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Dream Merchant At 1658 Westheimer Rd.


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Dream Merchant was a high class head shop without the bongs ;-)

Dream Merchant was located somewhere else before they got fancy at the Marks's location, but those brain cells are dead.

Yes, we went there all the time circa 1987. I like the record shop that was there afterwards.

Sound Exchange - bought my first Cabaret Voltaire and BAD 12". Also Africa Boombata (sp?) - World Destruction!

Don't forget Shop The Curve!

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Dream Merchant rocked! I can smell the Gonesh incense as I type this. I remember always wanting to get my hair cut at The London Hair Company that used to be in the little houses behind the Dream Merchant.

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i remember finding the doc martin's i wanted at dream merchant. also, my first cabaret voltaire cd was also purchased at sound exchange, as well as meat beat manifesto and vicious pink. i still have a bowling shirt from the 50's a friend bought for me from step back or timeless taffeta, i can't remember which. good times.

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Depends on what type of beads you are talking about.

:o:D:lol:

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO No you DIDN'T take it there!!!!!!

Coincidentally, Dream Merchant was the place I saw my first ever p*nis ring. The balcony was the place for a lot of the naughty things. What a cool place.

By the way, I also remember Sound Exchange as well as Sound Plus. Not to mention the old Soundwaves in the strip center at the corner of Westheimer and Montrose. Had the best bootlegs. And, who could forget the Tower Theater? Can someone say Howard Rollins rocking that joint? Anyway........

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The old Sound Exchange on Westheimer was great...I'm ashamed to say I haven't been to their "new" store (on Alabama?) since they moved. They've been there for years.

I may have to go there soon, though. I hear they have one of the best selections of record needles in Houston...which is perfect, as a friend just gave me a record player!

Sound Exchange always had a great selection of music.

Sound Waves was OK for used stuff back in the day, but I've always thought they were high on new stuff. 90% of what I buy is used anyways...I can't stomach paying $15.00 for a CD.

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I've been to Sig's Lagoon on Main Street a few times. I love his place. He's got a little section of Houston and Texas blues/jazz/zydeco CD's. Also got some good rockabilly and blues. Some novelty things, some of this, some of that...

And then, he's got hundreds of $1.00 vinyl records. I got a couple live Flatt & Scruggs albums, a 1960's "various artists" R&B/Soul album, and a Kenny Rogers Greatest Hits album (for my wife) for a whopping sum of $4.00.

Sig's Lagoon is right between the Continental Club and the Big Top Lounge on Main at Alabama. The owner is a very nice guy...good taste in music.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Geesh...Timeless Taffeta. That was where I got my first pair of Docs and the only place that I was allowed to go at 16 that had knee high victorian boots :)

I never got a chance to go to Sound Exchange when it was on Westheimer, but I did go to Rockpile alot. It was the only place that I could indulge my hardcore punk rock side and my synth pop/rivethead side in one convienient shopping trip.

I loved that Dare Wear was next door too, but Martin (the owner) was losing wayyyyy too much money on that location due to a skeevy employee.

Does anyone remember a little store on Richmond called Sanctuary? It was a neat little store that sold like Manic Panic makeup and anhk necklaces. It was like the one stop goth shop. But the folks who owned it, from what i've heard, made sure that Apoptygma Berserk never plays in Houston again. I think they closed like 6 or 7 years ago or some such.

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Hehe...love me some Apoptygma Berserk. Had to travel to Austin to see them and VNV Nation play together. Great show, just wish it could have been local.

Anywho MidtownCoog...Rockpile moved a couple of years ago to a little house on Westheimer. I guess they got too big for their britches cause they closed about a year after they opened that location.

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was sanctuary a blue/purple house by the VW dealership?

infinite records

dream merchant also had a shop at sharpstown mall

there was another record shop in a black little house/building..it was on the bottom..i can't remember what else was by it or what it was called...by wendys i think..

i know i went to some of those shops just to look at the guys that i thought were cute.

i saw rage against the machine at the tower theater. that makes me think of the axiom, the unicorn, the westheimer art festival (seeing bands that had people i went to school with or knew)..

i passed by sig's lagoon but only because i was lost. i won't go downtown for anything unless i absolutely must ever since they put in that rail bus...

there's some other stuff that came to mind and now i forgot

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  • 8 months later...

