Area residents now have ample options for dining, with at least 26 eateries opening in Cedar Park, Leander, and areas of Austin near Lakeline Mall and RM 620.

From January 2014 to January 2015, at least 20 restaurants opened in Cedar Park, the majority of which opened on Whitestone Boulevard.

Leander received at least six new restaurants in that same time frame, including two new-to-market eateries—Farm to Fork on Old FM 2243 and Mayitos Mexican Restaurant on US 183.

Many of the newly opened places to dine in Cedar Park are fast-casual, or eateries in which customers order at the counter and are served at their tables.

In August, financial information service company NerdWallet named Cedar Park the No. 1 best city in the U.S. to start a restaurant.

The study examined 530 cities in the U.S. that have a population of at least 50,000 and analyzed population growth and density as well as restaurant sales per resident and number of new eateries.

In 2014, Cedar Park saw an increase in the number of restaurants in the city with 146 total eateries, compared with the 112 it had in 2010, according to the Texas State Comptroller’s Office.

“Cedar Park is an absolute no-brainer for a lot of restaurants who are coming into the market or or who have already entered the market,” said David Simmonds, owner of commercial real estate firm Retail Solutions. “It has grown significantly over the last two decades and continues to do so.”

Restaurant clusters

Some commercial Realtors in the Cedar Park market say restaurants located near clusters of other eateries tend to attract more business because of indecisive drivers and competitive price points.

Although many diners may think they decide where to eat based on what type of food they want, market research shows they decide based on how much of their disposable income they want to spend, said Russ Boles, a principal with Williamson County real estate firm Summit Commercial.

“I’m either going to go to a place that has plates above $12, or I’m going to a place that has plates below $12,” Boles said. “At the end of the day, that’s why restaurants cluster. If I can’t get into Chuy’s [because of a long wait], I’ll go to the Salt Grass [steak house]. It’s really more about price point. … And that’s the kind of decision people don’t even realize that they are making.”

Being located near other eateries, Simmonds said, is one of the most important factors to his fast-casual restaurateur clients.

“Fast-casual has become the new dominant trend in the business,” he said. “We represent many in the market. … What they are looking for is No. 1.: Are there other fast-casual restaurants [near them]?” Simmonds said. “They really want to be around each other—they want that cluster effect. Not direct competitors obviously, but they want other fast-casuals [around them] so that when people are going out to eat, especially lunchtime traffic, they want people to go to a shopping center destination.”

Retail Solutions has been in the Cedar Park market for at least 15 1/2 years, Simmonds said, and represents fast-casual restaurants such as Firehouse Subs, Freebirds World Burrito and PhoNatic Vietnamese Cuisine. Throughout the past five years, the type of restaurants opening in Cedar Park has changed from fast-food and sit-down eateries to fast-casual restaurants, he said.

For example, fast-casual restaurants such as PDQ, Chipotle, Zaxby’s, Five Guys Burgers and Fries, Zoës Kitchen and Panera Bread have all opened in Cedar Park since January 2014. New to the market, locally owned Big Cat BBQ opened on Whitestone Boulevard in the spring, and Eusubio Alvarez and his family opened Cielito Lindo Mexican Cuisine on March 20. Alvarez worked as the head chef at Austin-based Fonda San Miguel for 30 years. 

Sit-down restaurant Gino’s Italian Cuisine will open its second location in Cedar Park in November, and Italian franchise Russo’s New York Pizzeria plans to open in the area in 2017.

In Leander, locally owned Farm to Fork opened in February 2015 in Business Park 2243, and Mayitos Mexican Restaurant opened in the former Casa Lupita spot on US 183 in August.

So far in 2015, some Austin-based restaurateurs have chosen to open their second area locations in Leander—Brooklyn Heights Pizzeria, which opened its first location in Avery Ranch, and South Austin-based Cherry Creek Catfish Restaurant, which has been in business since 1994.

Finding available space

New restaurants looking for available space often need to build from the ground up because of a lack of existing, move-in ready kitchens, Boles said.

Many business owners find it ideal to move into a former restaurant space, Boles said. However, in Cedar Park and Leander, that kind of space is a rarity because many franchises open and stay successful in the market.

Dart Burger, a locally owned eatery, was an exception. The business moved into the former Long John Silvers and A&W location on North Bell Boulevard in Cedar Park in July 2015.

About 3 miles up the road, Judy and Mike Yoon opened Kai Sushi in July, the first sushi restaurant in Leander in the former Southern’s Pizza location on US 183.  Judy Yoon said when scouring the area for a location, she told her broker that she wanted to move into a second-generation restaurant space.

Judy Yoon said the eatery attracts regional diners, such as those from Cedar Park, Georgetown and even as far as Burnet.

Mike Yoon, Kai’s head chef, has experience working as a chef at Austin sushi restaurants such as Yanagi and Mikado. Judy Yoon said because of Austin’s oversaturated sushi restaurant market, she and Mike decided to head north in choosing a location for Kai.

“We wanted to bring culture into the neighborhood,” Judy Yoon said. “It’s always cool to be the first of something. … We came out here, and we loved Leander—it is such a growing area.”

Investment in dining amenities

As area populations continue to grow, city officials are working to create an enticing environment for business owners to provide more dining options.

On Nov. 3, voters in Cedar Park passed $96.7 million in bond projects, including funding for an initiative to revitalize a portion of Bell Boulevard—one of the oldest areas in the city.

Included in the Bell redevelopment plan are street designs that accommodate pedestrians and automobiles, incorporating outdoor seating, restaurant patios and ground-floor retail with a strong use of shade “to temper the Texas climate,” according to the redevelopment plan.

Larry Holt, assistant director of economic development for the city of Cedar Park, said attracting business helps to provide “full-service amenities” to Cedar Park residents.

“Our goal has been to encourage a business environment so our citizens don’t have to leave town for everything,” Holt said. “Ten years ago if you wanted to go to a movie, you had to go to Lakeline Mall. If you wanted to go shopping, you needed to go somewhere south in Austin. Our council has made a real concerted effort to address those missing places, and I think we’ve done a good job.”

Holt cited the 1890 Ranch shopping center, vast dining options and the Cedar Park Center as examples of successful amenities.

Cedar Park’s economic development department, as well as city engineers and planners, meet with business owners, including restaurateurs, during the pre-development phase to identify any potential obstacles that may arise during the construction process, he said.

The process is similar in Leander, said Eric Zeno, economic development manager for the city of Leander, adding that meetings are an optimal time for restaurateurs to get questions answered prior to starting the permitting process.

Leander’s population is 39,000, he said, adding that as more residents move into the city, more business opportunity will come.

The city’s economic development department is currently developing incentive packages for more restaurants to open in Old Town Leander. 

Zeno said he expects City Council to vote on the incentive proposals by the first half of 2016. Because council has not yet approved the proposals, Zeno said he was unable to provide details about the incentives.

“We’re starting to see those type of Tier 2 restaurants [such as Cherry Creek Catfish Restaurant and Brooklyn Heights Pizzeria] open their second location or relocating in Leander,” Zeno said. “As we grow over the 50,000 population, [more] restaurants are going to come.”