Two area businesses are finding success in the Northwest Austin area for their expansion plans. Heather Amalaha is opening a brick-and-mortar location of her meal-kit delivery business, Gourmet By Numbers, on Sept. 9 at 7318 McNeil Drive, Ste. 109. “It gives us a physical presence in Austin because we’re one of the few meal-kit places local to Austin,” she said. In 2014, Amalaha completed a successful crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo to help fund the opening of the storefront where customers can pickup meal kits they ordered online or drop in and grab a kit for dinner. Previously meals were hand delivered to a customer’s home or customers could pick up kits at three locations in North Austin, including Toybrary on Anderson Lane. “We wanted it to be close to where the people are so they don’t have to change location,” Amalaha said on choosing her location. “The population here is right on target with young professionals and families.” Each kit comes with all the ingredients, including spices, to create a home-cooked meal in less than 30 minutes. “We’re trying to do all of the prep work,” she said. “… The meals are just good. They’re not complicated or small portions. It’s real home-cooked meals like grandma would serve.” Amalaha is also selling local retail items such as seed bombs and cork coasters. She plans to offer cooking classes at the store. To celebrate the opening, Amalaha is offering a promotion the week of Sept. 14 for a free one- to two-serving meal kit for the first 100 customers who visit the new store and signup for the newsletter. Call 512-900-5801 or visit www.gourmetbynumbers.com for more information.

Music school expands

[g-slider gid="91805" width="100%" height="55%"] In June, Michael and Reema Garcia opened a second location of their business, Out Of This World Music School, at 2013 Wells Branch Parkway, Ste. 102. The new studio has themed music rooms for lessons in a variety of instruments, including piano, guitar, ukulele, percussion, voice, mandolin, banjo and harmonic. The percussion room has drum set with a solar system painted on the walls. The guitar room has paint splattered throughout and images of famous guitarists, including Jimi Hendrix. “We try to keep it fun and inspiring for our students,” Michael said. The couple is finishing a video production room to create videos of students performing. The original location of Out Of This World opened five years ago in Pflugerville, which they are also planning to expand. “We just outgrew that place,” Michael said. For more information call 512-851-7437 or visit www.outofthisworldmusicschool.com.