Jimmy Jackson's Enco, 3000 South Texas Avenue

Nothing remains of the first Jimmy Jackson's Exxon but a rather standard Eckerd-turned-CVS. (Photo by author, 3/20)
Built in the 1960s at 3000 South Texas Avenue, "Jackson's Enco" eventually became Jimmy Jackson's Exxon (in the early 1970s, Standard Oil of New Jersey renamed to Exxon to unify the Esso and Enco brands), and by the early 1980s, gained a second entrance when Restwood Drive was rebuilt as an extension of Villa Maria Road. The gas station was eventually sold to focus on the College Station location and in 1998, an Eckerd was built at the site and eventually converted (around late 2004) to CVS/pharmacy when parent company J.C. Penney decided to liquidate the chain.

Rock Prairie Crossing

The "Pharmacy" on the right originally held the "Signature" logo.

In the adventures of of this website thus far, we have covered all the former Albertsons and all the former AppleTree stores, but haven't gone too deep into the grocery stores currently in the area. That is about to change, as we are about to tackle Rock Prairie Crossing, a shopping center built in 2000.
The shopping center is anchored by Kroger (3535 Longmire) and had massive success, as it had (for about a decade) the distinction of being the farthest-south grocery store in town, and is usually still pretty crowded.

The Starbucks wasn't originally there, it appears that according to the map, it was an enclosed cart area (the carts were moved outside after Starbucks), but it did appear after a few years, either opening before or around the same time the Albertsons up the street did.

It features a prominent and open mezzanine; however just for offices seems a bit of a waste, it almost feels as if the upper level was meant to be used for additional seating or some other purpose, given the (original) presence of a daycare and all that. The Randalls store in downtown Houston (though given how much the chain continues to shrink, I don't know how long it will last) also has an upper level like Kroger's but is well-utilized. You can sit down with your items purchased from the Starbucks up there or other items (like the deli or the bakery) and eat them while having nearly a full view of the store below.

As for a basic description of the store, it's around 63,000 square feet, has a bakery, deli, produce department, meats and seafood toward the far back right of the store, then pharmacy to the right, with some space cut for the "curb-side pickup". I did not take any pictures of the store, partly because you can find it elsewhere. The decor on Yelp from 2010 is still the Kroger's design now and Google also has a few photos (but it's contaminated with stock photos that look nothing like this store).

The Kroger currently has "Fresh Fare" décor with tiles featuring orange and green accents ("Millennium Decor") but it may have the Neon Decor.

I actually did acquire a store directory back when the store first opened back when the store's moniker "Kroger Signature" actually meant something (the name was removed sometime last year as of this writing, to just Kroger). This can be seen at my main website, Carbon-izer. While this Kroger did have the day care area, it did not, to my knowledge, have the food court as the 1993 Houston store did.

Nearby is the 3505 Longmire building.

Suite A - This has been DoubleDave's PizzaWorks for years, pretty sure it was an original tenant (so no "suite B"). Originally, there used to be a big glass window where you could see pizza being prepared (with a step for the shorter people in attendance). At some point, it was re-arranged to have that be an open window and the area blocked by the buffet table.

Suite C - Formerly home to FabricCare Cleaners, which moved to a new strip center off Highway 6 (in Tower Point) around 2016-2017 (roughly around that time). In 2020, AnyLabTestNow took up the space.

Suite D - Currently home to a Jimmy John's, which opened around December 2013, after two other locations in town opened (the University Drive East location and the Texas Avenue/Holleman location). It used to be Blue Kangaroo Children's Boutique, which opened in 2004. It may have been something else before that.

Despite parking under trees being a danger, this shopping center is always crowded.
Suite E - Was the home of W.E. Gibson Insurance (possibly original), then became the home of Athena Learning Centers in 2013 but closed five years later (likely due to lease issues). It has since been absorbed into Spec's.

Suite F - The former location of Maggie Moo's. I don't know when it closed, probably late 2000s (Googling shows it was definitely open in 2006) then absorbed into Spec's. The franchisee later took to Southwest Crossing as "Harold's Hot Dogs & Ice Cream" until it eventually folded.

Suite G - Spec's Liquor is here, it used to be a modern location of JJ's Liquor. After Spec's bought the JJ's Liquor mini-chain, it renamed and expanded into the former Maggie Moo's space.

Moving clockwise, there's a CVS/pharmacy at 1800 Rock Prairie, which I didn't photograph but it (like almost every CVS in Texas prior to 2005) was an Eckerd originally. I didn't take a picture of it, but the Google Street View people did. A bank building, located at the corner of Longmire and Highway 6, isn't part of the shopping center.

