I've been there a few times. Pretty good food.

Tapester has good breakfast and kid friendly

Happy this thread was slightly derailed to discuss the food!
Speaking of which, any good tex-mex recs??

Also, if there are any decent gyms near by that anyone recommends that'd be helpful as well!

For something local, try El Ranchero next to Belden's.

Jackal99 said:

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For something local, try El Ranchero next to Belden's.

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Used to love that place, but it must have changed ownership/management because it went to crap quickly. Los Tios is consistent at least.

The steak place in that same center gets horrible reviews. That whole property is going to be interesting to watch - I miss Belden's, but no way they would have survived coronavirus.

Mose Schrute said:

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Happy this thread was slightly derailed to discuss the food!
Speaking of which, any good tex-mex recs??

Also, if there are any decent gyms near by that anyone recommends that'd be helpful as well!

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Los Tios on Beechnut is our go to place. The frozen margaritas are great.

And Watershed is pretty good too.

Man I had such a bad experience at Los Tios.

We had to practically beg the waiter to take our order and deliver our food.

Are there any pockets of Westbury to focus on, or any pockets to avoid? Some areas along Hillcroft seem a little seedy, but I understand that's just a main artery.

AgLiving06 said:

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Man I had such a bad experience at Los Tios.

We had to practically beg the waiter to take our order and deliver our food.

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Yikes. I can't count how many times we've gone, never had an issue. Was this pre Covid or after?

We went to Carrabba's on Kirby Saturday, buddy ordered a ribeye medium rare. They brought it out charred and well done. I chalked it up as covid problems.

Ranchero is our go-to mexican place, but there have been a couple of visits that were disappointing. I think it depends on your server as there are a couple that are considerably better than the others.

I was a little turned off after hearing that Ranchero had flooding in the kitchen after one of the many rain events we've had in the area but chose not to close down until city inspectors forced them to.

Diggity said:

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I was a little turned off after hearing that Ranchero had flooding in the kitchen after one of the many rain events we've had in the area but chose not to close down until city inspectors forced them to.

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I'm in Meyerland north of the bayou and west of Chimney Rock. I rode out Harvey at home. The Nob Hill apartments behind Ranchero and everything else west to the Braeswood crossover bridge were flooded chest deep. South side of the bayou was worse.

Right. That's why so many folks were suspicious when they opened right back up.

AgLiving06 said:

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Man I had such a bad experience at Los Tios.

We had to practically beg the waiter to take our order and deliver our food.

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Los Tios is an acquired taste. Original Tex-Mex for a bunch of us and redolent of home. The handicapped waiter with the thick shoe on one foot has waited on three generations of my family but he's not the most attentive guy. Food is mediocre. Still where we go to scratch the Tex-Mex itch.

Mose Schrute said:

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Are there any pockets of Westbury to focus on, or any pockets to avoid? Some areas along Hillcroft seem a little seedy, but I understand that's just a main artery.

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I mentioned the area surrounded by w bellfort, Willowbend, chimney rock and hillcroft.

Mose Schrute said:

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Happy this thread was slightly derailed to discuss the food!
Speaking of which, any good tex-mex recs??

Also, if there are any decent gyms near by that anyone recommends that'd be helpful as well!

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Los Tios for consistency. La Tapatia on Bellaire is also pretty good. We end up at Teotihaucan on West Bellfort often, but it can be pretty inconsistent. We only go there often because it's closest to home.

Ranchero is at the bottom of our list.

We have a membership at Planet Fitness, but only because it's close and cheap. I've never seen a time when it's really crowded. The equipment is in fairly good shape. Not sure what you're looking for, but it doesn't have any extra frills/amenities, such as child care.

aTm_bomb said:

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Mose Schrute said:

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Are there any pockets of Westbury to focus on, or any pockets to avoid? Some areas along Hillcroft seem a little seedy, but I understand that's just a main artery.

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I mentioned the area surrounded by w bellfort, Willowbend, chimney rock and hillcroft.

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Agreed. This is one of the better areas to focus on, but the neighborhoods just South of W Bellfort are good as well. Generally speaking, the seediness really starts once you go South of Willow Waterhole Bayou and get closer to and South of Airport.

Home prices start to skyrocket the closer you move towards Meyerland. If schools are a necessity, find the good one's and find a home zoned to them.

AgLiving06 said:

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I've had the Crawfish Poboy and it's good. The biggest downside is how slow they are.

Another option is Calliopes at Belfort and Fondren. Great poboys and cajun food. Don't get their boiled crawfish though, they boil it in oil.

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Calliope's is our go to po boy place. We tried The Catch once. The food was fine, but they tend to cater towards a specific clientele and overly advertise the free alcohol, which brings a particular type of crowd....A glimpse at their Social Media will show what I'm talking about.

TexAg2001 said:

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aTm_bomb said:

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Mose Schrute said:

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Are there any pockets of Westbury to focus on, or any pockets to avoid? Some areas along Hillcroft seem a little seedy, but I understand that's just a main artery.

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I mentioned the area surrounded by w bellfort, Willowbend, chimney rock and hillcroft.

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Agreed. This is one of the better areas to focus on, but the neighborhoods just South of W Bellfort are good as well. Generally speaking, the seediness really starts once you go South of Willow Waterhole Bayou and get closer to and South of Airport.

