Schlotzsky's Near Walmart

Author's picture from 2013.
Built in 1998 as Schlotzsky's Deli (2210 Harvey Mitchell Parkway South) with indications it moved from Park Place Plaza, they started serving Cinnabon sometime around 2007 (I remember telling one of my friends this back in high school) and has undergone one other significant change, in 2009 or shortly after, they redecorated (with the "lotz better" décor instead of the "Silly Name, Serious Sandwich" décor) and officially dropped the "Deli" part of the name. (This post is split from this one). [Updated to account for the fact that the "lotz better" décor didn't happen until 2009].

George Bush Drive McDonald's

Picture taken by author, May 2019

I couldn't bear to tear apart my original Marion Pugh article, so this is to replace it. Additionally, as of this writing, I'm in the middle of changing the colors and themes of the page, explaining it why it looks like it does. It's not final, and in need of some tweaks and QoL upgrades. I'm not even sure if it's the direction I want to go (such a change would also alter the US 290 page, and I like the blue and gray).

The "George Bush" McDonald's (111 George Bush Drive West) opened in 1996 with what I remember having a white roof alternating with maroon (mansard roof, similar to the common red or brown roof alternating with white or yellow), though I always felt it would've looked better with maroon and white. After all, it was next to Kyle Field, why was it using the away colors? It renovated sometime in 2003 or 2004 to the current form it is now. I think the reason McDonald's isn't in a hurry to upgrade the exteriors of this restaurant is that it will likely be demolished whenever they do the George Bush underpass project.

The parking lot to the south is owned by Callaway House. The properties were originally part of Marion Pugh Lumber Co. at 101 Jersey Street West (which dated to the 1940s, notably when the International & Great Northern railroad skewed southwest), which would eventually give way to J. Arnold Construction Co., as Marion Pugh (a former football player and class of '41) would pass away in 1976 at the age of 57. J. Arnold actually had a small railroad crossing just to the south of Jersey, which you can still see today (venture a bit south of the McDonald's and around that area).

Treehouse is the ONLY thing that hasn't changed much since this time (Courtesy Henry Mayo)
Marion Pugh Lumber Co. would eventually give way to J. Arnold Construction Co., as Marion Pugh (a former football player and class of '41) would pass away in 1976 at the age of 57. J. Arnold actually had a small railroad crossing just to the south of Jersey, which you can still see today (venture a bit south of the McDonald's and around that area). An Amtrak station had been built in that area, but the area at the corner of Marion Pugh (originally a dirt alleyway after the railroad was abandoned, and upgraded to a full road later) and George Bush (originally Jersey Street) was abandoned for several years before McDonald's filled in.

Apologies to whoever helped me with the Marion Pugh/J. Arnold Construction Co., as I lost the reference...

UPDATE 10-02-2023: As of around September 30 2023, the McDonald's is permanently closed, having relocated to 1011 Wellborn Road (the former Valero site--see here).
UPDATE 04-08-2025: The McDonald's opened in 1996, not 1997. The article has been amended to reflect this. Also added [defunct] to the tags.

Lone Star Pavilion and the Former Red Lobster

This view really hasn't changed all that much in two decades. (Picture by author, 3/2019)
The URL of this page refers to the original name of this post, "Lone Star Pavilion and Friends". It was in reference to the Lupe Tortilla (formerly a Red Lobster), which was grandfathered into a new development. The second version of this page attempts to reorganize this page while discussing the first-generation stores here.

From 1969 to 1973, Oakridge Smokehouse was located at 807 Texas Avenue South in a building that resembled their (still open) Schulenburg location. Later, Mama's Pizza opened in the spot in July 1977. At that location, Mama's even gave out little paper mustaches to promote their restaurant (courtesy the Project HOLD collection). By 1980 there was some sort of split, with a new Mama's Pizza opening at 1037 Texas Avenue and the existing restaurant renamed to Pasta's Pizza Spaghetti & Lasagna. It appears that this vacant for several years save for a 1986-1987 stint as Las Palmas Restaurant. In 1991, it became home to formalwear shop Ladies & Lords, which would close in 1997.

Directly behind it was 805 Texas Avenue, which was Aggieland Schwinn in the 1980s and later Computer Access from the late 1980s to demolition. Originally this was associated with Nelson Mobile Homes Inc., which was redeveloped in the early 1980s to hold Red Lobster. Red Lobster at 813 Texas Avenue South, Red Lobster opened under the General Mills restaurant group. The seafood restaurant was one of the first sit-down chain restaurants (other than Luby's Cafeteria and Western Sizzlin') in the area, and even then, neither of those were full-service.

It's difficult to get a front picture of the Red Lobster-turned-Lupe Tortilla. (Picture by author, 3/2019)

Around 1996-1997, the site was purchased to be redeveloped as a modern power center, with both Ladies & Lords and Computer Access getting evicted (Ladies & Lords never reopened). Computer Access relocated to 1418 Texas Avenue South. The Red Lobster site was kept and incorporated into the new development, with parking restriped. From north to south, the center contains several "big box stores". Barnes & Noble Booksellers opened first in 1997 at 711 Texas Avenue South. Remarkably, the facade hasn't seen much changes since 1997 with not much interior changes either...though the merchandise mix over the years has left much to be desired.

Office Depot next door (715 Texas Avenue S.) opened in 1998. 717 Texas Avenue #A opened as Card & Party Factory in 2001 (moving from Post Oak Village) and closed around 2016; this later became Five Below in 2018 with a new facade. Suite B was originally Golf Etc. (2001-2011) and later became Overlanders, a spin-off of The Bear Mountain of Waco. It became The Bear Mountain Outdoor Gear two years later, and after ownership changed in 2017 (still keeping the name, presumably licensed), it closed in 2018 as it was upgraded to an Ace Hardware at Park Place Plaza. Now it is home to The Cellar Wine & Spirits (since at least 2022). Next to it is "And Sew On" at 719, Aggie Nails & Spa at 721, Kung Fu Tea at 723, and Freezing Cow Rolling Ice Cream at 725. Best Buy at 801 Texas Avenue opened in 1999.

I should note that the in-line spaces might've been renumbered at one point: from 1998 to 2001 there was a Jamba Juice in the center (originally known as Zuka Juice, acquired and rebranded) but records show it having an address of "727 Texas Avenue # C5", though likely it is where Freezing Cow is today. Baskin-Robbins was there too briefly (at 723) and I believe it became KaleidoScoops around 2000 like the Parkway Square location (but closed soon after), becoming Hobbytown USA for several years. Best Buy (801 Texas) is at the end, and goes through mild remodels now and then, I remember it going from carpet to tile and back again (or was it the other way around?)

