West 19th Retail Center: 1901 N. Shepherd Dr.

[CrockpotandGravel]

This thread was originally created December 21, 2016. I'm reposting / reupping this because this post and other content from me are no longer available on the forum due to a mod removing my account and its content in "error". An archive link is here.


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The 32.750 SF of land and former car lot located on 1901 North Shepherd off W 19th St, was redeveloped by Re:vive. It's now the West 19th Retail Center with restaurants, retail and an office.













Here are before pictures taken before the redevelopment. The pictures come from a sales flyer (archived link) and listing on Loopnet (archived link😞

















Pictures of the West 19th Retail Center now, where Black Sheep Parlor, Fat Cat Creamery, Hugs & Donuts, Ka Sushi and other are located in Phase I on N Shepherd Dr: 







 

[CrockpotandGravel]

This was originally posted  December  21, 2016 in the previous thread for West 19th Retail Center @ 19th & Shepherd. It's being reposted / reupped since the original thread and other content from me were removed. 

 

 

 

Past discussions about Fat Cat Creamery opening at 1901 N Shepherd at the West 19th Retail Center:
http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haif/search/?&q=fat cat creamery&type=forums_topic&item=6065

 

Posts about Hugs & Donuts:

http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haif/search/?&q=HUGS donuts&type=forums_topic&item=6065

Posts about Ka Sushi:
 

http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haif/topic/6065-lack-of-restaurant-diversity-in-the-heights/?do=findComment&comment=485045

http://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haif/search/?&q="ka sushi"&type=forums_topic&item=6065


 

[CrockpotandGravel]

This was originally posted  December  21, 2016 in the previous thread for West 19th Retail Center @ 19th & Shepherd. It's being reposted / reupped since the original thread and other content from me were removed. 

 

Details about Phase II  (archived link) of the West 19th Retail Center at 721 W 19th St.


Building square footage: 4,295 SF





 

[CrockpotandGravel]

This was originally posted  December  21, 2016 in the previous thread for West 19th Retail Center @ 19th & Shepherd. It's being reposted / reupped since the original thread and other content from me were removed. 

An Indian restaurant and a paint store are opening in the second phase of the Re:vive development.


 

On 9/21/2016 at 4:33 PM, Moose said:

Two new spots coming to 19th Street:

 

1) Indian Restaurant in the new building next to the Ka/Hugs&Donuts/Fat Cat strip center:

http://theheightslifehouston.blogspot.com/2016/09/the-post-youve-all-been-waiting-for.html

https://tarkaindiankitchen.com/

 

https://www.houstonarchitecture.com/haif/topic/6065-restaurant-diversity-in-the-heights/?do=findComment&comment=540535

 

More about Tarka Indian Kitchen opening at 721 W 19th from Houstonia:


 

Tärka Indian Kitchen CEO and co-founder Tinku Saini may call his small chain of restaurants fast-casual, but he wants to be perfectly clear: “It’s not the Chipotle version of Indian food,” he says. In fact, Saini prefers to compare his business to a less expensive version of Houston’s beloved Pondicheri. Food is made to order in an open kitchen, but dishes are conceived to take around 10 minutes to prepare and ring up at no more than $10.
 

The original Tärka opened in Austin in 2009, a sequel to a more standard Indian restaurant, Clay Pit Contemporary Indian Cuisine. There are now three Austin locations, as well as one in San Antonio and another in Round Rock. Soon, there will be two in greater Houston. The first will be at 721 W. 19th Street in the Heights, one more hot addition to the corner of Shepherd and 19th. Saini says he hopes to unveil that restaurant as soon as late February. Another, at Springwoods Village in Spring, will follow.
 

As CEO of an Austin-based business, Saini says he sees the success of Torchy’s Tacos as an inspiration—in fact, both of his Houston-area restaurants will open near a Torchy’s. “That being said, a taco is much different from Indian food,” he admits. But he claims a lack of South Asian options in the Heights doesn’t scare him. “I love the urban density and the varied demographic,” he says of the Heights. “People sometimes call it Little Austin. That appealed to us.”
 

What can diners in Little Austin expect? High-quality ingredients, for one. Tärka serves only grass-fed lamb and all-natural, free-range chicken. In Austin, Tärka is a certified “green” restaurant. Saini hopes to follow suit in Houston with all environmentally friendly packaging, energy-efficient lighting and (depending on his landlord’s tolerance) composting. 


 

[CrockpotandGravel]

This was originally posted  December  21, 2016 in the previous thread for West 19th Retail Center @ 19th & Shepherd. It's being reposted / reupped since the original thread and other content from me were removed. 

When I dined at Mellow Mushroom, I took a peek inside. Some work has begun on the paint store and the Indian restaurant. I don't think the restaurant portion will open by February. I don't know who's designing this.


 

[CrockpotandGravel]

This was originally posted  May  21, 2017 in the previous thread for West 19th Retail Center @ 19th & Shepherd. It's being reposted / reupped since the original thread and other content from me were removed. 

A picture of the Houston location of Tarka Indian Kitchen at the West 19th Retail Center. The address is 721 W 19th St, Ste A .



From Instagram



Good morning H-Town! We are almost ready to start serving you! Opening June 14th. #TarkaHeights. The space features a huge Mandala mural.

 https://www.instagram.com/p/BUWlVCqAjWV




A look inside Tarka Indian Kitchen at 721 W 19th Street. Picture is from Facebook.

https://www.facebook.com/TarkaHeights

[CrockpotandGravel]

This was n the previous thread for West 19th Retail Center @ 19th & Shepherd. It's being reposted / reupped since the original thread and other content from me were removed. 

