NewQuest Properties has signed six tenant agreements with its international retail center West on West.
The 90,000-square-foot development at 12220 Westheimer Road will add Tsujita Artisan Noodle, Paris Baguette, the Alley, SomiSomi, Lady M and Kaiten Sushi Ginza Onodera stores, some of which will open as soon as this fall.
According to NewQuest, about 90 percent of the development has been leased through these transactions.
West on West is located in Westheimer, between South Ashford Dairy Road and South Kirkwood Road, and is a redevelopment of the Pavillion Center Marketplace.
Lease details, including price, were not disclosed. The Harris County Appraisal District estimates the property’s taxable value as of January 2023 at $15 million, nearly double the previous year’s appraisal.Renovation begins to transform 16-acre site into “globally inspired” hub in april.
Tokyo-based restaurant operator Onodera Group will bring its conveyor belt sushi concept Kaiten Sushi Ginza Onodera to West on West in spring 2024, according to a press release. Its high-end conveyor belt sushi restaurant is currently only available in the Omotesando district of Tokyo. The Houston location will be Kaiten Sushi Ginza Onodera’s first outside of Japan and the Onodera Group’s fourth in the United States.
“We actually flew to Japan and met with the owners in Tokyo to see the concept and we were really amazed,” says Heather Nguyen of NewQuest. “We were just asking, ‘How do we bring this to Texas?’ We thought it would do really well, and over the past few months we’ve worked with them to develop and design the concept so that it becomes more approachable in Texas and we can help them expand in other parts of the US.”
Another Japanese tenant is Tsujita Artisan Noodle, a Tokyo-based restaurant spanning more than 3,000 square feet. This will be the noodle hot spot’s first location in the southern United States.
Joining the gastronomic lineup is Paris Baguette, a bakery café that dates back to 1940s Korea. This popular bakery serves a range of East Asian baked goods, sandwiches and salads.
SomiSomi, a Korean-inspired building, will break ground this fall with an expected expansion in the first quarter of 2024, according to public filings. Local architecture firm Osborn & Vane Architects will spearhead the renovation of the site.
Boba tea shop The Alley and French-Japanese fusion restaurant Lady M are expected to total 6,000 square feet. The Alley will open this fall, and Lady M will open next spring.
“We acquired the property to make it one of our Asia-focused hubs; I’m trying to create a stage for all these different cultures to share their food and cuisine,” Nguyen said. “That’s really what we’re focusing on building this stage for the Asian concept. So I’m trying to bring more stuff, and hopefully they’ll come to Texas first as well.” NewQuest is also adding Japanese casual department store Teso Life to the West on West lineup, due to open next spring. 99 Ranch Market, the nation’s largest Asian supermarket chain, began a $4 million construction project last fall on the former Pavillion Center site. It is expected to open as soon as September.
