizno's, which will come next time, hopefully (I think I promised it for this month, sorry)

Edited by IronTiger
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OK, maybe not quite on the month, but the list has been updated. It's more filled out but there's still a lot missing. If anyone can help me fill me in on old Whataburger or Grandy's locations, that'd be excellent. I also neglected to put down Quizno's, which will come next time, hopefully (I think I promised it for this month, sorry)

 

There was a Grandy's at 9205 S. Main. It's now a Baytown Seafood. There was also a McDonald's at 9203 S. Main that's now a Shipley's Do-nuts. The Whataburger at 4616 OST closed down a few months ago. It's boarded up. I don't know if you want to include it since it was replaced by a brand new Whataburger about a mile down the road.

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I'll try to include Del Taco on the next update as well. One more correction in regards to the McDonald's listing, the 2000 Fannin block McDonald's is the Midtown McD's near the Pierce Elevated, 609 Main was the address of the McDonald's (and also Shamrock Tower, which was to replace it) which was the "other Main Street McDonald's" and was reportedly quite noxious.

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Yes. There was a Grandy's on Edgebrook and IH 45. A Chilos Seafood Restaurant stands in its place right now. The address is 1150 Edgebrook Dr. Idk about SH 6 and Bellaire.

 

By the way, I saw you needed help on a Burger King location in the website you made. It was the location where you put Veterans Memorial Dr. and Gears Rd. The original building still stands, even the sign. The sign even has the BREAKFAST remains, according to Google Maps. Christian's Soul Food Restaurant now stands in that original building. The address is 3075 Gears Rd. It is kind of hard to tell when the Burger King restaurant shut down though. According to historical images on Google Earth, it shut down between 1995 and 2002. 

 

Also, about your 9605 Dyersdale Rd. mystery for BK as well, that road is now named Mesa Dr. It is in Northeast Houston. The original building also still stands. It is now Soobs of Houston. It is some kind of a jacuzzi/massage place? I have no idea. So it is 9605 Mesa Dr. now, just a road rename like you stated. I can't tell when this place shut down. Before 2002, that's all I can tell. 1995 is blurry.

 

Also, there is a BK that also closed recently in Angleton, TX. It got caught on fire back in February, I think? I passed by Angleton a few months ago and the building has been torn down, leaving it abandoned. BK even removed the Angleton location from their website. So I don't know if you should add that, but I would still wait.

Edited by TheGn2
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