Best Buy has been here for a number of years (Picture by author, 3/19) In addition to the new Five Below, Red Lobster moved out in 2008 to 1200 University Drive East and was and after a few years of vacancy it was reopened under Lupe Tortilla in spring 2012, which largely kept the exterior.

UPDATE 02-16-2024: Rewrite that incorporates pre-1997 tenants. Renamed to "Lone Star Pavilion and the Former Red Lobster". Added [1960s] to post.

Jack in the Box, Texas Avenue, College Station

This store has since been gutted down to just a few columns and walls and totally rebuilt (with a small expansion).
Jack in the Box store number 683 (1504 Texas Avenue South) opened in 1976. The picture isn't high resolution because I was going to publish it as part of the Texas Avenue City Directory on the next update on Carbon-izer. It's all part of a big site overhaul. The picture is from me, but I don't have the date recorded down of when I took it (likely a few years ago). This is the only Jack in the Box in College Station proper as the one on Rock Prairie closed down a couple of years ago.

UPDATE 11-07-2020: Updated opening date based on new evidence and added a bit on the rebuild.
UPDATE 08-06-2021: Changed date to 1976 and also added [1970s] (instead of [1980s]) to the tag.

Shiraz Shish Kabob

Picture taken January 2017, I had been holding onto this for over two years!
When I added this post in February 2019 (which itself got transplanted to a new post following a reorganization of the website at that time), I didn't have the resources I do now. This restaurant started out as a rather typical (for the time) Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurant as what those restaurants looked like at the time. (It also had the address of 100 Dominik Drive before changing to 110 Dominik Drive a few years later, which it still is today. In late 1986 it closed and moved to Park Place Plaza where it still business as KFC (after a few remodels) and is currently engaged in an ongoing war with the Popeyes catty-corner to it.

In 1987, Quick as a Flash, a photo studio, moved here from Post Oak Mall. Ritz Camera eventually bought it to become "Ritz Portrait Studio" or "Ritz One Hour Photo" (not to be confused with the main Ritz Camera store, which later moved in across the street) and it eventually closed in the mid-2000s. For a very brief time in 2007, this was "The Pump". One of the old comments erroneously referred to it as "The Filling Station" but described it as such:

It specialized in fried everything. They were quite good if you could exist on fried everything. Chicken, chicken fried steak, fried livers and gizzards. They also baked beautifully decorated Christmas cookies. Interesting place.

By fall of 2008, the restaurant was being renovated into its current tenant, Shiraz Shish Kabob, which opened in December of that year. While the heavy lifting was done by The Pump in restoring the building back to restaurant use (I'm guessing that when it became a portrait studio, connections required for food service were simply covered up rather than removed entirely), Shiraz added a fountain to the main dining area for ambience (though it made the restaurant a bit humid). I'm guessing that when it became a portrait studio, connections required for food service were simply covered up rather than removed entirely.

UPDATE 02-27-2023: Complete rewrite done.

Café Eccell's Former Domain

Taken by me, on the last day Café Eccell was legally operating on the city's lease, January 14th, 2014

A few years ago, I showed you the former Luby's, which as of this writing isn't updated yet (when it is, I'll do a quick update on this page to remove that disclaimer), which is where Eccell is located today.

For a number of years, though, Café Eccell was located at the corner of Church Avenue and Wellborn, 101 Church Avenue. The building of Café Eccell, as plain and kind of ugly as it was, used to house the city's first city hall and jail back in the 1940s (built 1947). The city hall moved out in 1970 when a new building was built, and I'm not sure of what it was used for later (the police station was also in Northgate during those days, though not that building). The city held onto the lease and in 1989, it reopened as a restaurant, Café Eccell, which featured a classier, "adult" atmosphere and food that the rest of Northgate lacked, and still tends to lack today.

The first incarnation of Café Eccell closed permanently in March 2014 a few months after its lease ran out (why the city never locked them out is unknown). The restaurant opened in 1989, and after changing of hands to the Dallis family completely around 1991, the restaurant continued for many years. The food was also plagued by inconsistency in its latter days as well as the drama involving the Dallis brothers (a.k.a. Eccell Group), the developers, and the community as a whole.

A few months later the building was wrecked for The Domain at Northgate apartment building, which is only four stories, occupies the whole block, and includes retail opportunities, though only one is currently open (4.0 Cuts Barber Salon, opened spring 2016). The building itself was ready in time for the fall 2015 move-in season, and for a time had a leasing office in the former Cycles Etc. on University Drive. A second tenant, Dat Dog, opened in September 2018. It was an odd choice, considering the chain had no other locations outside of New Orleans, not even in Baton Rouge. The restaurant closed in October 2019, citing parking issues.

Of course, the Domain was not the first development to try to redevelop CE, it was to house "Gameday Centers College Station" circa 2004, a large multi-story tower (about 7-8 stories). Gameday Centers was largely doomed to begin with: the company was building luxury condos for big-money donors to stay in on game weekends, but the asking price of $500,000 a condo was too much* (it would be a better value to buy a house in the Traditions subdivision, which is what many have done), negotiations with the city broke down, and rather than a first phase done by August 2007 and completion by December 2008*, it was canned. The center would've had 10,000 square feet of restaurant and retail space and had even signed a 10-year lease with Café Eccell as part of the agreement*.

*Unfortunately, since this page was originally published, one of the links I had for this page has gone dead and I have been unable to relocate it, as the Batt link is dead and Archive.org does not have it. Likewise the links for the other links seem to be lost.

Gumby's Pizza, Dominik Drive

This was taken sometime in January of this year, when I did the Whataburger re-post.

107 Dominik Drive was built in 1976 as a College Station branch of Pepe's Mexican Food but became a branch of Gumby's sometime in 1997 (The old Gumby's was next to Sweet Eugene's, the parking lot bumpers still mention Gumby's despite moving twenty years prior).

The history behind the Gumby's pizza chain is murky, the website for the chain gives no clue of its founding and I can only guess it was licensed from the decades-old children's TV show many years ago and allowed to fester and grow into its own identity to present a pizza chain more common for the college crowd. Even in the 1980s, there was a pizza known as the "Gumby Dammit". The website also features classic Gumby videos, which are bizarre in their own right, and almost feels like something they'd show on Adult Swim, as it gets even weirder when you're sleep deprived or otherwise under the influence.