You can see where it was repainted, as the pre-2009 Jack in the Box logo was tilted at an angle.

The next plot is a vacant space, an empty Jack in the Box. I think it was built a bit after the Kroger store, so maybe 2000 or 2001. It first temporarily closed in summer 2017 due to ownership transition (to corporate from franchisee, along with the other stores in the area). It briefly reopened around the fall of that year, but sadly, the reopening was short-lived and it closed soon after (probably a month or two). As the blacked-out Jack in the Box logo on the signage still shown through on the main shopping center (still never updated to the 2009 logo), it made me sad that I couldn't head down there after dark from my then-home at Longmire (I lived briefly at Longmire and Deacon) to pick up food, and only reminded of Jack in the Box's fairly wide and diverse menu from commercials nearly four decades old. It was one of my go-to places in spring 2017 when I didn't live at Longmire (but lived in the general area), going there for the late-night "Munchie Meals" after my shift ended at a call center near Highway 40, which is where I worked at the time. One of the drive-through windows looked bashed up; clearly someone had tried to force it open as part of a robbery attempt. I also think the access problems had something to do with it...

There's another building (3515) with the UPS Store (suite B) and then T. Jin China Diner (sit-down Chinese restaurant) and the UPS Store (in suite B), don't know when either opened, then another strip to the immediate left of Kroger (3525).

Suite A - Cotton Patch Cafe has been here since the early 2000s, and I ate here once or twice. Haven't been back in a number of years.

Suite D - Because Cotton Patch takes up so much space, there's not an A through C, and suite D is occupied by Freebirds World Burrito (always a good lunch option).

Suite F - Kolache Rolf's (a good breakfast option; suite E is skipped due to Freebirds' larger footprint).

Suite G - Facelogic BCS (some sort of "day spa", website)

Suite H - Angel Nails

Suite I - Balboa's Barber Studio currently, former home of Classic Cuts Plus

Suite J - Used to be GNC, now "American Shaman", selling CBD oil products. Pretty sure the former (original?) tenant GNC was shut down in the round of closings in 2019.

Suite K - Eye Trends as of this writing, though a sign at the corner of Longmire and Graham promises a new location.

Suite L - Witt's End, local woman's clothing shop

Suite N - Hallmark store (no suite M).

Wrapping up on this shopping center, what was mildly interesting is the fact that the center's first few years had NOTHING across the highway, with only a "two way dead end" sign at Rock Prairie's other side. There's also a large right of way between the highway frontage road and the frontage road; this was created when the frontage road was rebuilt around 2008.

UPDATE 04-24-2021: Minor rewrite for better flow. AnyLabTestNow opened.
UPDATE 12-02-2024: Should be mentioned the Jack in the Box was reopened as Bank of America in 2021.
UPDATE 04-08-2025: It appears that as for 3515 Longmire, results turn up for MacRaven Coffee Company in suite A as of December 2001/early 2002 (by the time it had a ribbon cutting with the Chamber of Commerce it had been open for over six months) with Cingular taking up the other space. In late 2003 MacRaven closed with T. Jin opening within a few months. Cingular, meanwhile, jumped over to Rock Prairie Road around 2005 and was replaced with The UPS Store in 2006 (same time as the Bryan location opened).
UPDATE 03-01-2026: Suite F in the early 2000s (2000-2002) briefly had a second location of The Bagel Station, which had its original location at Culpepper Plaza.

Culpepper Plaza / Central Station

Signage and Chick-fil-A, May 2019
Culpepper Plaza (renamed as Central Station following a 2007 renovation) opened in March 1976 with a Safeway (later AppleTree) and a full collection of other retail stores. Even into the 1990s it had large stores like Weiner's, Eckerd, and AppleTree, but by the early 2000s these were gone, prompting a large-scale remodel starting in late 2006.

je of Southern Retail did send me a screencap of a video taped at some point in the 1990s; regrettably, it's a photo of a television screen and poor quality. You can see that here. Below is an ad of Culpepper Plaza circa 1988. It lists Quick as a Flash, which is strange since not even the parking lot is connected.

Early advertisement for Culpepper Plaza. Most, if not all, of the tenants are described below.
I've created a list of tenants from directory listings, newspaper archives, and others, and while the list continues to be improved as far as historical tenants go it's still not complete as I'm sure I may have missed something. Starting from the block next to 1503 Texas Avenue South is where the addresses start. To assist visual learners, I've added PDF (archived from here) though it appears to date from prior to 2017.

