The restaurant business is booming in The Woodlands area. In 2014, 44 restaurants opened or announced plans to open. Gino's East, Chicago's famous pizzeria, opened a restaurant in December at 25657 I-45, east of Borough Park Drive. In addition, the development at Hughes Landing will feature at least 12 restaurants, including seafood restaurant Truluck's within Restaurant Row while restaurants such as The Republic Grille, California Pizza Kitchen, Bonefish Grill and Ruggles Green have either opened or will open soon.

Development experts say the addition of so many new restaurants in the community is partly a result of the influx of employees working in The Woodlands area. The daytime population of The Woodlands, at 200,000, is nearly double the regular resident population, said Laura Lee Palmer, vice president of business retention and expansion for The Woodlands Area Economic Development Partnership. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, daytime population includes workers and others in one area during working hours.

"[The Woodlands] has become a workforce destination, so that workforce is large enough to support the influx and diversity of restaurants," Palmer said. "I think [the demand for dining venues] is the trickle-down effect of the amount of job growth that we've had."

Palmer said The Woodlands has added 2,000 new jobs in the past year. There are now 65 major non-retail employers in The Woodlands, totaling 29,980 employees, according to Alex Sutton, co-president of The Woodlands Development Company. A major employer, according to the Development Company, is one that employs 100 or more workers.

"I think as long as our job growth continues, the restaurant growth will continue," Palmer said.

Restaurant trends

A trend among new restaurants in The Woodlands is in-line fast casual like Chipotle, said Rip Reynolds, director of leasing and commercial properties for the Howard Hughes Corporation, which owns The Woodlands. Reynolds said with such facilities, customers perceive they are getting more quality than at a fast-food establishment.

"[Customers] spend $2 more and get a much more quality meal than with a fast-food burger," Reynolds said. "They don't break the bank and get a great meal in a timely manner."

Hello Taco on Grogan's Mill Road and Jimmy John's on Sawdust Road, which both opened last year, are considered by the industry to be in-line fast casual restaurants.

Another local restaurant trend is gastropubs, Reynolds said. The food quality is higher, and there is more variety at gastropubs than at regular bars that serve pub food.

The Refuge Bar & Bistro, located at 24 Waterway Ave., which offers menu items such as flatbreads with truffle oil and wild mushrooms and artichoke dip with smoked bacon and blue cheese, is representative of the gastropub trend.

"Our concept is to take comfort food and put a twist on it to differentiate us from the others," co-owner Mark Zientek said.

Restaurant managers know the ability to accommodate corporate or private parties is a draw among local business, Reynolds said. Black Walnut Cafe, which moved from Research Forest Drive to New Trails Drive this year, now offers private dining in addition to its public dining area. The Republic Grille in the Panther Creek Village Center, which opened one year ago, offers both public and private dining as well. Reynolds said offering live music is another way to draw a crowd.

"People want to have that option [of hearing live music]," Reynolds said. "[Live music performance has] been a void, so we filled the void."

Local Pour on Restaurant Row will offer nightly entertainment, while La Bikina, which opened last year on Research Forest Drive, will begin offering live music this year.

Development opportunities

Republic Grille owner Terry McBurney, who also serves as president of the Montgomery County Restaurant Association, opened his American cuisine restaurant in May. He said he wanted to offer The Woodlands a non-chain dining experience.

"I wanted something that could preserve the feeling of what The Woodlands was all about," McBurney said.

He said developments such as Hughes Landing and Research Forest Lakeside have spurred the influx of new restaurants. Before those projects were developed, the only options for restaurant growth included strip centers and locations along I-45, he said.

"Once Hughes Landing and [Research Forest] Lakeside are built out, we're going to be right back where we were," he said. "There will be no viable options for restaurant growth."

McBurney said he is currently planning another restaurant in The Woodlands area but declined to disclose the location.

"I see a lot of independent restaurants opening in and around Texas," he said. "A lot of that has to do with our booming economy. I also see the multiunit chain account venturing into the Texas market. Because they, too, see this as being one of the strongest states in the U.S. for job growth."

Still, despite the surge in new restaurants in The Woodlands, some restaurants do close for various reasons. The Mexican chain Paparruchos Restaurant and Bar closed last summer. Luca and Leonardo Ristorante as well as La Lupita closed last year.

Reynolds said a restaurant's location in the Woodlands does not ensure its success and the way a restaurant is operated may determine its prosperity.

"Real estate is only part of the equation," he said.