It's the pizza chain that's very rare (less than a dozen locations, all near colleges). It's the one where you can get a pizza delivered at 1:15 in the morning (they stop at 2) and sells pizzas like the Stoner Pie, which includes mozzarella sticks, french fries, pepperoni, and sausage. It's also a place that can get away with having a non-lit sign and choosing instead to string Christmas lights around the non-functional signage.

I've eaten at Gumby's a few times and it's, well, it's not very good and if I was in the area (which I was a few years ago) I would probably go to DoubleDave's. The drama around Gumby's got interesting a few years back when they opened up a location in Wellborn called Black Sheep Pizza, which featured a different logo but still the same menu (and presumably the same recipe). The way I understand it is Gumby's was sold among different partners, and Black Sheep Pizza (renamed GranDandy's Pizza & Meals after a trademark dispute) spun off completely, with a clause that Gumby's could buy them back, which they did after GranDandy's became a moderate success, leading the owner to build Howdy's Pizza (long story...) with the modified recipes and menu.

UPDATE 02-24-2019: In October 2018, Gumby's moved to the former Wolfies location at Post Oak Square so that Whataburger could expand and rebuild.
UPDATE 02-26-2023: Since this post was written, Whataburger still hasn't done anything with the property, so it, the old gas station site, and the Gumby's are still as they've been. Howdy's Pizza unfortunately fell through and the restaurant that eventually opened in Caprock Crossing wasn't even the same restaurant. Gumby's has been here since approximately 1997, Pepe's was here from 1976 to 1994. The post has been amended to reflect that, while changes "(still in the works)" to "(long story...)".
UPDATE 01-15-2025: Sometime around 2024 Gumby's was finally demolished but Whataburger still drags its feet. Tags updated including changing [1980s] to [1970s].

A Look at Former Restaurants at 102 Church Avenue

By the time La Bodega moved in it didn't resemble a house anymore. Back before Church and Wellborn was taken over with new housing, there was a restaurant built out of a converted house not too far away from that intersection.

The structure was built in 1959 as per Brazos CAD, built as a house, the first reference coming from a 1963 obituary about one Mrs. Marguerite Mary Edmonds, age 48, and at some point in the 1970s it was abandoned.

Dead Solid Perfect was a hamburger restaurant and the first that opened in the former house in February 1976. According to this article, [owner Searcy Bond] did nothing to the building" during conversion to a restaurant, which matches up with this description is from Yuccadoo on TexAgs, with "no exhaust vents, smoke pouring out a coupla windows in the kitchen". It closed in 1979.

In December 1979, One Potato Two Potato opened; I'm guessing it was the first "meal in a peel" style restaurant in town. In the summer 1983 it was retooled as Two Blocks North and added hamburgers to the menu. In 1983 Two Blocks North closed, and in August 1984, La Taqueria & Tortilla Factory opened. "La Taq" was arguably the most memorable of the restaurants in the space and is still talked about sometimes today but it closed around summer 1991. According to Aggieland 1992, Rosalie's Pasta House opened September 25, 1991 in the former La Taqueria space (and had the same ownership). Around 1997 it closed.

Finally, La Bodega Baja Taco Bar opened in October 2000 (likely with a major renovation that brought it up to code), and closed in November 2014. I do have a picture of the specials as of May 2014 including the gimmick of the hotter it was outside, the cheaper drinks were.

Despite some talk of more upscale dining in the Northgate area, it and the adjacent apartment building next to it (104 Church Avenue, where Eccell Group operated out of) was torn down. What has replaced it is supposed to be a food truck park, called Wayside Food Park. It was supposed to be a permanent place for food trucks complete with electrical conduits and a covered pavilion area, but it failed hard, opening in December 2017 and closing by early 2019. In regards to that apartment building, I have terrible pictures of that, the one with my finger covering a quarter of the shot is from this May (2014) and I thought had a better picture that shows the building as a whole but I can't find it. It's not much better than what you can see from the older shots on Google Maps Street View.

UPDATE 04-26-2024: Article rewritten for better prose and better information. This article was previously amended in May 2019 to account for the coming and going of Wayside, but now it and the adjacent 100 Church Avenue have been knocked down for a new student housing complex. On April 22nd 2024, the article was been renamed to "A Look at Former Restaurants at 102 Church Avenue", with [demolished] also added.

Dominik Drive Whataburger

The sun sets behind this Whataburger, but don't worry, it's open late!
This Whataburger (number 78) at 105 Dominik Drive is another restaurant that has been here for decades (though been rebuilt a few times). This is the closest Whataburger to campus and its quality was rather mid-line, better than the later Wellborn Road Whataburger but not as good as the Rock Prairie Whataburger. While Whataburger drags its feet on a redevelopment of the site that would integrate the pads of a defunct Texaco-turned-Shell and the old Pepe's-turned-Gumby's. The first reference comes in 1970 but was rebuilt around 1986. In January 1996 the store caught fire but a "mobile Whataburger" serviced the area until the Whataburger reopened that spring. While it is the closest Whataburger to campus, for a brief time it was not as you could get Whataburger in the Sbisa basement. It was also at this location that I realized Whataburger had subtly changed its logo.

UPDATE 06-19-2025: Archived previous update and shortened some of the post.

Walton Shopping Center

Some of Eastgate's tenants. (May 2014, picture by author). Years ago I had a blog post that was titled "Random Eastgate Thoughts" (later retitled as just "Eastgate") that was a large, unfocused post that told of some of the buildings at Walton and Texas Avenue, but also some of the neighborhood around it going up to Thomas Pool (RIP). In the interest of metrics I decided to permanently remove the older post and focus on this post, which used to solely focus on 109 Walton, rather than the strip around it, which was built around the 1950s with some later additions in the 1970s.

I should preface this with a note that the addresses found are very, very spotty and addresses don't necessarily run sequentially at the same time. So some of where things should be can be inaccurate.

All the tenants here have a Walton Drive address (I lived on Walton Drive once with roommates during my college years, though it's been demolished...it won't be getting a post). Despite the age of the center, the oldest reference I can find for 107 Walton is The Guitar Shop¹ in 1990. (105 Walton, of course, is Military Depot). References are spotty prior to 2000, I can find a few businesses that may have operated here (a Catholic bookstore may have operated here in 2000, but if it did it was only for a few months, and there was a tuxedo rental shop just prior to that). But the most reliable stuff I have for this address only starts in the early 2000s when Valley Cyclery (with its capital-Bauhaus font) moved here from 3122 Texas Avenue South before closing permanently around late 2003. In 2004 it was replaced with vintage clothing store Left-Handed Monkey but that only operated for less than a year before becoming Blissful Wishes Bridal (closed 2008) before becoming Textbook Solutions for another decade, and between 2018 and 2022 Textbook Solutions closed and became a larger location of TooTer's Vape Shop, which relocated from 113 Walton.