Home prices start to skyrocket the closer you move towards Meyerland. If schools are a necessity, find the good one's and find a home zoned to them.

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agree with this, there's a small piece west of hillcroft south of willowbend that is zoned to Parker, not sure what the school situation is south of bellfort but appears to be mostly families and well cared for houses

avoiding flooding seems like it would be tricky right now, since it's no longer obvious that flooded stuff would be recently remodeled. I do think the flooding situation should be a lot better now with the bayou widening. When we were house shopping we tried to stay south of yarwell but it is really block by block

the Y on stella link is pretty nice and an easy drive

also Teotihuacan has been very consistent for us, and they are fast! Only other mexican place we go to is Carmelita's and I don't like it nearly as much

The majority of homes that flooded in Westbury during the last few events were south of W Bellfort. There's a little ditch than runs from the Willow Waterhole and runs along Kingfisher & Cartagena. Water comes up from there and flooded homes for a block or a so.

KDubAg said:

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AgLiving06 said:

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Man I had such a bad experience at Los Tios.

We had to practically beg the waiter to take our order and deliver our food.

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Yikes. I can't count how many times we've gone, never had an issue. Was this pre Covid or after?

We went to Carrabba's on Kirby Saturday, buddy ordered a ribeye medium rare. They brought it out charred and well done. I chalked it up as covid problems.

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Oh it's been years. 2014 time frame I think.

We go to Escalantes, not b/c the food is amazing, but my kids love it. We tried getting them other mexican food and they won't eat it (who knows).

Diggity said:

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The majority of homes that flooded in Westbury during the last few events were south of W Bellfort. There's a little ditch than runs from the Willow Waterhole and runs along Kingfisher & Cartagena. Water comes up from there and flooded homes for a block or a so.

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In general it's the 5600 - 5800 block of Cartegena that floods. Thank God I didn't buy that house on Cartegena that we looked at.

Parts of Cerritos flooded during Harvey, though I don't think it did during other weather events. It's pretty easy to tell based off of the lot price whether it flooded or not.

So yeah, you certainly don't want to buy a house on Cartegena unless you buy the lot for sell and build up.

On the plus side, supposedly the newly acquired land they bought from Shell will be used as a watershed to keep that area from flooding in the future. Who knows though.

This is all good info!!! Thanks for advice on Cartegena and the like. Unfortunately had to take some off of our list, but good nonetheless!

Appreciate all the responses

Here's a listing in our area:

For Sale

And depending on your timeline, there seems to be 3-4 houses being flipped right now on Oasis drive.

Juuuuust a bit outside our price range (first home btw). Great looking home though!

Totally understand. Seem like the other listings in the neighborhood all went under contract this week.

Mose Schrute said:

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Juuuuust a bit outside our price range (first home btw). Great looking home though!

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you might look at some of the homes that are for sale on willowbend blvd, being on the busier street keeps the values down a bit but it's nothing like bellfort, hillcroft, or chimney rock. There are a few that have been sitting a while.

Mose Schrute said:

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Juuuuust a bit outside our price range (first home btw). Great looking home though!

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This listing is in my immediate area, and there is a pretty wide range of sq ft in our section. Updated ones on the smaller side have been on the market recently in the $300s if that works better. The one below is across the street from us. Just noticed its under contract as mentioned above, but seems like ones like this are popping up. Seen a couple other smaller looking ones undergoing major renovations recently. Maybe they'll hit the market soon.

5502 Kinglet

Several houses in the low to mid 300s that are recently updated in the section just west of Hilcroft between W Belfort and Willowbend.

PoopyPullup said:

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Mose Schrute said:

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Juuuuust a bit outside our price range (first home btw). Great looking home though!

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you might look at some of the homes that are for sale on willowbend blvd, being on the busier street keeps the values down a bit but it's nothing like bellfort, hillcroft, or chimney rock. There are a few that have been sitting a while.

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May not be as busy but people fly down willowbend since there is only 1 light that doesn't change often. Have a buddy who lives on willowbend west of hillcroft and he doesn't really like his kids walking on the sidewalk bc there is no grass median.

Also if you don't get a house with a 2 entrance driveway its a PITA to get out of your driveway.

AND your backed up the the greenspace with the heavy duty electrical lines behind you.

Still not sure why its cheaper...?

Random question.

I need to get a pair of my boots resoled. Any recommendations in the area? Lucchese boots if it matters.

aTm_bomb said:

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PoopyPullup said:

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Mose Schrute said:

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Juuuuust a bit outside our price range (first home btw). Great looking home though!

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you might look at some of the homes that are for sale on willowbend blvd, being on the busier street keeps the values down a bit but it's nothing like bellfort, hillcroft, or chimney rock. There are a few that have been sitting a while.

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May not be as busy but people fly down willowbend since there is only 1 light that doesn't change often. Have a buddy who lives on willowbend west of hillcroft and he doesn't really like his kids walking on the sidewalk bc there is no grass median.

Also if you don't get a house with a 2 entrance driveway its a PITA to get out of your driveway.

AND your backed up the the greenspace with the heavy duty electrical lines behind you.

Still not sure why its cheaper...?

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Guilty