2423 Katy Freeway
This small strip center opened with Vitamin Shoppe, Scottrade (since vacated), and an Arby's in 2010. Arby's closed two years later and was replaced by La Madeleine in 2012. I'm not sure of any other tenants over the last 15 years it's been opened.

Smoochee's / 3333 Katy Freeway
The first reference for this address is Houston Cellular independent agent Communications Link back in 1994. By the early 2000s it was The Door & Window Source and since July 2005 has been adult store Smoochee's. It appears it had always had two stories.

5235 Katy Freeway
Until the late 2010s (when the building was closed and demolished) this was the headquarters of Fiesta Mart Inc.; presumably it closed when the chain was sold to Chedraui and staff downsized.

INTERSTATE 610 to ANTOINE DRIVE

Houston's First Baptist Church / 7401 Katy Fwy.
"The Loop" location of First Baptist Church was first built in the late 1970s (there's a plaque outside about the church's history) when it moved from downtown, and originally featured a two-story worship center with an L-shaped set of classrooms around it.

By 1989 it had expanded substantially, including a large gymnasium area and a six-story wing to the south with Sunday School classrooms. The gymnasium wing was a full-fledged fitness center, including racquetball rooms and showers, and also included a bowling alley.

Finally, sometime around in the late 1990s an addition wrapped around the building, though only through the second level (the first level is a direct passage into the courtyard).

Bayou Woods / 7555-7575 Katy Freeway
For some reason, the condominium sign reads in reverse (7575-7555) but these condominiums have been here since the early 1970s.

They don't all have the same floorplan. Some are smaller units cantilevered over parking spaces.

Marq*E Stadium 23 Cinemas / 7600 Katy Freeway
This Regal Cinemas movie theater anchors the Marq*E Entertainment Center (see below) and originally opened in 1999. It occupies space 31 on the map mentioned in the next entry.

Marq*E Entertainment Center / 7620 Katy Freeway
Originally, where Marq*E stands today was very different, instead, the home to Cameron Iron Works, with about 85 acres located at the northeast corner of Silber Road and Katy Freeway (the very southwest corner appeared to be occupied by a bank). The Texas State Historical Association mentions the plant opened in 1946, but an article refers to the new plant at Silber and Katy as early as 1942 (1000 Silber Road according to what I can find). Before and after the war it primarily made oilfield-related materials (during the war, mounted gun components), with wartime materials also being produced prior to the Vietnam War. An economic downturn and restructuring ended up causing nearly half of the plant to be demolished (the side closest to the freeway). In 1983, there were 4,000 workers at the plant, in 1986, 1,000. From what I could tell, the plant shut down for good in the early 1990s shortly after Cooper Industries acquired the company. Today, the site is occupied by a variety of businesses, including Marq*E Entertainment Center, a Walmart, numerous restaurants, and townhomes. Marq*E takes up about 40% of the former site (including the aforementioned corner at the northeast section of Katy Freeway and Silber). A full overview of Marq*E and its history (particularly around 2011 when a good chunk of the center was removed and replaced with a parking lot) will come in a future update but I wanted to go over a few highlights. The map of the complex can be seen here and you can see what's up there by visiting the official site.

• DRINK Houston (7620 Katy Freeway Ste. 360, #24) shut down in 2017 after 15 years, and was the source of much of the riff-raff that plagued the center in its history. However, it was originally located on the now-demolished south side. Since DRINK Houston's passing, it has served as a few temporary "experience" sites, with Dinos Alive being here from March 2023 through June 2023 (a date in the future as of this writing) or "Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience".
• #19 (suite 315), Rocket Fizz, is a personal favorite of mine. It opened in late 2016 not long after the Rice Village location shut its doors. The location sells rare sodas (including an in-house brand with novelty flavors...wasn't a fan of the "ranch dressing" soda), candy, and novelties (stink bombs from South America...watch out for the broken glass).
• #30 (suite 465) is Red Robin and has been since 2001.
• #26 (suite 355) was the last Cafe Adobe in Houston, closed in October 2018.
• #28 (suite 445) is Improv Comedy Theater. It was originally at suite 431 in the demolished side.
• #29 is Big City Wings (ste. 460), opened in 2017. It replaced Wings-N-More (later BreWingz since 2013), which operated from 2003 to approximately 2016 in the site.

Crowne Plaza / 7611 Katy Freeway
In 1956, the site where this hotel would later be was Robinwood Motor Lodge / Robinwood Lounge, a restaurant and motel. In 1971, the motel closed and would be rebuilt into a six-story hotel and restaurant, though fairly early in the construction process, it was announced it would be a Red Carpet Inn rather than known as Robinwood Motel as the original plan was.

The hotel reopened in April 1972 with 260 rooms, two four-room suites, and "several" two-room suites, as well as featuring a formal dining room, a coffee shop, and a cocktail lounge. By the late 1970s it was known (informally) as Red Carpet Inn-West due to other Red Carpet Inns in the Houston area. After 1980, it became a Holiday Inn and after nearly fifteen years as Holiday Inn, became Four Points Hotel Sheraton in November 1995. The Four Points name didn't last long, and by November 1996 it became Ramada Plaza. It was Travelodge very briefly (2009) before being closed and renovated inside and out as a Crowne Plaza (Crowne Plaza Houston Galleria Area), which opened in 2012.

This is placed below the Marq*E entries because it is farther down the highway (and predated it by nearly three decades).

7613 Katy Freeway
This was originally built in 1978 and still held its original facade for almost 40 years. Since 1996, suite A and by the extension, the "anchor", has been Shipley Do-Nuts. However, Shipley moved to 8135 Katy Freeway in 2016; after this, the center went through a major update. After this, the new "anchor" tenant became Sherwin-Williams Paints. Tenants as of January 2023, from west to east include the aforementioned Sherwin-Williams Paints, Güzel Cakes, a vacancy, Tune Up: The Manly Salon (franchise), Gate Openers Direct, and Dennis Uniform. Dennis Uniform is suite G and seems to have absorbed a space at one time (default is seven suites). More history of this small shopping center will be explored in a future update.

Holiday Inn Express & Suites / 7625 Katy Freeway
Since around 2002, this has served as a hotel, today a Holiday Inn Express (though might've served as Best Western originally). In the early 1980s, two restaurants were here, Pizza Hut (7633) and Kettle (7625), but my restaurant list for 1995 doesn't list their locations, indicating they may have already been closed since then.

Kettle was at 7625 Katy Freeway from 1976 to 1987, and by March 1988, it was known as a restaurant called Greens, then Bacco's (1991-1992), then (in 1993) Il Dio di Vin', run by local chef Augie Mariane. This doesn't have any references past 1995.

Chick-fil-A/ 7660 Katy Freeway
Marked as "#32" on the map (see "Marq*E Entertainment Center"), this Chick-fil-A opened in 2013 as part of the Marq*E improvements...though it's nowhere near Katy Freeway and actually off Silber.