It also has some extra stuff that (like Central Station 2) that currently isn't covered yet. We'll start with 33 on the map, as that's the lowest address, 1505A. It appears that this was a second phase, built in the early 1980s. 1505A - As far as back as 1981, this was the local Bennigan's restaurant. I never ate at Bennigan's, but it had an old mural (of the logo, nothing special) facing Texas Avenue. It survived the Central Station remodeling, but it closed in July 2008 when the parent company imploded. Later, it became an AT&T store, which it is today. This was one of the stores on the "smaller strip" and facing Texas Avenue. While the AT&T store is quite spacious, imagining it as a full-service restaurant looks a little cramped.

1505B - Space 32 on the map, the first reference for a restaurant here is "Shrimpboat" (1981-1982), then Oscar's (1983-1984), then A Good Humor Bar (1984-1985), then a restaurant called Singapore starting in 1986.
(pic) In 1991 it became China Wok (a close turnover in May 1991 between Singapore and China Wok suggest a name change, given that Singapore was advertising new management in 1990) and it closed in 2005, replaced with Ping's Buffet (2005-2015), then He's Cafe (2015-2019), then F&F Japanese Grill" (Fast & Furious Japanese Grill) since 2021.

1507 - Space 31A on the map, from 1979 to October 2005 this was Swensen's. Swensen's was a great ice cream parlor (they also had a few food items like hamburgers and hot dogs) at its peak, they had things like kids' meals in paper foldout pink Cadillacs, a "clown face" ice cream using an inverted cone as the hat, and a bunch of other things. It also gets coverage in the 1979 TAMU yearbook, a two-page spread!

After a short time as Little Blue Heron, a steakhouse/seafood restaurant, it became Firehouse Subs in December 2008.

1509 - Space 31 on the map and from summer 2009 to late summer 2014, this was the location of Spoons Yogurt, which I believe was a student project at Mays Business School and quickly franchised under the name "3 Spoons Yogurt", with locations opening as far away as Clemson, SC, Lawrence, KS, and Knoxville, TN, but they all failed. Only the locations built in Texas (Huntsville, Waco) did well and remained open.¹ Spoons closed in fall 2014 and became Galaxy Ice Cream & Bubble Tea (a/k/a Galaxy Tea House), but Spoons Yogurt reopened in the space by late September 2015...and restored the cafe to its original appearance before closing for good in early 2020 (before COVID I believe...the other locations were sold to another operator and rebranded as Farmhouse Frozen Yogurt). By spring 2021 it became Rush Bowls, which closed a few years later before becoming a location of Midnight Cravingz in August 2025. I think 1509, as a space, only came about after Little Blue Heron closed and the space was divided.

1511 - Marked as space 30 on the map, in 1980 this was "Mother Nature Home of Nutrition" and later Games Galore back in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In 1995 it opened as a Mail Boxes Etc. store and rebranded in 2003 as The UPS Store.

1517 - The current Eyemart seems to have a few smaller tenants over the years. 1513 was used forr Schmaltz's Sandwich Shop in 1980 (it sounds a lot like Schlotzsky's (it's still in Waco! Does that that not look suspiciously like another better-known sandwich?) and briefly around 1987-1988 it was Peso Exchange and then for Dollar Tree from 1996 to 2007. 1515 had been used for Godfather's Pizza from 1980 to 1988. There was also a "Luvz Jewelers" in 1517 in the 1990s as well (per directories). The modern history of this tenant starts in 2009 when it became Muldoon's Coffee House in fall 2009 before closing in fall 2014. Following this it became Eyemart Express.

1519 - Supercuts has been here since 1989, but in 1982 it was the College Station location of Jack 'n' Jill Donuts (they also served frozen yogurt at that location). I'm guessing that it probably disappeared around the same time the Bryan location did.

1521 - Space 27 on the map started out as a restaurant called "Little Mexico" in 1980 and in mid-1982 became Texas Tumbleweed, a steakhouse chain (with the tagline, "Everything A Steakhouse Used to Be")² In September 1986 it closed after the chain went bankrupt. It served briefly as the home of StageCenter and was to even be there the whole 1986-1987 season but it was leased out last minute with Cow Hop Junction opening in 1988³. Cow Hop Junction was a spin-off of the Cow Hop in Northgate but it also closed within a few years.