OK guys... I miss Dream merchant on Westheimer as well.....and the really cool surf shop behind the old church. But I remember the original Dream Merchant in Sharpstown mall before it moved to Montrose. I used to shop there on a regular basis. In 1982 I bought a t-shirt there before a DEVO concert at Cullen Auditorium at the Uof H campus. I still have the ticket stub and some pics.......guess its about time I put it on Ebay??

Sharpstown mall was the place to be in the 80's......I also saw Martha Quinn there on an MTV tour....

WOW...the 80's.....

Stephen 979 240 8158

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On 6/13/2006 at 2:39 AM, squinney said:

OK guys... I miss Dream merchant on Westheimer as well.....and the really cool surf shop behind the old church. But I remember the original Dream Merchant in Sharpstown mall before it moved to Montrose. I used to shop there on a regular basis. In 1982 I bought a t-shirt there before a DEVO concert at Cullen Auditorium at the Uof H campus. I still have the ticket stub and some pics.......guess its about time I put it on Ebay??

Sharpstown mall was the place to be in the 80's......I also saw Martha Quinn there on an MTV tour....

WOW...the 80's.....

 

 

I was also a regular at the Sharpstown Dream Merchant :)

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  • 3 years later...

I'm crazy late to this post.

 

I remember DM when it was still downstairs at Sharpstown, then upstairs in the corner, and finally on Westheimer. I got my first Joy Division t-shirt there and a Stussy hat when they were on Westheimer. How times changed. 

 

For reference, I graduated from Alief Elsik HS in '89. So, this was 'my' time. 

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  • 5 months later...

Not sure how I stumbled across this post, but wow yes brings back memories. I worked at Dream Merchant in the later 80's with Chris, Michael (tall), Flaca, forget the asian's name, but what a crew. Helped Dee open Rattleskate and Surf in one of the little houses in the back. Sound Exchange was Record Exchange when I shopped there and yes bought my first Culturecide Album. The first record I ever bought there was a Texas compilation Cottage Cheese from the Lips of Death had Butthole Surfers, Really Red, D.R.I. yep that's right they WERE from Houston not California. V/A - Cottage Cheese From The Lips Of Death [FULL COMPILATION ALBUM] - YouTube  I lived on the streets around Montrose. Used to love to hang out on the side walk outside Numbers. Ended up moving to Houston Studies and became the maintenance man there for several years. Frequented the Axiom, AMC Apocalypse Monster Club, Cabaret Voltaire, Saw Black Flag, Dead Kenedys several times at various clubs around Numbers. I remember seeing the Sexacusioner from GWAR rollerskating around the Montrose Art Festival in 1987 or 88 passing out promo flyers and ended up seeing them play for the first time at one of those clubs near by. I could go on and on I was 18-20 years old then, 53 now. Whew... Michael McCutchan

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  • 4 months later...

After One Fifth completes its run at 1658 Westheimer Rd, it seems Chris Shepherd & Underbelly Hospitality won't extend their lease. The Lower Westheimer space is available for lease and is being marketed as of last month.

With multiple restaurants planned for the Houston Farmers Market on Airline and Regent Square in River Oaks, it's not much a surprise Underbelly Hospitality may not have additional plans for the Montrose property.

It seems the owner(s) of the 1658 Westheimer property have found at least one tenant, so far. The Salty, a fancy donut (doughnut) shop based in Miami is listed as a tenant.

I knew the Salty had its eyes on Houston when news of their expansion into the Dallas market made news two years ago, so, it was only a matter of time. The Houston location will be the donut shop's third outpost in Texas.

The Salty will be in good company with neighbors Common Bond and Voodoo Doughnut.

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https://rue-re.com/portfolio-item/1658-westheimer-houston-tx

Edited by IntheKnowHouston
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  • 2 weeks later...

Houston Business Journal has more on plans to fill the space at 1658 Westheimer once One Fifth closes, plus additional details about the Salty Donut's upcoming Houston location.

 

After Underbelly Hospitality closes One Fifth, its rotating-concept restaurant, later this year, the Montrose property will be expanded to welcome a Miami-based artisan doughnut shop. But the search for a tenant to fill the existing building is still underway.

Rue, a Dallas-based boutique real estate company that focuses on urban-core food and beverage concepts, is spearheading that search while working to create an addition to the building for The Salty. The doughnut shop plans to open toward the latter half of 2022, joining locations in Austin and Dallas as well as Miami and Orlando, Florida.

Jeremy Zidell, founder and managing partner at Rue, and Tripp Russ, also with Rue, are marketing the property at 1658 Westheimer Road, and Zac Hoffer with The Retail Connection’s Houston office also represented The Salty in the lease.