Originally posted by EllenOlenska, May 21, 2017 in the thread for West 19th Retail Center @ 19th & Shepherd. 


I'm so excited for this! 

 

[j_cuevas713]

Now I wish the city would catch up and provide better infrastructure in this area. 

[IntheKnowHouston]

Photos of West 19th Retail Center. This is a commercial strip center at 1901 N Shepherd Dr, on the corner of W 19th St.

The photos are from either 2019 or 2020. These were included in a leasing flyer for the property from Re:vive Development.


http://www.reviveco.com/s/REVIVE-1901SHEPHERD.pdf

[IntheKnowHouston]

This isn't new, but am posting for reference. I'm also trying to provide a chronological timeline of sorts of changes with the property. There are some who may like to see these kind of updates (even if they're outdated), so when scrolling through the topic, there's a timeline of what's happened or will happen (I hope that makes sense).


Finch Properties moved out of the West 19th Retail Center somewhere around 2019 or 2020. The business was located at 1901 N Shepherd Dr, Unit 5 (1901 N Shepherd, Suite 5).

A leasing flyer from Re:vive Development marketing the unit.


http://www.reviveco.com/s/REVIVE-1901SHEPHERD.pdf




 

[IntheKnowHouston]

This isn't fresh news, but since no one has posted an update about changes at West 19th Retail Center, here goes...

A bakery and dessert shop is leasing the unit previously occupied by Finch Properties at 1901 N Shepherd Dr, Ste 5. Eat Cake signed on in 2021, I think.

Coming soon signs announcing the business were posted last fall. Signage was installed this spring. The business is also included on the center's sign marquee.

Eat Cake could open this fall.


https://www.eatcakebar.com
https://www.instagram.com/eatcakebar

Photo of the coming soon sign from October 2021; from Instagram





Photo of signage going up March 2022; from Eat Cake's Instagram





Google Maps images from June 2022

Edited August 10, 2022 by IntheKnowHouston

[IntheKnowHouston]

Eat Cake opened in the West 19th Retail Center about two weeks ago.

This is the bakery and dessert shop at 1901 N Shepherd Dr, Ste 5. 


Photo from Eat Cake's Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/p/Ci8XD1XJ0cr/





From their Google Map listing:

[IntheKnowHouston]

Hugs & Donuts is closing its doors January 28. The donut shop announced the closure on social media this afternoon. It's located at 1901 N Shepherd Dr, Suite 4 in the West 19th Retail Center.


https://www.instagram.com/p/CnaNcxKveuC/


 

[IntheKnowHouston]

Four months after Hugs & Donuts closed its doors in the 1901 North Shepherd retail center, another retailer is closing up shop.

Fat Cat Creamery's last day at 1901 N Shepherd Dr, Suite 3 is Monday. The local ice cream shop recently announced the closure on social media.

While the Heights location is shuttering, Fat Cat Creamery's Garden Oaks location at Stomping Grounds remains open.


https://www.houstonchronicle.com/food-culture/restaurants-bars/article/fat-cat-creamery-ice-cream-houston-heights-closing-18118585.php

Edited Friday at 01:26 AM by IntheKnowHouston

[s3mh]

8 hours ago, IntheKnowHouston said:

Four months after Hugs & Donuts closed its doors in the 1901 North Shepherd retail center, another retailer is closing up shop.

Fat Cat Creamery's last day at 1901 N Shepherd Dr, Suite 3 is Monday. The local ice cream shop recently announced the closure on social media.

While the Heights location is shuttering, Fat Cat Creamery's Garden Oaks location at Stomping Grounds remains open.


https://www.houstonchronicle.com/food-culture/restaurants-bars/article/fat-cat-creamery-ice-cream-houston-heights-closing-18118585.php

The Heights are officially over thanks to the idiots who own commercial real estate.  They would rather have storefronts sit empty for years than dare to give a local business a lease that wasn't at the current market rate.  

[mkultra25]

5 hours ago, s3mh said:

The Heights are officially over thanks to the idiots who own commercial real estate.  They would rather have storefronts sit empty for years than dare to give a local business a lease that wasn't at the current market rate.  

The owner's quoted in the linked article as saying that the pandemic and the resulting lack of the usual summer increase in sales is to blame for the closure. What isn't said is that since Fat Cat opened, there have been multiple other craft ice cream shops that have subsequently opened nearby which have surely had to cut into their sales as well. 

I'm not questioning that there have been quite a few local businesses that have been forced to close or relocate due to rent increases, but I think there are other factors at play in this particular situation, unless you have additional information to the contrary. 

[LBC2HTX]

Road construction in the area isn’t helping business either. 

[s3mh]

On 5/26/2023 at 3:19 PM, mkultra25 said:

The owner's quoted in the linked article as saying that the pandemic and the resulting lack of the usual summer increase in sales is to blame for the closure. What isn't said is that since Fat Cat opened, there have been multiple other craft ice cream shops that have subsequently opened nearby which have surely had to cut into their sales as well. 

I'm not questioning that there have been quite a few local businesses that have been forced to close or relocate due to rent increases, but I think there are other factors at play in this particular situation, unless you have additional information to the contrary. 

They are closing after 10 years at that location.  Commercial leases are almost always in 5 year intervals.  I do not have specifics about Fat Cat, but I can say with certainty that commercial landlords in the Heights cannot wait to boost rent and swap out local brands for larger regional and national chains/franchises that can afford steep rents.