This was first added to this site over ten years ago, but not on this page.
Pancho's Mexican Buffet was here from early 1992 to around 1999. I never liked it because of the large, creepy "sun masks" hanging above the dining area. Los Cucos Mexican Cafe replaced in 1999. 1601 - Going back over to the end of the plaza near Dominik Drive and marked as 01 on the map, this space has traditionally housed a large restaurant though sadly it hasn't been a restaurant for a number of years. (Researching this has been difficult since results for 1601 S. Texas Avenue show up as well). Rosewood Junction opened in 1978 and was named after (and operated by) an eponymous progressive country-bluegrass band that had been formed shortly before the opening of the restaurant. It closed in 1981 and was replaced by Tecs in 1982, a bar and grill with what appears to be a "modern" 1980s theme, with arcade games and a "Flashing Neon Special" ("At any time on any day, get fantastic bar specials when our good times bartenders switch [on] the flashing bar neon"). This was owned by David Tinsley (of Tinsley's Chicken-N-Rolls, other restaurants in the area and Waco were under his company at one time). Sometime around 1983 it was retooled as Padre Cafe, with a new theme and menu (especially to de-emphasize the alcohol aspect), but it closed in December 1985. It was briefly Creole Cafe though that ceased operating after just a few months. In May 1987 it reopened as Evie Brown's Good Times Cafe but it closed in May 1988.⁴ In summer 1989, Mama's Pizza opened⁵, relocating from 1037 Texas Avenue South but it closed in 1991.

From 1992 to 1999, this was Bullwinkle's Grill & Bar was located at the very end of Culpepper Plaza, closest to Dominik Road. I do vaguely remember visiting it when I was younger, and it's still talked about on TexAgs sometimes.

I believe I scanned this from a phonebook.
Even though Bullwinkle's only operated for seven years, that was more than what any other restaurant could brag. Around December 1999, City Crab Seafood opened but that too failed before its one year anniversary. After a brief stay as "Pour House" (beer and some food items, but mostly beer) in early 2003, it was soon sold to be Margarita Rocks (newspaper archives suggest that Margarita Rocks was getting stuffed checked off with the TABC while Pour House was still operating), with the new Margarita Rocks operating by late 2003. Margarita Rocks was another relatively successful operation, closing in August 2009 after six years. The restaurant was replaced by Katsuya in 2011. At this point, I'm not sure if it opened. I read that a kitchen fire early on ended it, but the source has been discredited. Either way, the sign remained up for another year. Sadly, this also meant the legacy of restaurants here would come to an end. TITLE Boxing Club, the first non-restaurant in the space, operated from late 2014 to early 2020 (or very late 2019), and a few years later, after the 2020-2021 issues got squared away, The Cut Axe Throwing opened in around December 2021.

1607 - Listed as "2" in the directory. In 1980 this was That Place II (also known as That Place), a hair salon, and became Glamour Hair Studio around 1990. By 2000, Total Tan opened, and this operated through the renovation of the plaza until around 2011. After a brief period of vacancy became Apex Salon and Cuttery. In 2019, Funky Cheveux moved from Post Oak Square. It was operational until some point in 2024, and records show that it may have been briefly Priscilla Flores Hair. Funky's old Instagram shows that Priscilla was one of the stylists there, so it assumes an easy transition, but as of January 2026 the space has been vacated.

1609 - Marked as "03" on the map, this has been H&R Block since 1992 and for many years, even into the early 2020s, occupied 1611 as well. In 1981, 1609 was taken by Al's Formal Wear and remained that way for most of the 1980s.

1611 - Serendipity Shop was the first tenant I can find here back in 1978, a gift shop. By 1981, 1611 was taken by Bride 'n Formal (a long-defunct bridal salon owned by the tuxedo-focused Al's). While it was occupied with H&R Block for many years as auxiliary space, by early 2026 it was an Avis/Budget storefront. 1613 - Lewis' Shoe Stores was the first tenant here in 1979 and by 1986 was the home of Brazos County Republican Headquarters. The next reference I can find to theis address is Victoria Beauty Spa in 2001, which was active at least through the end of 2008. From early 2012 to early 2015 this was Grateful Dog Self-Serve Dog Wash. Despite constantly advertising on TexAgs, I was not sold on the idea of a dog wash place--with all the effort it takes to load a filthy dog into your car and pay someone for use with presumably hoses and soap, why not just use your hose at home? It 2017, it reopened as Sweet Horse Bubble Tea, a "dessert café" with rolled ice cream and bubble tea. Historically, this was once part of (store space-wise) Lewis Shoe Store back in the 1980s (even in 1980). I don't have information on what it was prior to that, I know that it was one of the many vacant stores on that end of the shopping center. Sweet Horse closed sometime around 2020, not too long after a second location in H-E-B Jones Crossing closed (probably a reason for the parent company's demise—the H-E-B location did a terrible business). This was replaced with GLGT Bubble Tea (Good Luck Good Time). The map I have marks 04 and names it as "College Station Bubble Tea" but it was Sweet Horse at the time.