Rue is currently in the process of finalizing the required approvals from the city of Houston for the expansion, so the square footage of the doughnut shop is not yet available.

“The aspiration and vision for the property calls for creating a large courtyard area and to-be-constructed building on the northern end of the property currently abutting One Fifth’s rear walls,” Zidell said.

 

https://www.bizjournals.com/houston/news/2021/10/25/home-of-one-fifth-expands-for-the-salty.html

 

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 10/29/2021 at 10:25 AM, mkultra25 said:

"Salty Donut" is far from an attractive name. It sounds like something that you'd look up at Urban Dictionary.  

 

I think that's possibly one of the reasons the business rebranded last year from the Salty Donut to the Salty.

Part of the rebrand is a move to indicate they're more than just donuts. It's a cafe. Miami's weekly alternative publication reported about the rebrand last year in further details.

From comments in various Facebook groups and conversations with friends of mine, the common sentiment is: "another donut shop?" Then there are the comments about there being Shipley, Voodoo Doughnut, Christy's, and other bakeries and cafes nearby with donut options.

But what some fail to realize is the Salty doesn't serve your average donut, which I'm glad CultureMap's food editor pointed out in his weekly dining podcast. I don't think there is a bakery or cafe serving the kind of donuts the Salty is bringing to Houston. And that's part of the appeal and why this will be one of those places you see people flocking to and photos/videos all over your social media feeds.

I think the new owners' plans for the property are ambitious yet interesting (creating space for the Salty, courtyard, and renovations to the former church). I am looking forward to see how the design and renovations turnout.

Edited by IntheKnowHouston
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agreed...Common Bond's continuous lines are proof there is a need for THIS type of bakery/cafe in the area and The Salty sounds like it will definitely give them a run for their money...btw for those that don't know, Common Bonds fresh baked goods are 1/2 price every single night the last half hour of opening! I go there often for this reason (unfortunately haha 🤪)

anyway...to me there is always room for more bakeries...and donuts 😋

Edited by gene
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  • 5 months later...
  • 2 months later...
  • The title was changed to Dream Merchant - 1658 Westheimer Rd.
  • 1 month later...

Dallas-based boutique real estate company Rue is partnering with Collier to lease the remaining spaces at 1658 Westheimer Rd.

The space previously housing One Fifth restaurant is still available. Office space is also available. 1658 Westheimer will also be the future home to the Salty (the Salty Donut). It's a Miami-based cafe specializing in artisan donuts and craft coffee.


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A newer marketing package for the property was recently released with more renderings. The renders include the building's exterior and a closer view of the Salty. In the rendering for the Salty's exterior, you can see the walk-up window outlined a few posts up.

I don't know if these are older renderings or not. The arches outside the Salty aren't shown in these.


https://www.colliers.com/en/properties/for-lease-incredible-opportunity-fronting-westheimer-in-the-core-of-montrose/usa-1658-westheimer-rd-houston-tx-77006-usa/usa1110282


https://www.rue-re.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Houston-1658-Westheimer-Brochure-1.pdf
https://colliershouston.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/property/1658-Westheimer-Brochure-ID1110282.pdf


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Edited by IntheKnowHouston
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  • 5 months later...
  • 3 months later...
  • 4 months later...
On 5/17/2023 at 1:23 AM, hindesky said:

Pretty sure it's a demo permit for some of the additions to the main building.

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From Houston Business Journal a few years ago:

On 10/26/2021 at 6:57 AM, IntheKnowHouston said:

“The aspiration and vision for the property calls for creating a large courtyard area and to-be-constructed building on the northern end of the property currently abutting One Fifth’s rear walls,” Zidell said.

 

https://www.bizjournals.com/houston/news/2021/10/25/home-of-one-fifth-expands-for-the-salty.html



And from CultureMap in 2021:

Jeremy Zidell, founder and managing partner for Dallas-based real estate consulting and brokerage company RUE, tells CultureMap that the cafe’s current plan is to build a new structure and courtyard at the north end of the property that will abut the existing restaurant. Once the plan receives final approval from the city of Houston and construction begins, the shop looks to open in the fourth quarter of 2022.

https://houston.culturemap.com/news/restaurants-bars/10-26-21-the-salty-doughnut-shop-miami-houston-location-montrose-westheimer/

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  • The title was changed to Dream Merchant At 1658 Westheimer Rd.

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