Primo Pizza in better days, September 2013
Moving onto 109 has more information behind it. The first hit for this address is 1952 as "Battle's Plumbing and Sheet Metal Shop. In 1955 it was Venetian Blind Factory (not actually a production facility, but custom-made blinds and repairs of existing ones) until it moved in 1958 to 3506 S. Texas Avenue in Bryan ("We Are Next Door to Orr's). In June 1959 a Greyhound terminal was established there as a depot for a few years. In 1961 it was the Red Star Cafe, then a few years after that became University Flowers (they didn't immediately move out to their current home and I have yet to find if it's even the same business)...by 1971 it was the East Gate Lounge, then a nightclub called "The College Station, then a second location of The Peanut Gallery², then Murphey's (which closed in the early 1980s but reopened under new management) before giving way in the mid-1980s to Eastgate Live, which opened in 1986. By 1989 it was The Guitar Shop, then Partners Food Delivery by 1990. (I'm guessing that around this time the storefront was divided to the previously-unused 107). Partners operated for a number of years (food delivery outside of pizza was generally rare, and would be for another few decades). A dining guide from 1999 mentions it specialized in stuffed baked potatoes but also offered hamburgers, salads, and sandwiches. It moved in 2000 and was replaced by "Wing Zone" (still there in 2005) before giving way to Leaning Tower Pizza in 2008. I remember that Leaning Tower used a blend of cheeses for its cheese pizza but was particularly greasy (a bit of an acquired taste) and rather grimy for a College Station restaurant, but I didn't mind because that's why you have pizza...hot enough to kill any dubious bacteria. It had some garden furniture for an "eat-in" area and had "free delivery" that had a significant discount if you picked it up in store, which means it wasn't actually free at all. For whatever reason, Leaning Tower closed in May 2013. Local restaurateur Charles Stover, bought the store, along with recipes and equipment, promising to reopen with a new name and theme. Unfortunately, a wrong turn was taken from the start and the resulting restaurant, Primo Pizza & Rolls, opened with "gourmet" takeout pizza, stuff that included pesto on every slice (this opened in late summer 2013). Unfortunately, gourmet takeout pizza without an eat-in area wasn't something the market could handle (especially located in a neighborhood that was largely populated by college students and minorities) and in about six months it was gone (the way it was worded in February 2014 indicated that the closure was temporary but by May it was gutted). I did get Primo Pizza's webpage, archived in PNG form before it disappeared. (Also some photos from May 2014, Gutted PP, May 2014. This is where the counter and menu were. The kitchen was behind that wall. This configuration was intact for both LTP and PP&R. While an Eastgate pizza place was no more than a memory, it did have one more tenant afterwards that opened by fall, La Gabriella, a pastry and coffee shop.³ This was one of my favorite places in my neighborhood when I lived on Eastgate, cinnamon rolls for breakfast if I was running late for school, decent coffee and espresso, and even (though I don't know about it today), a selection of used video games (from her husband) for sale, where I bought Pikmin and I believe Metroid Prime. I haven't made much progress in either, though. They're still on the backlog!⁴

111 Walton is another one I don't have much on. In 2000 it was the old location of Blissful Wishes, then in 2001 became Eastgate Barber Shop, with four stylists, two of which came from other shops. By 2005 it was known as Eastgate Hair Shop for Men, and is currently (since 2024) "Main Street Barbershop".



This concept art was from the mid-1990s that showed a new arrangement of the intersection but the tenants are accurate for the time. 113 Walton's first tenant in 1951 was "Beall Floor Covering Company" and then became, in 1954, Battle Plumbing Company (moved from 109). In 1957 it was Manning Smith (an office of Insurance Company of North America back when they did home insurance), then Redmond Real Estate, then not much until an outlet of Daylight Donuts in 1991,⁵ which became a franchise for Southern Maid Donuts by 1996 and after that classifieds start appearing for Partners.⁶ References to Partners end around late 2004 (last mention was a restaurant report card from January 2005, but Partners would've closed by then). Occupying both spaces makes sense if there wasn't a reference for Wing Zone until fall 2005. In any case, "113A" was Russell's Aggieland Boots in spring 2006. By spring 2012, it was the recently relocated Oasis Pipes & Tobacco. It used to be on University Drive before that whole strip was demolished for the Northpoint Crossing development. When checked out 113 in 2014, there was some baking equipment inside the space. By 2016 it was TooTer's Vape Shop, by 2022 they moved to 109 Walton; as of 2025 a Farmers Insurance office occupies the space.

References to 115 Walton could only be found in the 1950s as Redmond Real Estate, leading me to believe that 113 and 115 were the same physical tenant. By the late 1950s it was Dishman Real Estate, which continued into the 1960s, by 1970 it was known as Seaback Homes Incorporated. No other references appear after that date.

There doesn't seem to be any references for 117 Walton, but 119 Walton's oldest reference is Denco Photo & Camera in 1980 (guessing one of the newer buildings in the strip). By 1986 it was yet another address used for Partners Food Delivery according to classifieds, indicating they might've used all three of the spaces simultaneously, though I can't Partners using this address after 1997. As of 2012 this was a piercing studio called "To The Point" (and before that it was the old home of Textbook Solutions), though by 2017 it was absorbed by Aggieland Apartment Finders next door (at 123 Walton).

121 and 123 Walton appear to be the same, the first reference for 121 was Culpepper Realty in 1951, however, this is complicated by the fact that in 1960 this end of the shopping center did not exist (wasn't built yet) and no other building was on the site, indicating the "old" 121 was west of here. Other hits for this address are Three-C Construction Company Inc. (1975), Executive Secretarial Service (1979), under that company they became Executive Temporaries in 1980, then Executive Employment Consultants⁷sup>. After 1990, there's no more results until Advanced Cellular Aggieland (1998)...yet Executive Travel appeared again in 2001 with the same address! After that, references for 121 Walton end, with 123 being used for Executive Travel until 2004. It was Apartment Aggieland Finders by 2007. That has been the case since, though the block of stores from the barbershop to the apartment finding agency was upgraded from a cedar shake roof to a metal roof around 2024.

Another Eastgate shot from 2014, this one showing the ones to the east.