Bank of America / 7696 Katy Freeway
Bank of America is marked as "#10" on the map of Marq*E (see "Marq*E Entertainemnt Center") and opened in 2008. It is located at the direct northeast corner of Silber Road and Katy Freeway.

Jack in the Box / 7699 Katy Freeway
Jack in the Box opened in 1995 at the southeast corner of Silber Road and Katy Freeway. A renovation to the interior was completed in 2015. 7703 Katy Freeway This is just a gated-off parking lot now. In 1984, it was listed as "Silber Road Shell" and residual Internet listings mention "Silver Shell Center" (misspelling the street, likely), indicating that it had an automotive garage component, and despite missing most of the construction still appears to have been a victim of construction/clearances. In 2015, a gated parking lot was built on the site (complete with a roll of barbed wire on top), with a large fence and green tarp between the lot and Legends of Memorial.

Helfman Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram / 7720 Katy Freeway
This car dealership opened as Helfman Dodge (new and pre-owned) in early 2002, after the railroad was dismantled and building directly off the frontage road was possible. In late 2009, Helfman Dodge added a few new car lines, becoming Helfman Dodge Chrysler Jeep, and by summer 2010 had become Helfman Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram. In 2012 Helfman expanded into imports, and as of 2017, in addition to Helfman Dodge Chrysler Jeep Ram, there was also Helfman Fiat Alfa Romeo Maserati operating at the site.

The first reference to this address comes in July 1959 with the opening of building materials store Cashway (not related to the later Payless Cashways, d/b/a Furrow) and by June 1974 had grown to seven locations in the greater Houston area. By the late 1970s the chain was an Ace Hardware affiliate, and in this incarnation wasn't directly accessible off of Katy Freeway due to the railroad (the railroad even had a spur into the complex, presumably as part of the lumberyard) and by 1980 was purchased by Boise Cascade and became Boise Cascade Building Materials Center. The 1980s proved difficult for Boise Cascade's hardware division and by fall of 1986 the last of the Houston locations, including 7720 Katy, closed. West End Lumber leased the complex in 1990 and by 2001 the site was razed.

The current dealership incorporates a few buildings from 1996-1997 off Silber; the original use and address of these is unknown.

Auxo at Memorial / 7777 Katy Freeway
Originally, this was the home of Courtesy Chevrolet (7777 Katy Freeway) and a Holiday Inn & Suites (7787). Both were demolished around 2005 as part of a land swap during the Katy Freeway widening and was replaced by Alexan Silber, a luxury apartment building completed in 2009. It was renamed 7 Square in 2014 following new management and in 2022 renamed to what it is now.

The Holiday Inn was opened in 1974 as a Ramada Inn (Ramada Inn West) and became a Holiday Inn around January 1996 (after Holiday Inn pulled out of 7611).

IKEA / 7810 Katy Freeway
California-based STØR (a furniture store similar to IKEA) opened in October 1991 but in 1992 IKEA purchased the company and closed the store down, reopening it that same year as IKEA. In 2004, a new building was built behind the original 1992 STØR/IKEA, which became the new IKEA with the same address (the 1992 building was torn down). There's no existing picture of the building as a STØR but it was photographed in 2004 (as an IKEA) shortly before demolition. The picture can be seen at Houston Historic Retail.

The original STØR/IKEA had no access to the freeway's frontage road. You could only get in through the main entrance from Antoine, or the back entrance, as Afton Street originally extended around the back of STØR/IKEA and crossed the railroad. The rebuild of IKEA closed off Afton entirely just after Shavelson Street (and by then, the railroad was gone).

Since then, IKEA has renovated the building (inside) and added solar panels on top. The original STØR plat replaced 1002 Antoine, an apartment complex (from extensive research, it appears that this apartment complex did not have a name) dating back to the early 1970s. Additionally, built at the same time as STØR's construction and torn down around IKEA's rebuild was a strip center, 1020 Antoine Drive. One of the old listings has Supercuts as one of the tenants (Suite C)

CubeSmart Self Storage / 7825 Katy Freeway
Built in 1989 as Private Mini Storage, this self-storage place has seen little change except for a partial demolition owing to the freeway. It was still Private Mini Storage in 2005 when the front of the complex was demolished. Directly west of it was Wellesley Inn & Suites (see the link in the previous sentence for pictures). Opening in 1999, this short-lived hotel was closed sometime in 2005 and torn down for freeway widening (what's left of the area is now a retention pond). The hotel's heavily vandalized exterior prior to demolition can be seen at HoustonFreeways. Details of the hotel's opening and closing can't be found, other than a mention of a 2003 robbery where a million dollars worth of jewelry was stolen from a hotel room. The address of Wellesley was 7855 Katy Freeway.

ANTOINE ROAD to BINGLE ROAD / VOSS ROAD

7925 Katy Freeway
This strip center built in 2014 has a variety of tenants including a Benjamin Moore paint store, several beauty salons, and an F45 training center. It replaced a larger strip center on the same site (the UPS Store to the east of it was part of this larger building). To the west is a strip center, the back of some homes, a Shipley, McDonald's, and Exxon. This is all explored in The Restaurants of Wirt & Chimney Rock, a separate page on this site.

Gulf Coast Veterinary Specialists / 8042 Katy Freeway
This moved here in 2019 after their temporary home just to the west (before, they had been at the late 1111 West Loop South before they got flooded out—see "1177 West Loop South" at this link). The curved side of the building is due to the building being a warehouse with a rail spur that curled around the building. You can still see part of the track embedded in the parking lot.

The building was built circa 1974 as a tire comapny.

Shell / 8190 Katy Freeway
This "Timewise" Shell opened in 2018 on a piece of land that was once a private residence off Wirt (demolished in the very early 2010s). It was still a Timewise despite the one operating on the southeast corner of the freeway.

CVS/pharmacy / 8201 Katy Freeway
This CVS was built in 2005 and opened in 2006 on the site of a Chevron (originally built as a Gulf, dating back to the late 1970s). The Chevron was not otherwise affected by the widening.

Treehouse Condos / 8211 Katy Freeway
These were built as luxury apartments, initially known as Saddlebrook Apartments back in 1961. By 1970 they were Kingsbrook Section III (incorporated into part of what is now Fox Hall Apartments). By 1977, it was "Tree House", a condominium complex.

Today, Treehouse Condominums aren't accessible or visible from Katy Freeway, the only sign of it is a wooden gate blocking normal access.

Christ Evangelical Presbyterian Church / 8300 Katy Fwy.
This church was built in 2003. In 2009, a one-lane paved path connected the church's parking lot to Home Depot's, but it's only one lane with no clear direction of traffic (maybe it changes).

King Safe & Lock Company / 8429 Katy Fwy.
This was built and opened in 1974 as a new location of local chain Texas Radio. Texas Radio went under around 1980 and by 1981 it was Delta Tire & Wheel Center (part of a chain, "over 300 stores coast to coast", which disappeared around 1985. The first reference to King Safe & Lock in newspapers appears in 1987, and has been here since.

