Convenience Big Store: Why beloved Houston restaurants are expanding into The Woodlands

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10 vegan and vegetarian-friendly restaurants in Montgomery County.

Growing up in a small Texas town where a meat-free meal was as foreign as skipping church or unsweet tea, it was a shocker when I realized almost all of my college friends were vegan or vegetarian.

My diet has gone unchanged, but they did help me notice how limited the veggie menu can be at many restaurants. Still, many places are beefing up their meatless menus, so to speak, and vegan and vegetarian-only restaurants are popping up right next to barbecue trucks and steakhouses in Montgomery County.

You can try a cauliflower wing or send this roundup of bakeries and meat-free restaurants to your favorite struggling MoCo vegetarian.

What's the best vegetarian meal you've ever had? Let me know at claire.partain@houstonchronicle.com.

Claire Partain, Suburban reporter producer

Claire.Partain@houstonchronicle.com

Growing Woodlands

Dessert Gallery owner Sara Brook, right, helps Dianca Holman pick out a selection of pastries during a sneak peek pop-up of the Dessert Gallery's new Waterway Cafe location on Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2023 in The Woodlands.

Photo by: Brett Coomer, Staff Photographer

Some beloved Houston restaurants are expanding into The Woodlands. Here's why.

Popular sandwich shop Niko Niko's and beloved bakery Dessert Gallery will soon open in The Woodlands. Here's why the suburb appeals to Houston restaurants.

Need to Know

Construction continues along Kuykendahl Road to widen it from a two-lane half boulevard to a four-lane full boulevard from Lake Woodlands Drive to Research Forest Drive. Five members of The Woodlands Township Board of Directors agreed on a resolution both supporting and opposing some aspects of the Montgomery County 2021 Major Thoroughfare Plan in an online meeting Wednesday.

Photo by: Jason Fochtman, Houston Chronicle / Staff Photographer

Suburban street names, including in The Woodlands, honor German immigrants, pirates.

Houston's rich history is present in its street and community names. These suburban streets honor, or reference, specific moments in history and cultures important to the area.

Montgomery County is facing a high demand for food assistance with a notable surge in the past month. In October alone, Montgomery County Food Bank supported 95,163 individual client contacts through its network of over 80 partner agencies including food pantries, schools, senior living facilities, and more. This staggering figure marks the second highest monthly outreach in the Food Bank's history, only surpassed by the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in May 2020, when its network served 104,000 client contacts. Visit mcfoodbank.org for more on how to help this holiday season.

Photo by: Photo Courtesy The Montgomery County Food Bank

County nonprofits plan holiday food drives and fundraisers.

To support the increasing need among food-insecure families and individuals during the holidays and into the new year, Montgomery County nonprofit groups are hosting food and fund drives.

Education

Christopher J. Hines Elementary is seen, Wednesday, June 28, 2023, in Spring. Hines Elementary is one of three schools in Conroe ISD opening for the 2023-2024 school year.

Photo by: Jason Fochtman, Staff Photographer

Conroe ISD sets timeline to begin construction on $1.9 billion bond in projects.

The Conroe ISD Board of Trustees got its first look at a timeline for $1.9 billion in projects with construction getting underway on several schools in March.

Openings and Closings

Spring daycare center Early Ivy closed suddenly Friday, citing rising costs and the "child care cliff" among its reasons for closing.

Shout out

The late Woodlands architect and art lover Coulson Tough was honored with a new sculpture in front of the school with his namesake, Tough Elementary, Thursday morning.

One last thing …

ICYMI: John Whitmire will be Houston's next mayor after a runoff election victory over the weekend. Check out the Chronicle website for more on his past and plans for the future.