1. The Guitar Shop also used 109 Walton as the address.
2. All this rapid turnover means I'm almost certainly missing something.
3. Originally named "My Daily Bread Bakery" until 2017. 4. A sizable portion of Carbon-izer.com is dedicated to video games with the games section being renamed as "Exor's Dungeon", named after an enemy from Super Mario RPG. If you would like to visit that site, click here. Also as far as video games and my other projects go, there's also Yoot Tower Guides.
5. I'm suspecting I'm missing small offices over the years.
6. Given how both appear simultaneously, I'm guessing Partners occupied multiple non-adjacent spaces, but I don't know.
7. Additionally, "Executive Travel" was operated out of the same location.
UPDATE 01-27-2026: Extensive update that transformed the Primo Pizza page into a full Eastgate page, integrating from the other older Eastgate post. Many of the original content of the Primo Pizza page has been left intact. New tags were added.

Pooh's Park, Tinsley's, and Others Replaced by a Shopping Center

View of the center today

Once again, we come back to one of our blog, this time to roll a few smaller posts into a bigger one. As the picture above shows, the area at Holleman and Texas Avenue is now a large (kind of low end) shopping center. In addition to covering all the changes that went on there (which I have yet to do), I can combine a few older posts into this one. So, first, we have Pooh's Park at 1907 Texas Avenue South.

There's far more to Pooh's Park (no, not related to the "Winnie" one) I can get into today, because it's a popular topic on local nostalgia threads: if you want to learn more, you can head over to Facebook to talk or browse through old photos (and they include newspaper articles!)

I never got to experience Pooh's Park myself, but from what I've seen and read, it was like Chuck E. Cheese, Putt-Putt, and a skating rink (roller, not ice) all wrapped into one. It opened in 1972 and was where the shopping center where Hobby Lobby, Big Lots, and Ross are now. A 1984 phone book has a different ad that does mention things like a water slide (408 feet) and a different address (at some point, they changed to 105 Holleman Drive East, though based on what you can see from Google Earth, and backed up by a picture of Texas Avenue from a local history book I don't have a copy of with me) is that Pooh's Park was accessed primarily through Texas Avenue, not Holleman.

One thing about Pooh's Park was that it had higher standards to keep rowdier customers away, demanding that "kids dress properly and keep and their hair trimmed" but during the height of its popularity that didn't matter much. Pooh's Park closed in November 1986 citing taxes and insurance reasons as well as a dwindling customer base. Things were left on the property (including a theft of a "blue furry robot" ultimately just the sign remained up by the early 2000s.

Google Earth 1995, with modern streets overlaid

Some older maps (circa 2001-ish, long after Pooh's Park bit the dust) put a "Pooh's Lane" roughly where the Bahama Buck's is now, but unless that first part of Holleman Drive East was actually called that (after all, there's a few things that do support that, including the odd alignment of Holleman Drive and Holleman Drive East suggests that the East part was first, and then Holleman Drive extended that way later by way of a particularly awkward curve, or the fact that the subdivision nearby (behind the strip center and the other businesses on the east side) is named Pooh's Park Subdivision.

This ad was in October 1985 (The Eagle) when Pooh's Park was still in business. I guess they had furniture sales on the side. Next to Pooh's Park was Tinsley's Chicken 'n Rolls.

Chicken done well, chicken well done!
Opening in late 1979, Tinsley's was located on 1905 Texas Avenue South as the chain's only College Station location (there were locations from Waco to Houston, and two in Bryan--one of which has an article on the blog). In 1985, the Tinsley family sold out to Church's Fried Chicken. Church's closed sometime around 1989 (likely due to the Church's/Popeyes merger at the time). In the 1995 it reopened as Santa Fe Pizza (aka Santa Fe Market Cafe). In 1997, it was Kokopelli's (Southwestern food, I have a menu but never scanned it) and Clay Oven from 1998 to 2000 (Indian food).

It should be noted the plane was a real thing, though, as David Tinsley used an actual 1930s plane to promote his restaurants, not unlike how Flying Tomato used hot air balloons.

Despite a brief re-appearance in Huntsville with much fanfare (in a former KFC and now Hartz Chicken Buffet), Tinsley's is current a dead chain once more.

Anyway, by the early 2000s, the space was almost entirely vacant (I believe Clay Oven had been demolished) with little else on the property except the old Pooh's Park sign, which had remained up. While the new shopping center (opened in 2002) had rather downscale tenants, most of them were new. There was Hobby Lobby, which moved from Post Oak Square, locating at 1903 Texas Avenue South. Others included a branch of Loupot's (1907 Texas Ave. S.), Shoe Carnival (1909 Texas Ave. S.), Ross Dress for Less (1911 Texas Ave. S.), and Goody's Family Clothing (1913 Texas Avenue South). Petco and a few smaller stores shared the 1901 address, and in 2006, CiCi's Pizza moved in from Culpepper Plaza, taking the 1905 Texas Avenue address. Goody's would close in early 2009 as the chain went under, but it was replaced with a few new stores, Big Lots (returning back to the market, as by that time, their old location at the former Kmart had been closed for several years) and a Twin Liquors (which, despite slightly nicer décor, seemed like a smaller, inferior competitor to Spec's). Loupot's also closed in spring 2012 and reopened as a Salata in less than two years.

Another shopping strip was built around the same time as the rest (but named The Shops at Wolf Pen Plaza) with Starbucks Coffee, a Sprint store (which initially had the older logo, then eventually was rebranded to T-Mobile following the merger), and Champion Firearms (moved from the Kroger shopping center). The Starbucks can be seen in its early days here from Starbucks Everywhere. It shows the ratty little building next door, the trees along Texas Avenue that got wrecked when it was widened, Goody's, and the patio of Starbucks before it was expanded. A comfortable reminder of days gone by, really.

UPDATE 07-08-2022: QoL updates including the life of the center, better closing date of Pooh's, new tags
UPDATE 06-12-2025: Various updates and mild rewrite.
UPDATE 11-02-2025: Big Lots closed around late 2024 (probably should've mentioned that in the last update) but as of this writing Sprouts Farmers Market is coming. This is the third time in over a decade they've tried (back in 2012 they were going to move into the dead Linens 'n Things on University Drive East, and later planned a move into the dead World Market down the street, though this wasn't as well publicized).

Loupot's Northgate

Loupot's in 1995. (PH)

Prior to when College Main was closed off (June 19th 2012, a day that will live in infamy), it was the only block which was resembled a dense city in College Station. And sitting on the corner of this block was Loupot's (335 University Drive), which closed the same year (in March). One of the oldest establishments on Northgate and once the "official" bookstore on campus, Loupot's had been around for years, though from what I've read, it wasn't always in the building, and when it was, it wasn't in both levels.