The Home Depot / 8400 Katy Fwy.
The Home Depot built their Spring Valley location during the reconstruction of Katy Freeway in December 2005, meaning temporary driveways were installed from day one. Smaller stores (including a Spec's) were also built during this time in front of the store, and started leasing before the dust settled. This is placed after King Safe & Lock Company deliberately.

Shell / 8525 Katy Freeway
This Shell station (from 1983) is unique for its large, three-point base sign. It survived the widening and just updated the logo in the early 2000s. The canopy, which originally had two double hexagonal-shaped sections (seen in several Shell sites across the area), was changed in 2018 for a traditional one. The convenience store is Timewise.

BINGLE ROAD / VOSS ROAD to BLALOCK ROAD / ECHO LANE

Dad's Club Aquatic Center / 1006 Voss Road
Across the freeway from Old Voss Road, is another Voss Road (and not signed as "Old Voss Road"). This aquatic center (membership required) has been here since the 1940s (and slowly expanded). From the 1960s to the early 2000s, part of the site was donated to the Westside Family YMCA, which occupied its oldest building. The fact that the freeway demolition would take that building meant that the YMCA ended up selling their remaining land back to the club and moving to greener pastures. Since that, the aquatics center has continued to expand, including demolishing a building for a pool (or maybe just disenclosing it), as well as adding another pool.

Hedwig Place / 8731 Katy Freeway
This office building was once the location of the flagship Academy store, which sat roughly on this building's footprint (slightly east of it, the vacant space next to it was where the bulk of the building was). Located at a more-recently built corner of a strip mall (built in 1949), this was Farmer's Gas & Hardware Company in 1953 (the 1953 Google Earth aerial appears to show this section under construction) on 8723 Katy Road, predating the freeway (Katy Road was a divided four lane highway). By late 1965, it was a location of Southern Sales Stores, which carried an eclectic line of merchandise that was advertised in papers, including hiking shoes, glass goblets, tools, and others. In 1974, it was renamed as Academy Super Surplus Stores (and by this time, the address was 8723 Katy Freeway) under new ownership from a year prior, which continued to expand throughout Houston and points beyond. By 1987, the 8723 Katy Freeway store was the only store of the 18 Houston stores (including locations in College Station and Huntsville) that was open until midnight, with the rest closing no later than 9 pm.

In 1989, it was rebuilt as a modern two-story Academy store (likely taking out the 8721 Katy address) at 44,000 square feet, but in 2009, Academy Sports & Outdoors (with an ampersand as opposed to the plus sign they have today) finally closed at this location to move to 9734 Katy Freeway. With Academy gone, the space became the home of Fishing Tackle Unlimited, which was opened in 2012. This location moved from a location at 8933 Katy Freeway, and bragging the store was the "World's Largest Tackle Store" before moving again in 2018. That same year, the Academy building and most of the adjacent 1949 strip center was torn out for the five-story Hedwig Place, a five-story medical building at 8731 Katy Freeway, which welcomed its first tenants in early 2019. In April 2020, Federal American Grill opened in suite 150.

Most of the older buildings east of here were torn down for other reasons. To the immediate east of the former Academy (just after a driveway that led to additional parking in the back) was Memorial Antiques & Interiors. Located at 8719 Katy Freeway and originally opened in 2006, this was Kuehnert's Auction Gallery from around 1988 to around 2005. Just to the east of this building were additional strip mall tenants. From Memorial Antiques east (as of 2017) was Discount Awards (8713-B), E-Z Auction Stop (8715-A), South Texas Brick & Stone (8715-B), Gate Openers Direct (8713), and Bags & More (8711), the last one with the tagline of "Unique Boutique & Gifts".

To the immediate east of that waa a garden center replacing some older office buildings. "Beyond Organic" was the name at 8705 Katy Freeway, and operated approximately from 2013 to 2017. Finally, just east of that on the other side of Old Voss Road was Las Alamedas.

Originally opened in 1980, this Mexican restaurant (8615 Katy Freeway) entertained diners for years with its large building and leafy exteriors. In February 2009, following a long battle with their landlord, the restaurant closed permanently and eventually relocated to west Katy (however, it did not survive COVID-19). The building never found a new tenant and was eventually demolished.

There was something in Las Alamedas' spot from the 1950s to late 1970s but it isn't clear what it is, perhaps even a small "tourist court".

8775 Katy Freeway
This restaurant's former tenant, Sweet Tomatoes, closed in March 2020 "temporarily" due to the COVID-19 crisis a few months before the chain announced that the restuarants would not reopen. The buffet-style chain restaurant was opened in August 1998 (Grand Opening 8/3/98) in a purpose-built building. A closer look from Houston Historic Retail can be seen here.

Pretty Please Gifts & Boutique / 8791 Katy Freeway
This women's clothing boutique replaced a Citgo. It survived the Katy Freeway widening, but in 2014 it was torn down. Pretty Please opened in 2018 after the site remained empty for a few years.

Starbucks / 8819 Katy Freeway
Built in 2015 on the site of a Mobil (briefly "VM Auto Tech Pros" c. 2014) that was torn down the previous year, this Starbucks still features Mobil's rounded-off rectangle sign. Because of its small footprint, it features no eat-in area, only a walk-up or drive-through window. (Outdoor seating is available).

Comerica Bank / 8899 Katy Freeway
Comerica Bank's story starts with a Marie Callender's restaurant that was built in 1998, however, in 2001 it closed, reopening as the second Redwood Grill location by December of that year. In 2003 Redwood closed and Spanish-inspired "Barcino Seafood & Tapas" opened in early 2004.

In early 2005, Barcino "closed for remodeling" and never reopened. It was knocked down and by January 2007 reopened as Comerica Bank, which it has been since.

Saltgrass Steak House / 8943 Katy Freeway
Built as a steakhouse by locally owned Steak House Associates in 1974, The Courtyard Restaurant originally featured what was described by Texas Monthly as an "inside outside" style, "complete with undies hanging from an overhead clothesline".

In the mid-1980s, faced with heavy competition in the steakhouse quadrant, Steak House Associates closed the restaurant for a few months and reopened as "Truffles!" featuring New American cuisine. In the late 1980s, Truffles! closed down and was eventually sold to new owners, which would reopen it as Saltgrass Steak House in 1991, but not before a major fire gutted the restaurant, causing the restaurant to be largely rebuilt inside and out. (Houston Chronicle helped out a lot for this section).

Goode Company Kitchen & Cantina / 9005 Katy Freeway
Prior to The Mason Jar (in 1970), Lee's Camping Center (RVs dealership) was here, with The Mason Jar building a restaurant here in 1973. The Mason Jar's only location wasn't here, in 1984, they also had a location at 12330 Gulf Freeway. The Mason Jar took off in 2017 for Katy but closed in October 2019, less than two years later. Goode Co. Kitchen & Cantina quickly reopened in the spot in December 2017.

Village Medical Plaza / 9055 Katy Freeway
This four story medical office building (built in 1980) is at the southeast corner of Corbindale Road and Katy Freeway. There is a Walgreens Pharmacy on the first floor (with an exterior exit), though this just appears to be pharmacy only (it does, however, appear to sell pharmacy equipment). To the immediate east of it was the old location of Pappy's Café at 9041 Katy Freeway, which was opened in 1983 but moved in 2018 and demolished a few years later.