1617 - The first reference I can find for this address is U.S. Black Belt Academy in 1989, but the last reference I can find for it as this address was an article about the eighth year of its "Ninja Turtle Day Camp" in 1995. I know that before Tanaka Ramen opened in 2017 it was vacant for a VERY long time (after the center was renovated, still empty). Marked as "05" on the map.

1619 - Labeled as "06" on the map, this was originally the home of "Animal World Too" (spin-off of a long-standing Manor East Mall store) from 1978 to 1985.⁶ From 1985 to 1994 this was Lippman Music which moved to Northgate, which at the time, was cheaper rent than Culpepper Plaza (according to what newspaper results told)...and rent was a deciding factor in permanently closing Lippman Music in 2017. Around 1997 Coach's Liquor opened here though it looks like it co-existed with the Southgate store. In spring 2014 the store closed (no doubt a difficult time with Spec's on the other side), and In October 2017 it reopened as Honolulu Poke House (which closed in January 2021). In 2025 it became Tao Rice Roll.

1621 - Marked as 07 on the map, this was originally The Seat Cover, a womens clothing boutique. In 1983 newspapers marked the opening of Corn Popper (gourmet popcorn, presumably, if so, the first store of such in College Station, even if such a thing was short-lived). In the mid-1990s this was an art store called Gallagher's Gallery, later rebranded as Aggieland Depot to focus more on TAMU gifts and artwork by the early 2000s, but disappeared after 2003. Sometime in the 2010s, a State Farm agent (Scot Semple) moved in.

1623 - Marked as 08 on the map, this was first the home of Douglas Jewelry in 1980 and after closing around 1987 became Luvz Jewelry & Accessories (before it jumped over to 1517 in the 1990s). In 1993 it became the home of Triple Crown Sportscards and that closed around 1996 before becoming Discount Tobacco in 1997. This operated until around the mid-2000s and was vacant for a while in the revived Central Station but it later became Breezesmokes⁷, which operated from 2013 to 2015. Signature Eyebrow Threading replaced it but was also gone within a few years. In January 2024, it reopened as vegan bakery chain Cinnaholic.

1637 - P.O.E.T.S. Billiards⁸ takes up a block space and opened in 2001. Looking at previous tenants that were absorbed, 1625 was American Passenger Travel Agency in 1980 and operated until around 1984. In 1989, The Logical Place (computers) opened, which used to be known as E&L Computers, and at University Square⁹ moved in. By the end of 1993, however, The Logical Place was gone, having been seized by the IRS for tax evasion. A 1996 directory put this as Linder's High Tech Health, and in November 1998 it was Tres Aggie Gun, "specializing in collectible firearms and ammunition". This operated into spring 2000. 1627 was Sandy's Shoes originally. An old comment (anonymously submitted) explained that Sandy's Shoes was named after the owner and opened in 1977. In 1982 it closed and Containers & More was open by the end of the year, but I can't find anything past that point. Likewise, 1629 Texas was Aggieland T-Shirts in 1979-1980 but no other references later, and I assume it was absorbed into Hastings, the occupant of 1631 and operated until around 1997 when it relocated to a space next to H-E-B Pantry at Holleman Drive. There was no 1633 as far as I can tell (always part of Hastings, I guess). R. Rush & Company (clothing) was located in 1635 initially (I assume that it moved from another location in town) but no references for that address after 1981. For 1637 I can't find ANY references prior to 2001. I assume Hastings absorbed the space and P.O.E.T.S. (marked as 09 on the map) moved in afterwards. (No 1639).

1641 - Marked as "10" on the map, this started as a second location of Wyatt's Sporting Goods in 1979, a locally owned company that had its roots in Northgate and already was arguably one of College Station's oldest businesses. While the other Wyatt's stores disappeared, the business continued in 1992 with a new owner purchasing the store and renaming it as Rick's Sporting Goods. I'm not sure what happened to Rick's Sporting Goods. By 2011 the space was vacant (I can't verify prior to that) but tax records are still active for the business, moving to his owner Richard Gorzycki's house, yet there's no online storefront, even. Sad to see arguably one of the oldest businesses to town become a ghost, but in any case, by the late 2010s the vacancy was finally filled with a new location of Delta Life Fitness (this article suggests that the location was relocated from a different spot in town) though by 2022 was vacant again (I suspect it perished in 2020). As of February 2026 it has been filled with Legacy Athletics.