From what I've found, it wasn't bought by Loupot until 1979, and in the past, Loupot's was named "Loupot's Trading Post" and "Loupot's Books & Britches". The upper level was added in the 1980s not too long after the building was bought, as that had been the previous home of an X-rated bookstore (The Adult Library, though I read an ad that mentioned it being the home of "Sun Theater", same business, different name). Some ads I had found (but sadly don't have a copy right now) mentioned that they had shows for a quarter (and escorted ladies were free), which was around in the 1970s and 1980s. This had an address of 333 University. The adult theater was upstairs at 333 University, with Loupot's downstairs. At some point, they eventually closed and Loupot's ultimately would expand upstairs.

Anyway, Loupot's managed to expand to a few different locations, namely a location in Southgate (now home to TexAgs) and in a location at Holleman and Texas Avenue (now Salata). These closed shortly after the Northgate location. A fourth location was planned (according to a sign) to the grassy area just north of Blinn College on Villa Maria (where Blinn later added more parking). Loupot's continued to maintain its large store on Northgate, which later upgraded to electronic signage and made Internet history with its "reverse-boarded up windows" in 2005 (around the time of Hurricane Rita). However, in 2010, the family sold to Nebraska Book Company (Neebo), which already owned the Traditions bookstores (formerly Rother's), and then they started closing stores. The Loupot's-branded stores went away in March 2012, but eventually, their other stores, branded as Traditions (Southgate, University Square, and one closer to Blinn at Briarcrest and Villa Maria) closed as well.

One of their last messages on the message board was "HOLY CRAP!!! TEXTBOOK RENTAL SALE!!!", which always felt a bit tasteless due to the mild swearing but that distracted from the fact that if they're selling rental textbooks, they're probably going under.

The former Loupot's in 2013.


After Loupot's closed, by late 2014, it was to become a place called Z Bar & Bistro, which made me hope it was something better than The Corner across the street (sticky chairs and tables, smells like old beer constantly, poor service), though it eventually fell through.

As of early 2016, there appears to be some work going on at Loupot's. It will probably be a bar, but it's better than an empty building, right?

UPDATE 03-07-2021: After six years after its annnouncement, Z Bar & Bistro opened around October of 2020. It serves sushi and has a rooftop seating area. Also, the post had [2010s] removed from it.
UPDATE 09-20-2021: Renamed post from "The Loupot's Building", added [restaurants] and [College Station] to post. Also made a few smaller fixes.
UPDATE 06-21-2023: Sometime around 2022, Z Bar closed (with its time spent at 335 University a fraction of the time it spent under construction), with "Toku 12" in its place.
UPDATE 04-24-2024: Clarification to above. After December 2022, Z Bar briefly closed and reopened as Toku12.

Former Pizza Inn

Picture taken late October 2015, shortly before rainclouds rolled in and drenched the town.
The rather ragged-looking "Rodney D. Young Insurance" is shown here at 413 Texas Avenue, which looks like a candidate for demolition should something better come along (the Exxon at the corner is constantly being ragged on as being an eyesore in a prime location). It was a Pizza Inn (No. 65) opened in 1966 and remained operational until sometime in the mid-1980s. Shops and services since then include Star Video (1987-1990), Brazos Sleep and Sound (1990-1992), and EZPAWN (1992-1995). I am not sure what it was between 1995 and 2006 but by 2007 it was Rodney D. Young Insurance and by 2018, Legacy Tattoo Lounge.

1970s phone book. It still looks remarkably similar.

UPDATE 05-13-2024: Upgraded post again with all edits integrated.

Dead Lazlo's Coffee Pub

Courtesy Project HOLD. Sadly, those funky oversized door handles don't exist anymore.
Recent news of the demise of the bar that currently occupies the space had prompted me to do another full rewrite of this post, which previously hadn't seen much updates in over a decade.

The earliest reference I can find is 1956 with the opening of the new A&M Grill near Holick's at 108 College Main. (They mention Bob Martin and Carl Martin. I wonder if they were related to the Ken Martin restaurant group), but by 1961 this had given way to White's Auto Store. This was the sister location to one downtown at 216 North Main opened in 1947, part of a larger chain of stores based out of Wichita Falls (which by the 1950s had expanded beyond automotive parts).¹ Here in the Battalion they're selling radios.

By 1974 this had disappeared and replaced with the new location of News Office Supply, a local store that had existed for almost forty years in Bryan (and evolved from a early newspaper in the county) but had added a second location in Northgate to better serve its main customers. In January 1978, the Northgate location rebranded as The Drafting Board to focus on engineering supplies, and around 1987 it closed, being replaced with A&M Steakhouse in 1988 (a diner-style operation, it appears, it served breakfast but also hamburgers), which operated until 1992. Condom Station opened in 1993 (it didn't sell just condoms, according to this newspaper article) but it only operated until spring 1994.

"We've Got You Covered" is what the small text says.
In March 1995, Dead Lazlo's Coffee Pub opened, a Gothic-themed coffeehouse decorated with a coffin and obituary sections on the walls. A comment from the old comments section (by Mike Teks) had this to say about it— Just wanted to confirm that Dead Lazlos was owned by the same people that owned Sweet Eugene's (back when coffee came in ceramic mugs/cups and not paper cups with lids). College Main was closed due to a major reconstruction project during its first year of being open which hurt business. After its biggest supporter among the owners of Sweet Eugene's left (he used to part his Motorcycle inside Eugene's when he worked there, cool guy) they turned it into the Copacetic Cafe (or so pathetic Cafe as we called it) Same owners and coffee, but no longer had a Gothic feel to it and it soon after I 'm told. Best 2 years of my life in BCS was spent at Dead Lazlo's. Non-smoking section was in the back and the Coffin by the bar. Good times.

In December 1995, Dead Lazlo's closed for the season, but instead of reopening it for the new semester, it was retooled as Copasetic Cafe, with different decor, a new menu, and a new ambience (and notably focusing on non-smoking). It closed in 1998 and reopened as a nightclub, Patagonia, in 1999, which became Soho Lounge in early 2001. This closed and gave way to The Groove (logo was a Comic Sans-esque "G") until the end of 2006, then in the late 2000s up to around 2011 it was Lux, and I believe Foundation Room came in in fall 2011, because it was open in January 2012. By 2015 it had become Foundation Lounge and later still became Foundie's, which closed in August 2025 after a long run, and is currently vacant.