Modern Pools & Service / 9067 Katy Freeway
Also known as "Modern Pool & Spa Supply & Service Center" (the facade is quite old and hasn't been changed in years). The building started out as a Conoco station in 1957 (John Wroe Conoco, later Katy Conoco by the late 1960s) and became Modern Pools & Service around 1978.

Predating the building, the first reference to the address is 1950 referring to a "Spring Branch Cafe". This appears to be a new structure on the same land as residential land, owned by Nicholas di Pietro. Tragically, he died just before Christmas 1950 (cause unknown) and references to Spring Branch Cafe disappeared shortly afterward. The site of Spring Branch Cafe was roughly at the southeast corner of Campbell Road and Katy Road, but were obliterated when Katy Road upgraded to a full freeway in the 1960s.

9079 Katy Freeway
Little retail center that was remodeled in the early 2010s and built in 1990, southwest corner of Campbell Road and Katy Freeway. As of September 2022, tenants include Back to Rock ("America's Music School"), Jimmy John's, a vacancy, Cuisinery Food Market, and Memorial Village Cleaners. A PDF showing the center can be seen here (archived from here).

Gateway at Spring Valley / 9090 Katy Freeway
Office building built in 2015, see Loopnet page. It opened with medical and bank tenants among them but also Peli Peli Kitchen, the lower-priced fast-casual version of Peli Peli restaurant, in suite 190. The site was on a strip center that was torn down for the widening. Where the frontage road is now was 1000 Campbell Road, the original site of Ciro's Italian Grill.

Peli Peli Kitchen ended up closing a few years later (a victim of 2020's COVID-19 closures), with Jonathan's The Rub opening in 2021.

Tall Plants / 9191 Katy Freeway
The first newspaper reference of this site is Katy Road Shell Service (later Piney Point Shell) gas and auto repair in 1958. It was still a Shell in 1966 but has been Tall Plants since 1977. The same page mentions it was a restaurant briefly. Across the street (Piney Point Road, not Katy Freeway) is 9201 Katy Freeway (covered here).

9190 Katy Freeway
In 1984, this was listed as "Carousel Skating Rink" (not of the "ice" variety) in the directory and by 2001 it was St. James Furniture & Interior Design, with an exterior shot visible at TexasFreeway.com. Around 2005, the store was closed and the building partially demolished. By 2016, it was medical offices, including the home of Pedro M. Argüello, MD and Russel Williams, MD as well as Spring Valley Imaging LP (medical imaging). In the research of this building, I couldn't believe the St. James building was the same building trolling Katy Freeway travelers (as of 2016 anyway) with messages on the electronic screen like "Hemorrhoids? We can help!" or "Prostate checks".

Shell / McDonald's/ 9303 Katy Freeway
This McDonald's + gas station combination opened in 1996 as a Chevron/McDonald's. The gas brand flipped to Exxon between 2011 and 2014 and became Shell in 2022, while "Timewise" eventually became the name of the convenience store. The McDonald's features a Playplace inside, and a car wash facility is in the back.

While the McDonald's never had "mansard" architecture, it was repainted in 2022 from red to more neutral colors (shortly before the Exxon-to-Shell conversion).

BLALOCK ROAD / ECHO LANE to GESSNER ROAD

Chase Bank / 9309 Katy Freeway
At the southwest corner of Echo Lane and Katy Freeway is a Chase Bank, starting where the Echo Lane Shopping Center tenants are. The center was built in the mid-1970s (not the same facade, that can partially be seen with the Kids' Kounty pictures and if you go behind Echo Lane). You can see a PDF site plan can be seen here, archived from here. An older 2013 plan can be seen here, which is also saved. It has Loehmann's on it.

On Chase Bank specifically, this was a McDonald's restaurant for most of the center's life, but it was hobbled by a lack of space for a drive-through (it did have a walk-up window though). In 1996 it was closed (presumably moving to the gas station across the street described in the previous entry), and Chase soon renovated and reopened the building in 1999.

9311 Katy Freeway
As of 2022, this strip (adjacent to Chase, facing west) includes Corner Bakery Cafe (here since 2014, replaced Wallpapers to Go), an AAA office, Village Cobbler Shoe Repair, and Vivaldi Music Academy.

Kroger / 9325 Katy Freeway
This Kroger store is branded as "Kroger of the Villages", though if that meant anything, it doesn't anymore these days.

The first reference to this supermarket, originally Safeway, was mentioned in a January 1975 paper with this store and 16 others having a deli, indicating (along with HCAD information) that the Safeway opened in 1974. In 1989, the store was converted to AppleTree and was one of the few, if only, AppleTree stores to ever receive a full remodel and expansion under that name, completing the remodel in 1990. It appears that it was the closest thing AppleTree had to a flagship store, with that store being the only store in 1993 to have "Old World Style Bread", where bakers mixed various types of frozen dough to create the bread. "Mixes of rye, whole wheat, oat, millet, flax seed, and molasses are combined with sunflower seeds, toasted soybeans, caraway seeds, and natural grains to create an array of different breads," read the 1993 article.

The shops to the west of them have different addresses, 9315 Katy Freeway for those that face Katy with the others having separate addresses. It's possible that 9315 Katy was just one thing at one time but these days has Starbucks, Baskin-Robbins, and Campus Cuts. The Baskin-Robbins is believed to have originally been part of the Kids' Kounty/Fun City (see "T.J. Maxx" below). It has been in this location since 1996. The Starbucks opened in 2003, which is around the time StarbucksEverywhere first visited it.

Walgreens / 9329 Katy Freeway
Walgreens was originally charter tenant Sav-on Drugs. In late 1984, Walgreens took over the Houston Sav-on Drugs but continued to operate them as that name until they were rebranded as Walgreens soon after. The sale appears to be related to the acquisition of The Jewel Companies in 1984 and the need to reduce debt load. In any case, Sav-on Drugs continued for more than two decades elsewhere before it was sold to CVS as part of later parent Albertsons was sold to private equity. The current Walgreens is significantly smaller Memorial Dance Center and adjacent Memorial Dancewear take up the space where Sav-on used to be.