1643 - From what I can find is this opened as "World of Books" in the late 1970s with an emphasis on Bibles, children's books, cookbooks, and other religious titles (plus jewelry) and in 1982 changed hands to just being "The Book Shoppe" and in 1983 became Samson's Bookery before becoming Champion Rentals (rent-to-own appliances) by 1986. By 1989 it was Lease Town (I believe this later moved to Manor East Mall's strip mall portion, ultimately becoming "Rent City" by the early 2000s before folding). I can't find what it was in the 1990s (if anything) but it reopened in 2012 as Painting with a Twist. In February 2023 it was to be closed but it looks like it was sold and reopened under new ownership. (This is marked as "11" on the map).

1659 - This was originally part of Weiner's (see next entry) and marked as "12A" on the map before opening as Anna's Linens in 2008. In June 2015, Anna's Linens went the way of Weiner's and closed. It became Wally's Party Factory as of summer 2016. Within about a year, that became Party City (for reasons I'm not entirely sure of) until the chain liquidated in early 2025. Later that year it reopened as Crazy Top Deals, which looks almost temporary (just a banner) and might be. There was a fistfight in the parking lot that same day (archived video, contains language and violence)⁹.

1661 - Houston-based Weiner's was here from 1978 to 1998. In summer 1998, Baskin's opened before moving to Tejas Center around 2003. Dollar Tree moved to this location in 2007 from a different place in the strip. 1663 - This was Kids Mart (childrens apparel chain) from 1984 to 1996¹⁰. By 1999 it was home to American Wholesale Mattress (renamed, along with its Bryan location, as All American Sleep & Mattress sometime in late 2001 or early 2002). Not too long after this was vacated and it would remain for a few years before Cato Fashions moved in from 1671 (which was demolished for Kohl's). Cato Fashions also seems to have absorbed the original 1665 Texas Avenue, Hallmark (Starship Hallmark, a franchise found in many Texas malls in the 1980s and 1990s). Additionally, the first local location of Holze Music Company landed here in 1997, was here in the late 1990s and early 2000s (departing in 2006).

1667 - 1667 started as Shala's Apparel Gallery in 1980 (also using the address of 1667-B), the new name of Shala's Shoes, which was located at 707 Texas Avenue prior to this. By the time it went out of business in the fall of 1985 it seems to have focused on apparel and accessories.

The demise of Shala's likely had to do with the poor economy at the time.
It is a little confusing as to what happened next. By spring of 1986 it was the home of Douglas Jewelers (there was a report of a robbery there in March 1986, and again mentioned in July 1986), and in the fall became Suzanne's, an off-price clothing shop with stores from New Mexico to Florida.11, and the continued references to Douglas Jewelers are to 1667-B. Suzanne's went under in December 1991 but Douglas Jewelers lived on. By 1994 it became Sew Vac City before it moved around 2003 (maybe 2002) to a new location in the parking lot of H-E-B. Douglas Jewelers remained until 2008. Brazos Running Company opened in 2012 before moving to 1717, and after another period of vacancy became Grand Nail Spa by the early 2020s. This is marked as 15 on the map. It is also possible part of this tenant was removed for the Kohl's building.

1669 - Earliest reference I can find for this address is Singer Sewing Center (Singer sewing machine dealer) in 1986, though was Radio Shack's first location. Around early 1992 it disappeared and was replaced by Dollar World, but that's the last reference I can find for it. It was one of the spaces demolished for Kohl's.

1671 - The earliest reference I can find for 1671 is in 1981 with R. Rush and Company ("Men's & Women's Tradiitonal Apparel") and in 1982, Sassafras, a women's clothing boutique, opened. Between 1986 and 1990 this was replaced with Colberts College Station (another apparel retailer), and between spring 1993 and spring 1994 this closed with Cato Fashions opening April 1994. Cato would later operate in this space until 2005, likely moving as the store block was slated for demolition for Kohl's.

1673 - The first reference I can find for 1673 was Rosanne's in 1978, a "career woman" store. David's Shoe Box as of 1983, and the last home of Radio Shack, which moved in shortly after afterwards. It received the RadioShack branding later, but this disappeared in the mid-2000s for the redevelopment and was never replaced. After all, there was another store just a few miles down the road at Post Oak Mall.