1. There was another White's Auto Store in Bryan, but it became Mathis Home Appliance in early 1953, and was located a few doors anyway.

UPDATE 08-10-2025: Rewrote post with all tenants and accounted for current closure.
UPDATE 10-11-2025: On October 10th 2025 it reopened as new nightclub "Rush".

The Diamond Shamrock at the End of Texas Avenue

This new April 2025 photo (by author) shows both Burger King and its less successful neighbor. In previous versions of this post, this covered the entire end of Texas Avenue (briefly touching on things that would eventually receive full updates like Barry Pool Company), and up until recently still waxed nostalgic on the importance of the "last intersection" of Texas Avenue and the world beyond...but I've made my nostalgia clear in writing this entire blog.¹ For years there was a Diamond Shamrock at 3129 Texas Avenue South (listed as "Big Diamond No. 1" in some materials) that based on listings and aerials, opened between 1984 and 1989. It even featured a car wash station in the back. I'm not sure when it closed (2005?) but it was torn down by December 2006.

Burger King was the only occupant of the former Diamond Shamrock site for years. (Photo by author, ~2014)
A Burger King partially redeveloped the space (same address) and opened in 2008 (the Villa Maria/29th location opened first), this Burger King opened almost a year after the one at Culpepper Plaza closed (which was torn down and replaced with a Chick-fil-A). However, even with Burger King's construction, there was still a good amount of space leftover, and after over a decade, was finally built out as Boomtown BBQ Company, a restaurant out of Beaumont and located at 3125 Texas Avenue South. This restaurant opened in August 2020, which was still a bit of bad timing for obvious reasons and closed in February 2022.² The Eccell/Burger Mojo group reopened it as So-Fly Chicken Sandwiches in July 2022, but it closed in mid-March 2023. Allegedly, this was because the owners reportedly had a good offer on the building, but it fell through (the rumor was Taco Bell, which would later show up at Jones Crossing). The site languished for two more years until the announcement of Mojo Tortilla Company (in the vein of something similar to Fuego) in April 2025, and opened in October of that year.

1. The original post described how the roads around here were reconfigured. This was moved to a new article.
2. It appears that the original Beaumont location went under.
UPDATE 06-21-2025: Major post update, stripping some parts and integrating previous updates. Better dates, too.
UPDATE 10-16-2025: Mojo Tortilla Company is now open. A second footnote was added. The last paragraph was touched up to account for this and to fix a minor error from the last rewrite.

The Nightlife at Doux Chene Apartments

See those stairs leading up to the second level in the main office building? That's the focus today here. (Google Maps Picture)

By the time of Doux Chene Apartments' rename to "Flats on 12" in April 2015, the apartments had seen better days, having formerly been known as Doux Chene Apartments. Where do I start, though? Doux Chene Apartments were originally built in 1973 as a clone of the upscale singles-style apartment complexes that were popular in Houston at the time (though a 1980 ad doesn't indicate that it was singles only).

Mansard House advertised themselves as "country club apartment living", and trendy enough to be the first true mixed-use building in the City of College Station. From circa 1974 to late 1970s, it was "Mansard House". Mansard House, despite being the upper level of an apartment complex on the edge of town was one of the really nice places in town. Live entertainment, seafood, lobster, lamb, and more were all on the menu. The restaurant featured a large balcony on the rear of the building.

When I wrote this post originally I implied there were some Houston apartments like this, but upon doing more research, the "integrated restaurant" idea was rarer than I thought and I can't think of a true example. By 1980, while Doux Chene was still successful, Mansard House had closed and was replaced with Studio 2818, an actual discotheque.

Source: personal collection

Later night clubs included Dallas: The Night Club...

...and finally, Scandals.

Most of these are sadly relatively undocumented, only whispers across forums and other sources, including stories of ladies' nights with male strippers, with men being let in after the women had several drinks. Perhaps it's better that some of the craziness that went on is better left unsaid (I'm sure there were many regrettable nights). The most fascinating part is that Mansard House and some of the nightclub operations that followed left Doux Chene in the 1980s and opened what would be Hurricane Harry's in 1990.

In the original version of the post, I implied that the Doux Chene Apartments had fallen into disrepair, including a series of disasters...a tornado and a penchant for apartment fires as well, prompting a letter from management at the time, which is below.

"While your account of the history of the complex is mostly accurate, I take issue with the assertion that Doux Chene has not 'managed to upkeep itself.' While the property did fall into a state of disrepair in the late 80's to the early 90's, the current management has put a lot of effort (and money) into repairs and renovations and enhancements. While there is no hiding the fact that the property is 40 years old, it is in very good condition for a property of its age.

Doux Chene has indeed encountered more than its share of challenges.

A lightning strike destroyed 4 apartment units, severely damaged a dozen others. No injuries, a quarter of a million dollars in damages.

Severe hail required the replacement of nearly a dozen roofs, another quarter of a million dollars.

The tornado in 2006 actually destroyed two buildings, damaged several roofs, caused water damage in nearly 80 apartments, required replacement of over 160 central air conditioning systems. Total casualty loss, just over $4 million.

And then the small fire that happened shortly thereafter... The fire marshal initially indicated it was electrical, but upon further investigation it was found to be caused by a resident's cigarette butt rolling into a gap at the edge of his balcony.

Through all of this, we have been blessed in multiple ways. Firstly, there have been no injuries as a result of any of these incidences. Also, our insurance company has consistently paid in a timely fashion, and we have been fully made whole. We have also been given the reassurance, that no matter what we face, we will be able to come through it. I won't get all preachy here, but our faith in God has been strengthened through these difficulties.

Some ads were also sent as part of this, including Doux Chene hosting some wild parties (it's hard to imagine even the student-oriented apartments specifically hosting a keg party today). Sadly, they sent the low resolution versions.

As wild partying obviously upset the neighbors, a nearby apartment complex offered a shotgun as among the freebies you could get for signing a lease.

Having been around the apartment complex, the repairs are remarkable, the only difference between some of the apartment buildings is some different spackling on the sides of the buildings, something you wouldn't notice unless you were looking for it. In any case, shortly after the email, management sold out. In April 2015, the apartment complex was rebranded as "Flats on 12", which despite some big promises was the typical games played: change the name, give a repaint, cheap remodel, jack up the rent, while the apartments are the same low-grade pieces they've always been. This also added a lighted sign on the front of the building, changed the entrance to the former restaurant/nightclub area, and replaced the tennis court with a sand volleyball court. It now houses an exercise room and other amenities, but the balcony is still there. Also, I should mention that the address did change at some point. It used to be 1401 FM 2818 but later became 2101 Harvey Mitchell Parkway South.