9347 Katy Freeway
This was the site of the original third big tenant of the center--Kids' Kounty (9345 Katy Freeway originally). Kids' Kounty was a large upscale toy store (selling everything from pets to childrens' clothing) with even a Baskin-Robbins inside (very forward-thinking for 1970s retailing). It opened October 1973 but closed less than two years later, transforming itself into the more traditional Fun City Toys upon reopening. (The Baskin-Robbins seems to have split off around this time; seems the old Kids' Kounty space was sub-leased to Baskin-Robbins as an independent store, before it moved to the opposite side of the complex). Fun City Toys was eventually bought by Lionel Corporation (after having sold off its namesake train line to General Mills' toy division in 1969). The toy stores were rebranded once more as Playworld Fun City, but a full rebranding to Lionel Playworld never happened before the Houston stores closed as Lionel Corporation filed for bankruptcy and closed the store as part of scaling back their company. It was Front Row from 1984 to 1990 (Front Row changed the address). Front Row was a part of the United States Shoe Corporation's retail group which owned several mall clothing shops at the time (Casual Corner, T.H. Mandy, Ups & Downs, J. Riggings, etc.), with Front Row being a new discount clothing retailer (though it never seemed to get off of the ground beyond a handful of Houston stores). A Shepler's store briefly occupied the space (1991-1993) and from 1996 to early 2014, it was Loehmann's. Loehmann's was easily the most successful tenant in that space to that point, but it went out of business with the chain, with T.J. Maxx (or TJMaxx, depending on stylization) taking its place in early 2015 (it moved out in the early 2020s). Other stores that also occupy the old space of Kids' Kounty include SAS Shoes, Firehouse Subs, and a vacancy where Mattress Firm used to be.

Echo Lane's sole "outlot" is 9313 Katy Freeway, split between Calico (formerly known as Calico Corners) and Lupe Tortilla (which absorbed Kobe Japanese Restaurant...it closed after 2019).

9430 Katy Freeway
This office building (formerly 9430 Old Katy Road before the highway widening obliterated Old Katy Road) actually survived the widening, though the front parking lot was destroyed (and in effect, made the front door worthless, it's not even connected via sidewalks). According to old newspapers, one of its earliest tenants was R.M. Mayfield Constructors in 1982, with "Corporate Recruiting Unlimited Personnel Consultants" in Suite 100 in 1983. Another early tenant was the Houston West Chamber of Commerce (1986, suite 130). In February 2006, the building became the West Houston campus of Select Specialty Hospital (the building sporting a logo slightly different than the one seen online, featuring a logo on the west side of the building sporting sporting some version of Garamond but in 2016 the hospital closed permanently. Later it reopened as Trinity Hospital.

9440 Katy Freeway
Originally, this was home to an office building, with a 1984 directory listing a wide variety of businesses including Dr. James P. Boren, Butler Business, "Citizen Busns Mach" (Citizen Business Machines?), Cunningham Co., Ganz Construction, Herrington Chiropractic (also listed as Dr. H Herrington), Inter by Phyllis, Peugeot Motors Inc., Vanreenan International, Wallpaper Shoppe, Zener Electronics. It was demolished in 2005, and only retenanted in 2015 during the time the plat was redeveloped with iFLY (since then, additional buildings were built). The new Florida-based PDQ opened in May 2015. However, in November 2019, it closed down much like the rest of the PDQ restaurants in Houston a year or so prior. Despite that, the signage remains up still as of September 2022.

Lowe's / 9640 Old Katy Road
Lowe's is one of the major Centre at Bunker Hill anchors and opened in fall of 2000 (it appears to be the first tenant, Michaels arts and crafts and Best Buy opened afterward). There were originally buildings for smaller stores facing Katy Freeway/Old Katy Road; unfortunately, these were torn down when the road was widened.

PNC Bank / 9669 Katy Freeway
Located at the direct southeast corner of Bunker Hill Road and Katy Freeway, this bank opened as Compass Bank in 1996 (replacing a gas station-turned-auto dealer), which became BBVA Compass in 2007 following their purchase by Spanish company Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria. In 2019, the "Compass" part was dropped (just "BBVA") but in 2021, the parent company sold the American subsidiary to The PNC Financial Services in 2021.

H-E-B / 9710 Katy Freeway
The anchor of the massive Village Plaza at Bunker Hill, this 128,000 square feet H-E-B opened in November 2008 (a renovation in 2014 added a small addition to the southwest corner. The Bunker Hill store includes/included an in-store restaurant (I'm not sure if it's still there). Unfortunately, the large size doesn't necessarily equate to larger selection, with the produce/perishable area featuring extra space for the large crowds that are there all the time, with the "less-crowded" days not requiring law enforcement to direct traffic.

The Bunker Hill H-E-B (Houston 54 - Bunker Hill #109) is one of the chain's flagship stores and helps cause its vastly overrated reputation (we can't ALL be special). The store has some exterior-accessed stores between the two entrances (as of March 2022, these include Fresco (a frozen yogurt shop) and Nails & Spa of Bunker Hill. Signage mentions inside the store, First Community Credit Union (this has exterior signage but I don't believe any exterior entrances), Solomon Fine Jewelry, and Renewal by Anderson (window replacement--odd choice for grocery sub-leasing).

Nordstrom Rack / 9714 Katy Freeway
This was originally built as a Circuit City (with the new "The City" concept) but Circuit City went bankrupt before opening. It was later sold to Systemax, which opened CompUSA in 2009 (not the "real" CompUSA, instead the computer parts store owned by Systemax's subsidiary TigerDirect). In spring 2013 TigerDirect shuttered its brick-and-mortar operations and in spring 2014 reopened as Nordstrom Rack.

PetSmart / 9718 Katy Freeway
PetSmart moved here in 2009 from 10500 Katy Freeway. There's not much more than can be said about it. It has a Banfield vet office and "Petshotel" (kenneling service).

T.J. Maxx / 9726 Katy Freeway
Sam Moon Trading Company operated here from 2011 to July 2021. A few years later, T.J. Maxx relocated here from Echo Lane Shopping Center.

Burlington / 9730 Katy Freeway
Toys R Us moved here in 2009 (relocating from 9655 Katy Freeway) and was a large dual-brand store with an adjacent Babies R Us with its own entrance. These closed in mid-2018 (there are some pictures at Houston Historic Retail, but it doesn't say which photos are which), having been spared the first round of closures in early 2018 but going down with the rest of the chain later. Burlington takes the 9730 Katy Freeway address and the Toys R Us side, while Ross Dress for Less takes the new 9728 Katy address and the old Babies R Us facade.

Academy Sports + Outdoors / 9734 Katy Freeway
Academy Sports + Outdoors (this location being #10) has been a part of Katy Freeway since the 1960s (see "Hedwig Place" above) and relocated here from 8723 Katy Freeway (also, see "Hedwig Place" above). While it is twice as large as its old location, it is only one story. Academy is the last business in Village Plaza. A number of smaller buildings are in front of the stores, but those won't be covered this update...

The McKinley / 9757 Katy Freeway
Mixed-use apartment tower built in 2021 at the southwest corner of Bunker Hill and Katy Freeway. Previous occupants in this plot of land include Charlie's Hamburger Joint (9747 Katy Freeway, operated here 1983 to 2008), a strip mall, a Texaco at the immediate corner (still a Texaco as of 2004), and a strip mall that was mostly boarded up by 2011. The only open by 2011 was Memorial Village Cleaners at 979 Ste. M (other businesses in the same building had different numbers).

Ciro's Italian Grill / 9755 Katy Fwy.
This moved here in the Katy Freeway widening (see 9090 Katy Freeway entry) but moved again (same address, new building) when the block was re-developed. See the Guadalajara Mexican Hacienda entry for more information.