1701 - Kohl's occupies a huge block of the center these days, having opened in September 2007 and displacing other stores, but it appears that 1701 was never used as an address in Culpepper. Addresses exclusively seem to point to Western Sizzlin (see our post) and some discussions of 1703 refer to it being next to Radio Shack.

1703 - The Curiosity Shop was one of Culpepper's first tenants, opening in September 1976. I can't find any references to it past 1983 and in 1991 it became McGuffey's. By summer 1992 it became Babe's Boutique, which had moved from Post Oak Village. In 1995 it became a Bruegger's Bagels, which was expanding during that time¹² and in 1998 became The Bagel Station (likely a franchisee dispute). At first, The Bagel Station did well, announcing a second location at the new Rock Prairie Crossing but this location closed in 2002, and by the end of 2003 The Bagel Station was gone at Culpepper Plaza, liquidated at auction. Nothing replaced it after that (torn down for Kohl's).

1705 - This store space first held Top Drawer Pant Company (1976-1981), then Krista's Court and Casuals (~1987, may not have opened), and in 1988 became Floppy Joe's Software Store.

1996 ad (source)
According to comments received (edited for clarity), "Floppy Joe's was a place that rented out mostly PC games and later some console games. You left with your rentals in a gallon size Ziploc baggie full of 3.5's. I frequented that place quite a bit, a husband and wife ran it, he was going to A&M and I believe went on to work for Dell, really cool people, but a younger guy bought the store (I think he mentioned his grandparents fronting the money), could have been a sign of the times but it did not last after that."

As an aside on Floppy Joe's, I have to wonder how that even worked, as PC games in that time had notorious copy-protection schemes that often involved looking something up in the manual or on a piece of paper, so I'm wondering if they rented out the cracked copies, which in turn could be re-copied on another floppy disk. After Floppy Joe's it was Juice Stop (1998-1999), Muscle-Tech (2000-2002), and Beignet City Cafe (2003-2004?).

1707 - Earliest reference for this address is Regan's in 1976. It closed in the early 1980s and became the new home of R. Rush & Company (which had been in other spots in the plaza). In 1987, Waterbed World opened, which replaced Waterbeds Unlimited at Brazos Square (which closed in January). Tempo Fashions moved here in 1989, then became The Right Price in 1991 (discount clothing store). The Right Price closed in fall 1995 and RentMart opened in September 1997. It was taken over by Aaron's not too long after, but closed in 1999 for similar business Rent-to-Buy, which in turn was replaced with Select Furnishings & Rentals (all this happened in a three year timespan). In fall 2001 it was Aggieland Futon Headquarters, opened as Sas Trading Co. in fall 2003, and closed in late 2006 as it was to be demolished.

1709 - Eckerd was here from 1976 to 2000 when it moved to 2411 Texas Avenue South. I don't have 2411 Texas Avenue South up on the website yet but it's still there, having converted to CVS in 2005.

1711 - Originally home to Carnaby Square, a women's clothing shop. However, references to the address disappear for almost a decade until Payless ShoeSource took up shop in 1990. It closed in 2005. Much like RadioShack, it did not stick around for the redevelopment of the center and the nearby Post Oak Mall location was favored (also like RadioShack, it only survived until the chain went bankrupt). This was the last small store demolished for Kohl's.

1713 - Tax records show this being home to Court's Western Wear from 1976 to the mid-1980s, becoming "The Clothestime" until around the mid-1990s. It then became CiCi's Pizza in 1996. CiCi's Pizza moved to 1905 Texas Avenue South in 2006, and afterward was vacant until become HobbyTown USA (closed in 2015 after being open for about five years). In June 2016, Nothing Bundt Cakes replaced it. (24 on the map).

1717 - I don't think this address was used before the Central Station redo, likely a part of CiCi's as it is marked with 24A on the map (and CiCi's was definitely bigger than the cake shop). This moved here from c. 2013 from Post Oak Mall but closed om the Best Buy/Barnes & Noble shopping center) until it closed in December 2017. I did buy a few video games here used, but many of the merchandise was in poor shape (particularly strategy guides) and overpriced (even before the current retro craze), and the trade-in values were a poor value. After FX closed, Brazos Running Company relocated here before relocating to Century Square between 2022 and 2023. I believe Kay Jewelers absorbed the space.

