Following are reviews of a few notable businesses and restaurants that opened in 2016. Look out for our coming January print issue to find others that you may have missed.

Boogie’s Chicago Style BBQ food truck


Boogie’s Chicago Style BBQ closed its Houston location in January. Owner Lamont Waits, who moved to Texas from Illinois in 2002, said he wanted to concentrate efforts at his Missouri City store.

Boogie’s offers traditional barbecue fare, such as ribs, burgers, sausages and boudin balls. Waits uses a custom-made grill to cook meats outside the restaurant, and he makes his own sauces. His specialty is rib tips.

Boogie’s offers takeout and catering only.

Boogie’s launched a food truck in late July to serve customers in the Katy and Cypress areas. The vehicle was a part of the Sugar Grove Church Christmas Market in Meadows Place on Dec. 3. Customers can follow the food truck through Boogie’s social media pages.

Fort Bend Children’s Discovery Center


Affiliated with the Children’s Museum of Houston, the Fort Bend Children’s Discovery Center was the first tenant to open at the Imperial Market mixed-use development May 28. Located in the former container warehouse of the Imperial Sugar Refinery site, the 12,000-square-foot interactive museum has exhibits designed for children up to 12 years old and focuses on mathematics, cultural diversity, science, civic life and business, and
toddler play.

The center was opened to serve what Development Director Tracy Golden, said was the nearly 20 percent of visitors at the Children’s Museum who come from Fort Bend County.

Since opening, the center has seen an average of 600 visitors on Saturdays and nearly 200 visitors per day from Tuesdays to Fridays.

Xoco-Latte


The Missouri City bakery started offering classes in January, 2015, including postholiday rejuvenation and chocolate-making classes, as well as Valentine’s Day classes in February.

Xoco-Latte specializes in gluten-free candies and baked goods made on-site. Products can be purchased in the store, online or at the farmers market at Imperial, a master-planned community located in the city of Sugar Land.

Xoco-Latte added menu items with gluten and began selling Venezuelan arepas at the farmers market at Imperial.

The bakery will expand its classes and begin giving some of the proceeds to local charities or causes.

 Ma-Jest-Kids Playland


The indoor play space for infants, toddlers and preschoolers opened Nov. 1, 2015, and expanded this fall to accommodate older children. Owner Fernando Noguera said customers had inquired about offerings for older children, so he is adding 4,500 square feet and two party rooms.

The expansion, which was completed in December, also included an “American Ninja Warrior-style” obstacle course for children at least 47 inches tall and up to 12 years old.

Frios Gourmet Pops


Frios Gourmet Pops opened Aug. 25 in the Riverstone development. The popsicle shop sells milk- and fruit-based frozen treats with flavors, including raspberry cheesecake, coffee and doughnuts, birthday cake, avocado lime and Texas tea, among others. Frios merchandise is also available for purchase in the store.