Hotel ZaZa - Memorial City / 9787 Katy Fwy.
This hotel (see next entry) features "159 guestrooms, including Concept Suites and The Magnificent Seven Suites" and the Tipping Point Restaurant & Terrace. It also includes an apartment building (9789 Katy Freeway), the The McCarthy at Memorial City, which advertises that it shares amenities with the hotel (though has its own pool). The building has about 14 stories.

Guadalajara Hacienda / 9799 Katy Freeway
This address was first developed as Holiday Inn ("Holiday Inn - Katy West") in 1965 and was a typical 1960s motel-type Holiday Inn with a C-shaped building around a swimming pool and a restaurant on the premises. It appears that immediately adjacent to the hotel was a gas station, with the brand almost certainly being a Gulf, supported by this picture from 1974, showing a Gulf sign immediately behind Holiday Inn and the fact that Gulf Oil partnered with Holiday Inns during this era, with them taking a corner of the property. The gas station appears to have been torn down in the late 1980s.

Somewhere around 1990-1991, the hotel was rebranded as Days Inn (Days Inn West), then Quality Inn (by 1997), and even briefly served under the Howard Johnson Inn name by 1999.

Sometime around 2000, the hotel property was closed and torn down. A new restaurant rose from the rubble, with February 2001 holding the opening of Guadalajara Hacienda (taking the 9799 Katy Freeway address), a relocated version of Guadalajara Mexican Grille and Bar, previously located at Kimberly Lane.

Later, in early 2005, Denis' Seafood House relocated from Westheimer Road to a newly built store next to Guadalajara at 9777 Katy Freeway. 2005 also brought the end to a short-lived Verizon store at 9755 Katy (on the former Gulf station plat, likely built 2000 or 2001) for Ciro's, moving from its Campbell Road location to the address, occupying both the Verizon's plat and the former Holiday Inn (it's possible part of the Verizon building was retained and remodeled). It opened in August 2005. The three restaurants remained together for the nearly the next decade until Denis' closed and was torn down in late 2014 for new parking between the other two restaurants.

As Memorial City continued to densify, however, and by early 2016 the rear of the large parking lot was removed for a second Houston location of Hotel ZaZa (opened 2017, 9787 Katy Freeway), bringing the use of the space back to hotel for the first time in almost twenty years. In 2017, Ciro's Italian Grill began to build a larger location behind its existing location, with the 2005 building being demolished upon completion.

Firestone Complete Auto Care / 9823 Katy Freeway
Finding the history of this one was a bit confusing. The address seems to have been shared between the Goodyear (which came before the Firestone) and a health club.

Goodyear Auto Service opened in 1967 using the 9823 address and remained for many years (they sold heavy appliances?) and closed down around 2001. Firestone moved in the next year, though they had a portion that was torn down in the early 2000s that appeared to have a small gas canopy and another building (likely Firestone never used this area). The other building that used the address was what opened in April 1965 as the Memorial-Spring Branch location of Ace Rican's Health & Beauty Spa. By 1967, this had become Ace Rican's Silhouette Spas before 1968 when they were purchased by Presidents-First Lady Spa. From what I can tell, the "Ladies" location was at 9823 Katy and the Mens location was at "9825 Katy" before eventually giving up the 9823 address entirely.

By January 1977, President's First Lady Spa had dwindled to seven locations, reinventing themselves as President's First Lady Family Fitness Centers by the late 1970s. By 1985 it was President & First Lady Health & Racquetball Club, by 1994 Bally's President & First Lady Health Club, and finally by 1996 Bally Total Fitness. It closed around 1997 (by this they had changed names SIX TIMES). Bally Total Fitness continued on in Houston until the early 2010s when it sold its remaining fitness centers in the area to LA Fitness. However, this particular location was wiped off the map by 2001 with the new parking garage for Foley's (now Macy's) built over it.

You can see the streetside signage of both Goodyear and Presidents First Lady here.

Jared The Galleria of Jewelry / 9829 Katy Freeway
This jewelry store moved here around 2005 after a short-lived stay at 999 Frostwood (a new building was built in 1999 shortly after Champs left, approximately where Goode Company Seafood is now, but that same building had to be wrecked just a few years later.

Jared's lot sits on what used to be a main entrance driveway to Memorial City Mall, with Goodyear, then Presidents, then the Foley's parking lot, but the renovation changed all that and in 2001 this was just a stub that went nowhere.

9900 Katy Freeway
Price Club opened here with much fanfare in early November 1992 at its first (and ultimately only, though a second store was planned at West Road and I-45 near PACE and Wal-Mart). Despite a heavy advertising blitz and a merger with Costco Wholesale (which opened nearly a decade later to the east), Price Club announced that due to competition from PACE Membership Club and Sam's Club they announced they were closing in September 1993 and never did convert to Costco. In 1997, Texas Commerce Bank (now Chase) purchased the building and converted it into a large call center, which is still there today.

Jo-Ann Fabrics / 9960 Old Katy Road
The alternate address here is 9960 Katy Freeway (no more Old Katy Road, at least not here). This opened here in 2014, it was Conn's Appliances from 2001 to the early 2010s. Unfortunately as of this writing it is closing due to the liquidation of the chain.

Rooms to Go / 10000 Katy Freeway
This Rooms to Go location opened in 2010 and received a small expansion in 2019. Back in 1974, this was built Ideal Pool Corporation (10500 Old Katy Freeway), and came complete with outdoor models of the pools offered. By the late 1980s, the company (and the pools) were gone. Before the site was torn down for the expansion and redeveloped, it was CSI Collision Specialist at the address, though the building appears to have already been rebuilt by that time.

Ivy Club Apartments / 10060 Katy Freeway
Opened in January 1970 as Gaylord Manor West at 10060 Old Katy Road. It featured 204 units in several Southern plantation manor-themed apartment buildings and was one of the few apartment complexes to allow pets with a deposit (now practically universal). By 1976 Gaylord Manor West had become Gaylord Manor, as its older "twin" Gaylord Manor South (located at 535 NASA Boulevard in Webster) became Gulf Terrace Apartments around this time.

Sometime between 1981 and 1984, Gaylord Manor became Ivystone, which dropped the family sections that Gaylord had, with adults only (when that was still legal). By the early 1990s it was known as The Ivy Club Apartments, the name it still holds today. The two buildings next to the frontage road are all that remain of two larger buildings that surrounded small courtyards (the one closer to Gessner had a pool). These were taken out when Katy Freeway was widened. Additionally, the widening eliminated Old Katy Road, so the apartments were now on the frontage road proper.

GESSNER ROAD to WEST SAM HOUSTON PARKWAY NORTH

iStorage Self Storage / 10200 Katy Freeway
This self-storage building (multi-story) was built in 2017 as Proguard Self Storage and assumed its current name in 2022. Before its demolition in February 2017 for the storage building, this was an office building (built sometime in the 1980s) which had been previously occupied by SLI Group, Inc.