UPDATE 05-16-2024: Extensively rewrote from last update as seen here.

Former Luby's Cafeteria

For a number of years prior to closure, the sign had read "Luby's Drive-Thru"

Opening in February 1977, Luby's Cafeteria (4401 South Texas Avenue) opened at a time when cafeterias were more plentiful, but much like the clientele they tend to service, they've been dying off. No more Piccadilly Cafeteria stores exist in Texas, and even Luby's has been continually closing restaurants left and right, even the one closest to its headquarters. All this before COVID-19 hit in earnest!

Unfortunately, I have no photos of this Luby's when they were opening and operating, because it was only a Luby's, and the Luby's closing took many by surprise. It closed in April 2014 a few years shy of its 40th anniversary, as it was sold to a mystery owner, soon revealed to be the Eccell Group.

This would be the new home of Café Eccell, after the drama surrounding it at Church and Wellborn Road. After renovating the inside and repainting the outside (it was originally white, which Eccell repainted to tan), it opened in August 2014 after renovating it.

While Café Eccell has updated a bit (mostly by repainting the drive-through end of the restaurant and opening it as the sub-restaurant La Bodega Express, as well as making it share the roadside sign), it wasn't the one with the history behind it. Even the Eccell name would go away from the sign, as after being forced to close in spring 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic, the owners revealed their intention to rename it. Originally planned to be "The Local", it reopened July 1, 2020 as "Public & Main" with a new menu (no word on the La Bodega Express restaurant-within-a-restaurant).

Of course, Luby's was the one with the history behind it. A full page ad had been taken out for its opening, describing the restaurant that didn't have waiters or waitresses.

You'll feel good about Luby's... selection... Everyone likes what they get, because everyone chooses their favorites. Snappy fresh fruits and crisp garden salads. Hot and hearty entrees. Piping hot vegetables. Home baked rolls and breads. And the taste-temptingest selection of homemade desserts you've ever seen.

This was the only Luby's Cafeteria in the area. There was also one in the mall that opened in 1996 but it closed after a while (lasting about five years, or less).

Enjoy the pictures I took in and around the restaurant shortly after closing (and after Eccell repainted it), taken May 2014.

UPDATE 04-11-2022: While some other updates have been made in the past (2019 to account for a few new things, including La Bodega Express, the Post Oak Mall location, and others. A second update in 2020 rearranged the article and updated what happened to Café Eccell), KBTX has reported that Public & Main has closed for good. No other changes have been made to the article, but [COVID-19] has been replaced with [defunct].
UPDATE 08-03-2023: The next restaurant here will be Sushi Masa, though as of June 2023 the signage still reads Public & Main.
UPDATE 09-08-2023: Sushi Masa is now open, [defunct] removed.
UPDATE 05-10-2024: I should mention that as Public & Main it featured So-Fly Hot Chicken to replace La Bodega Express.

Luther's Bar-B-Q

The sky really wasn't that overcast, I had to make some changes to make the actual subject lighter. Picture by author, May 2019.


The current BCS Tires & Lifts looks quite a bit different than its incarnation as a restaurant. While it didn't last long in its original incarnation, it was the home of Luther's Bar-B-Q, a chain out of Houston which at the time of its construction in late 1984 (may have actually opened in 1985) was operated by a company named Diversifoods, which owned a number of Burger King franchises and a few other chains. In 1985, Diversifoods accepted a buyout from Burger King's parent company Pillsbury (effectively ending a feud that Diversifoods and its predecessor company Chart House had with Burger King franchises) but it had the unfortunate side effect of halting Luther's expansion and closing a number of stores soon after. The Luther's in College Station may have actually been only in business for as little as a year.

In any case, Pop's Barbecue was the successor tenant here, serving a similar menu, though the different phone number suggests an entirely new restaurant and not just a disconnection from Luther's. Pop's had a more successful run until around 1995-1997 when it closed and became the new location of Epicures Catering. Pictures of when Epicures was here can be seen on Yelp since I lack pictures of my own. Epicures existed prior to moving here but located somewhere else (unfortunately, the phone books don't list the address of where it was) and over time, Epicures lost its luster (it used to be a big advertiser in local dining guides) and fell into disrepair until moving out to rural Brazos County. The original green overhang was replaced with a gold-colored one in the mid-2000s after the old one was too tattered.

After Epicures stopped operating in the spot, the building was extensively renovated and expanded to become a franchise of Conroe-based TireMax, opening in 2011. However, not too long after TireMax opened, the parent company went bust and it had to change its name to "BCS Tires & Lifts", so the sign didn't look quite as good after that.

One more important piece of information, as Luther's address was 2321 Texas Avenue South, and subsequent businesses used 2319, while Discount Tire (built in 1986) used the 2321 address. This made research of the building's original use confusing.

UPDATE 04-17-2022: While this post last received an update in 2020, another change is that BCS Tires & Lifts (also known as "BCS Tire Pros") had either been bought out or otherwise replaced in early 2022 by Big O Tires.

The Exxon on Boonville

Stover Boys still had remnants in 2014, long after the restaurant closed.
The Exxon at the corner of FM 1179 and Boonville, which I have only recently seen, as shown here in a picture I took this February. It has been open since 1995 and has had several restaurants in it (a bit unusual for something not off of a major thoroughfare), since it has a kitchen and an eat-in area. "Fratello's Pizza Company" is the only one I've found at this address (3200 Boonville Road) but they also have their location as at the old Daylight Donuts space a bit west of here.

In late 2007, it became the home of Stover Boys, a hamburger-and-fries outlet that kind of had a "rural outlet, specials written on a chalkboard" feel to it that opened to much local acclaim. It was where Bryan-College Station was acquainted with Charles Stover and his restaurants.

Stover's restaurant was an instant success, and people would come out to this little gas station and fill up every available parking space. When it turned out that people would pass it by rather than fight for parking, it was clear that Stover's had outgrown itself and Stover Boys moved into an old restaurant pad in Westgate Shopping Center, clear on the other side of town. This was in 2008, and although it opened around early 2009, the Stover Boys signage still hangs at this Exxon, which also suggests how rarely new restaurants come in.

As of 2018, "Taqueria Poblano" operates in the space.

UPDATE 06-17-2023: I know I previously updated this to account for Taqueria Poblano but I wanted to clarify that beyond Fratello's (which was here and did move to the other Boonville address), Stover Boys, and Taqueria Poblano, the other place I found was "Deli Depot". The gas station opened in 1994.