1723 - From 1996 to 2022, this was Sally Beauty Supply (wiped out in a chainwide purge). From 1986 to 1996 this was Shoe World. A few years later Kay Jewelers moved in (another Post Oak Mall refugee).

1725 - The star of the show, of course, was originally Safeway, opened in 1976 as one of the biggest supermarkets in town (not quite as large as Skaggs Albertsons, but still one of the largest Safeway stores in Texas when it opened). 1725 stretched all the way to the end of the supermarket. In 1988, parent company Safeway Stores Inc. sold off the Houston division, with the stores renamed as AppleTree in 1989. I only have vague memories of AppleTree myself as H-E-B Pantry and Kroger quickly became favorites and other supermarkets in town, including Winn-Dixie and Albertsons were scarcely seen. Despite surviving past the chain's collapse in December 1993, AppleTree closed in November 2002 it closed due to heavy competition and the building was extensively renovated inside and out. Half of the building (and the 1725 address) remained unused until 2012 when OfficeMax (#6501) moved into the side that Spec's didn't use. The store was smaller than the one it replaced just down the road and it closed around December 2017, presumably so the company could consolidate with the Office Depot down the street. In 2019, it reopened as TJX Companies' HomeGoods.

1729 - This address was first used with Spec's Wine, Spirits, and Finer Foods in 2007. Spec's has rearranged some stuff since it opened but remains very similar otherwise. While Houston was familiar with Spec's, there was nothing like it when it opened in College Station.

1727 - We jump over to the building across the parking lot behind the Exxon (not part of the center). From 1977 to 1993 this was 3C Bar-B-Q (later renamed Bar-B-Que Barn by 1992). Afterwards, it became Souper Salad, based out of Houston. It closed around 2011 with several other stores in that timeframe.¹³ In 2013 it reopened as Napa Flats Wood-Fired Kitchen.

1731 - Originally, this was a second restaurant, Reveille's Restaurant opening, but references to it disappeared after the late 1970s with the next mention being University Bookstore in 1992. Apparently the restaurant was converted to the bookstore without a change in ownership, but I can't find when this happened. It closed in 2006 with the chain's failure and reopened as Sleep Station in 2007.

Now this doesn't cover "Central Station 2" near Dominik Drive, a mini-mall of smaller shops, and in the current version of this page doesn't even cover Chick-fil-A, which was built as an outparcel. There may be some links that refer to the Burger King/Chick-fil-A here, but this will be fixed in due time.

1. As of January 2026, they STILL remain open!
2. By 1982 standards, so whatever that used to be. I'm not even sure that in these days we can go back to what had long fallen out of fashion by the early 2000s, large poorly-lit dining rooms. T-Bone Jones was like that, and it was a relic, even back then.
3. StageCenter moved to Westgate Center. They had moved to Culpepper Plaza after the roof of the Palace Theater collapsed. I'm not sure why Cow Hop Junction (and later Pancho's) was labeled as 1521-A, though. Pancho's at least occupied the whole building that Los Cucos now has.
4. The previous version of this page referred to a restaurant called "Jumping Jack Flash". This was the same restaurant, with the trade name being Evie Brown's Good Times Cafe.
5. Tax records indicate there was another restaurant, "Taco Tempo", that signed a lease. It may not have opened and if it did, only was there for a month.
6. Meanwhile, the Manor East Mall Animal World ended up lasting into the very early 2000s just before the mall closed for good.
7. Stylized as "breezEsmokes", which implies that it was to be pronounced as "breeze e-smokes" or "breezy smokes" as opposed to "breeze smokes". 8. Trying to find out what "P.O.E.T.S." stands for has thus far proved elusive. Shoot me an email if you know the answer.
9. The position of the video is almost certainly taken from inside the State Farm office.
10. News articles mention that 100 stores closed that year. I suspect the rest of the chain went under not too long after.
11. Despite the large spread of Suzanne's, precious little can be found on it. There were dozens of stores located in Texas in its peak, it operated in Florida as per official records, but beyond that I can't find much on it.
12. Its net increase/decrease has been surprisingly solid. It has grown and shrunk over the years but in June 1995 it had 160 stores and was growing fast, it still has, as of March 1, 2026, 167 stores nationwide.
13. A "Souper Salad" concept at Sbisa around 1979-1980 was almost certainly unrelated, but likely modeled after the then-new Souper Salads restaurant near Rice University.

UPDATE 03-05-2026: Major update. Almost every entry has been rewritten with lots more information and a dazzling list of footnotes. The Burger King/Chick-fil-A part has also been removed. Previous updates archived.