Birons Youth Sports Center / 10225 Katy Freeway

Pluckers Wing Bar/ 10407 Katy Freeway
Pluckers Wing Bar opened in October 2016 but it was not the first restaurant to go here. From 1994 to the mid-2000s, this was occupied by Romano's Macaroni Grill. (The first classified mentioned a need for opera singers, which was apparently one of the early gimmicks of the chain, and were still doing it by 1994). The restaurant appeared to be gone by the mid-2000s and replaced by 59 Diner by 2006, presumably relocating from further down Katy Freeway. It closed 2014 ahead of the rest of the chain.

Originally, the whole shopping center that Pluckers currently anchors was the home to Heritage Air-Conditioning Inc., built by developer Vincent D. Kickerillo, and they installed HVAC units. It was a franchise of Friedrich air conditioners. The facility included the Kickerillo Homes Information Center, a small house-like building that provided information and transportation to Kickerillo's subdivisions in the area. In the mid-1990s it was redeveloped as a shopping center with this address being used for Romano's Macaroni Grill at the end. Later on, half of the center was demolished for Pearl City Centre (10402 Town and Country Way). More on this center in the future.

Pappasito's Cantina / 10409 Katy Freeway
This Tex-Mex restaurant opened in 1992 and shares a parking lot with Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen.

Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen / 10449 Katy Freeway
In writing these highway overviews, Pappasito's and Pappadeaux are often built at the same time and next each other, with near-identical arrangements on the South Loop and Northwest Freeway. In this case, Pappadeaux #9 opened in 1993. It should also be noted that Fuddruckers at 10500 Town and Country Way is behind the two, opened in 1995.

Sam's Club / 10488 Old Katy Road
Sam's Club was opened here in 2001, sharing its parking lot with The Great Indoors (see next entry) which opened soon after. As with many addresses on the north side of Katy Freeway, it was on Old Katy Road, not the frontage road (these would become one after the widening).

Block 10 West Office Park / 10496 Katy Fwy.
In early 2002 (according to grand opening records), this opened as The Great Indoors, a warehouse-style chain operated by Sears with home décor items, including rugs, curtains, appliances, furniture, and electronics. It even had a Starbucks Coffee inside. The chain never reached its potential and was among the last nine to close, closing in early 2012 after Sears killed the remaining stores (a store near Willowbrook Mall had already closed several years prior). A parking garage was soon built behind the building to convert it to an office building, which took a while to reach fruition, but today has WDVG Petroleum Engineering Laboratories, INOV8 Orthopedics, and Envoy Mortgage.

Holiday Inn Express & Suites / 10500 Katy Freeway
The other Holiday Inn Express in this corridor, Holiday Inn Express & Suites Houston Memorial - City Centre, an IHG Hotel opened in 2020 at the site of a PetSmart, which operated from 1990 to 2009 (moved to 9718 Katy Freeway, see above). The PetSmart's address was 10500 Old Katy Road (the reconstruction of Katy Freeway allowed Holiday Inn to have a Katy Freeway address).

Taste of Texas / 10505 Katy Freeway
This restaurant has been in this location since 1991 though dates back to 1977 (originally at Town & Country Village). It boasts steaks and an excellent salad bar, and even features a small retail portion where you can buy raw steaks and branded gifts.

10515 Katy Freeway
This was built as a Bed Bath & Beyond in 1996 with two smaller spaces (including what was a Cingular-turned-AT&T store). By 2011 they were vacant, but within a few years were combined into a Boot Barn. While Boot Barn operates the Bed Bath & Beyond is still vacant (having gone with the chain in 2023).

Goodwill / 10521 Katy Freeway
This was built back in 1996 as Superior Waterbeds with World Market occupying next door at 10519. Superior Waterbeds was replaced by Goodwill Select Store in 2004, and after World Market closed in 2008, Goodwill later expanded into the space with its Computer Works store-within-a-store.

WEST SAM HOUSTON PKWY. NORTH to HIGHWAY 6 NORTH

Arrabella / 10902 Katy Freeway
In 1972, Levitz Furniture began construction on a furniture warehouse (1009 Brittmoore) that featured a railroad spur crossing Old Katy Road. At some point, a showroom was built into the store. In 1996, Levitz was still operating it as "Levitz HomeMakers" but the store likely closed in 1997, with RoomStore operating the furniture store by 1998. All during this time, the railroad paralleling Katy Freeway was removed, but the railroad spur was removed ahead of that. According to a 1995 aerial picture, the spur to the store had the proper railroad crossing markings on the road, as did Brittmoore's crossing and another crossing at Old Katy Road near the Igloo facility. Those were left intact (with the railroad crossing being paved over and signals removed, of course) with the remnants still remaining until the construction of the freeway proper, but Levitz/RoomStore's was already paved over.

In early 2012, RoomStore closed down shortly before the parent company closed the remaining stores later that year. By 2013, the building was torn apart for Arrabella Townhomes, an apartment complex advertising itself as "luxury townhome rentals" (the development uses the same signage from RoomStore). Arrabella also used 10902 Katy Freeway as the address rather than the Brittmoore address. Ironically, Arrabella's clubhouse and main office is directly off Brittmoore while the RoomStore faced Katy Freeway.

The Grove at Wilcrest / 11070 Katy Freeway
This apartment building was completed in mid-2014. It utilizes the stoplight at the westbound frontage road and North Wilcrest.

Prior to this (before demolition) it was numbered as 11070 Old Katy Road and built as Fountains at Wilcrest, a 27-building office park. (Korean Presbyterian Church ended up moving up to some of the buildings in the 1990s, if not buying the entire facility). By 2004 it was operating as "All Nations Temple" (technically All Nations Temple Inc., for whatever reason this was not considered non-profit).

Brenner's Steakhouse / 10911 Katy Freeway
Brenner's goes way, way back, back to 1963 according to first newspaper mentions (HCAD says 1960). Originally "Brenner's Steak House", then "Brenner's Restaurant" by the early 1970s. In late 2002, the restaurant closed when the family retired but Landry's reopened the restaurant, consulting with the widowed Mrs. Brenner to recreate some of the recipes.

In 2020, 10919 Katy Freeway, a small office building nearby, was torn down for additional parking.

Exxon / 11035 Katy Freeway
Originally, the Exxon and McDonald's (both built in 1994) were one structure until it was closed and rebuilt in 2016, with Exxon (Timewise) only remaining. The McDonald's (now in a separate purpose-built building) received the address of 940 N. Wilcrest Drive. In the early 2020s the Timewise was rebranded to Honey Farms due to Shell buying Timewise.

When it was rebuilt, it took over a vacant lot that was gone for years (11017 Katy Fwy., a former Mobil).

Moon Valley Nurseries / 11222 Katy Fwy.
Formerly addressed as 11222 Old Katy Road, the oldest record I can find this as was in 1987 as Nils Sefeldt Mazda. In 1992 this became Jeff Haas Mazda and remained until 2019 when it was relocated. In 2022 Moon Valley Nurseries (a large garden center) opened.

IHOP / 11225 Katy Freeway
This was originally a Gallagher's Restaurant from 1979 to 1989, then briefly "Jack O'Neil's" before becoming International House of Pancakes (now known as IHOP) in 1992.

Twin Peaks / 11335 Katy Fwy.
Dirty's, a Houston-based restaurant with about two other locations, first opened here in 1994 and closed around 1999, replaced with Mesa Grill (Tex-Mex restaurant that had another location at 1971 W. Gray). In March 2001 it closed (the West Gray location remained open for a while longer) and was replaced with King Fish Market eleven months later.

A letter in the Houston Chronicle in early 2006 mentions that the bar was full of chain smokers, as even though smoking was still allowed (until September 2007), many restaurants banned the practice, leaving King Fish Market as a congregation spot. It didn't even last until the ban, and in 2007, the building became a location of DiMassi's Mediterranean Buffet. In 2009 it closed and remained boarded up for a few years before Twin Peaks opened in 2014.

Carrabba's Italian Grill / 11339 Katy Freeway
Carrabba's Italian Grill is a Houston original, though this location opened in 1993 as part of a partnership with Outback Steakhouse Inc. to expand the brand in Houston and in Florida (Outback's home state) before OSI purchased the chain entirely.

Ethan Allen / 11431 Katy Freeway
This store opened as Georgetown Manor in December 1994, a retailer featuring Ethan Allen furniture. By 1999 it was already rebranded as Ethan Allen.

Taco Cabana / 11441 Katy Freeway
Taco Cabana opened in 1995. Like many other Taco Cabanas, it has ditched the classic black-and-neon sign for a pink one and is not open 24 hours anymore (this one closes at 10 pm).

11611 Katy Freeway
This building was built in 2005 with a Starbucks and a few other spaces. As Starbucks Everywhere shows it looks like it was built with three spaces with Acceptance Insurance in suite B but as of 2024 the back two suites have been taken up by a restaurant, Tasty Munch.

Mac Haik Chevrolet / 11711 Katy Freeway
Built as Tom Peacock Chevrolet in 1970, and eventually sold to Mac Haik in the early 1980s (rebranded to "Mac Haik's Peacock Chevrolet" in 1983 and eventually Mac Haik Chevrolet, though before 1988 as Wikipedia suggests), the peacock logo (suspiciously similar to NBC's long-running peacock logo) from the Tom Peacock days still is part of Mac Haik Chevrolet to this day. Nearby was Kirkwood Gulf, at the direct corner of Kirkwood and Katy Freeway. It opened in 1968 (11701 Katy Freeway). Kirkwood Gulf later became Kirkwood Chevron in 1987, and in 2006, it closed. Sometime around 2007, the gas station was demolished and turned into an expansion of Mac Haik with little trace left except the Chevron sign shape, now used as an additional sign for Mac Haik.

Cavender's Boot City / 12141 Katy Freeway
This space was originally built as Lewis & Coker #18 in 1974 to serve as a complement to the large Kmart 3153 next door. In 1978 it closed (while Kmart was still there) serving as Superior Waterbeds from 1981 to 1991, and has been Cavender's since 1993. Sadly it features just a backlit sign and not a "neon Cavender".

The Kmart itself at 12151 Katy Freeway closed in 1995 (part of a consolidation to build the Super Kmart on Westheimer) and today this is a shopping center with a variety of tenants. These will be covered in-depth in the future, but for now, here is the current leasing PDF, archived from this link. Unusually for redevelopments of this type, the garden center's semi-enclosed area was left alone and became a courtyard for the Hibachi Grill & Buffet.

Pappy's Cafe / 12313 Katy Freeway
Pappy's Café was known as a somewhat grungy restaurant coming off as a roadside cafe (part of their charm) serving steaks and hamburgers. Fearless Critic Houston Restaurant Guide gave them a C (between a D- and A+), despite congratulating them for homemade hamburger buns and bacon-wrapped foodstuffs. That was back in 2008 in their old location (described above, 9041 Katy Freeway). The new location opened in 2018 in a former Texas Land & Cattle restaurant (operated from 1999 to 2017). The building opened as a Shoney's, which operated from early 1995 to around fall 1998.

Courtyard by Marriott / 12401 Katy Freeway
Built as a Hilton Inn (presumed to be a lower-cost version of the hotel chain) and internally Hilton Inn West, like the Hilton Inn on the modern-day Beltway 8, featured a restaurant ("The Veranda") in its early years of operation. In 2002 it was renovated and reopened as The Courtyard by Marriott (better known as just Courtyard by Marriott).

Hyatt Regency / 13210 Katy Freeway
Opened in November 1983 as Hyatt Regency West Houston (one of the larger hotels in the metro, and the one farthest out), the Hyatt Regency, like many of the businesses on the north side of the freeway was on Old Katy Road, though in the case of the area around Eldridge, Old Katy had to be redirected around the underpass Eldridge had for the railroad, and around the time the Hyatt was built, Old Katy Road simply turned off to Dairy Ashford, which turned west and connected to Eldridge. For the hotel, Old Katy Road merely provided access to the hotel's parking and a small subdivision behind the hotel (which later had a buyout offer due to the expansion of Park Row and also flooded during Harvey, likely the remaining houses aren't long for this world). Additionally, a stoplight at Dairy Ashford also originally provided signalized access into the parking lot. In 1992, it became Marriott-Westside and in December 2000 rebranded again as the Omni Houston Hotel.

Moreover, due to the Katy Freeway rebuild it meant Old Katy had to be upgraded to the new westbound frontage road (allowing highway-side access for the first time) but making the former Old Katy entrance from Eldridge right in/right out due to that section of road needing to be rebuilt at grade due to the railroad underpass being removed. In the mid-2000s (2007?) the tennis courts, a feature since day one, were removed for reasons unknown.

In very late 2015 or very early 2016, the north part of the parking lot was reconfigured for the extension of Park Row behind the hotel. Finally, in 2021, the Hyatt Regency name returned to the hotel, becoming Hyatt Regency Houston West.

NORTH HIGHWAY 6 to US-90

Mambo Seafood / 20210 Katy Fwy.
Opened in 2000 as Bennigan's (closed in 2008), then became 59 Diner for a few years, then reopened as Bennigan's again in 2014 but closed by 2015. By 2016 it reopened as Al Caliente...but it also closed within a year. Since 2018 it has been Mambo Seafood.

Sam's Club / 20424 Katy Freeway
The page for Sam's Club #4764 sparse on information but it opened in February 2002 (a development made only possible from the abandonment of the railroad, it was about four tracks at this point).

Costco Wholesale / 23645 Katy Fwy.
This Costco at the southwest corner of Grand Parkway and Katy Freeway opened in early February 2014.

Buc-ee's / 27700 Katy Freeway
The Katy Buc-ee's is not the last address on Katy Freeway before it merges back with US-90 west of Brookshire, but it is the last one we'll cover today. This Buc-ee's is massive with a 56k square feet store, 120 gas pumps, and a record-breaking 255 feet long car wash tunnel (longest in the world!)

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