The Leader • Saturday, April 6, 2019 • Page 1B
Grit Grocery offers flexibility, freshness By Betsy Denson betsy@theleadernews.com The seed for the idea that became Grit Grocery, Dustin Windham’s mobile market, started when he was living in Azerbaijan and volunteering with the Peace Corps. “It was a food-awakening moment,” said Windham, CEO of Grit. “There was no Uchi, no Pappadeaux. I went to the market and bought from the local baker, the local butcher. When I cooked from scratch I felt better and lost weight. I bought smaller volumes more frequently. It was the right way to interact with food.” The business that Windham launched almost a year ago with Michael Powell, Emily Jaschke and Maggie Nemetz started as a Rice University business school plan and evolved into a meal delivery service – in the vein of HelloFresh and Blue Apron, except Grit sells beer and wine, too – with trucks that also bring groceries to area neighborhoods. Last month, they added the Heights to their roster. The Houston Heights Association helped them connect with the Church at 1548 Heights. Grit Grocery is now a fixture on Heights Boulevard. “We are fresh groceries available through a flexible retail model,” Windham said. While Windham has a background in business and supply chain management, Powell, the director of marketing, formerly worked for a grocery
Contributed photo Shown here is some of the food Grit Gorcery offers its customers.
Contributed photo Grit Grocery CEO Dustin Windham, left, and Michael Powell craft meals from fresh ingredients and delivery them to customers, similar to a food truck.
consulting group in Los Angeles where he helped design store layout. Food partners in the endeavor include Brazos Valley Cheese, Brenham Kitchens, Fabio’s Artisan Fresh Pasta, Gundermann Acres, Katie’s Seafood Market and the Texas Pickle Company. Offerings are dye and preservative free with no pesticides or hormones. “Bread that lasts for a month is not bread,” Windham said.
Customers can buy groceries through the company’s website, https://gritgrocery. com, as well as bundles which are meal ingredients with easy-to-follow instructions. Options include Shrimp and Grits, Red Snapper and Lemon Cous, and Chimichurri Steak & Salad. There are a small number of bundles to choose from to make things quick and easy for the customer. The variety comes from the seasonal rota-
tion of bundle offerings. There’s no subscription required for Grit, which offers meal bundles serving two to three people with a cost be-
FAREWELL
CycleBar indoor cycling studio is the newest signed tenant at the Market at Houston Heights, a 30,000 square-foot retail development currently under construction at 1533 N. Shepherd Dr. CycleBar franchisees, Greg and Sidney Hatfield, will occupy a 2,471 square-foot, second-floor space. Flower Child restaurant was the first announced tenant for the space. This is the second Inner Loop location for CycleBar, which entered Greater Houston in 2016 and operates studios in Vintage Park, Cinco Ranch, The Woodlands and Arts District Houston. The concept is built around CycleBeats, a proprietary, inhouse and online music database, plus the CycleTheatre, a tiered space featuring custom bikes, expansive flat screens, personal data monitors and state-of-the-art audio, video and lighting technology that creates a multisensory experience. Class options range from Classic, focused on a mix of strength, endurance, challenges, hills and drills; Connect, aimed at reviving and restoring; Performance, a motivational ride with group challenges and competitions; plus a rotation of party-like themed
experiences. Clients utilize CycleStats to measure the six key metrics of their daily and historical performance and receive an email after every ride to help track the progress of their fitness journey. For more information about the Heights location, including blast grand opening celebration and free ride giveaways, consumers can visit https:// houstonheights.cycle bar. com/. Pioneer Chiropractic at Memorial Park’s 2019 Brunch Run The Memorial Park Conservancy will be host the 2019 Brunch Run on Saturday. This 5K fun run has athletes and weekend warriors jogging starting and ending in the park’s new Eastern Glades. In addition to celebrating with friends at the post-race party featuring brunch favorites, Pioneer Chiropractic will have a booth providing runners with light stretching, massage and education about wellness and injury prevention before and after the run. Pioneer Chiropractic is a recently opened chiropractic clinic in the Oak Forest/ Garden Oaks neighborhood. It offers chiropractic, acupuncture, corrective exercises, pregnancy care and wellness care. Specializing in sports chiropractic and pregnancy care,
Contributed photo CycleBar is coming to Market at Houston Heights, and will offer attendees a wide range of class options to best suit them.
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Pioneer Chiropractic treats a wide range of musculoskeletal conditions. Follow @pioneerchiro on Instagram and Facebook for race day updates or stop by the clinic at 2030 North Loop West, Suite 120. New agents at Led Well Realty Ginny Ledwell opened her own real estate brokerage in November after four years with the Reyna Realty Group. Recently, two new agents have joined the company — Rebec-
“It’s a different shopping experience,” Windham said. “The truck is another way to engage with people and to promote what we do. We’re more visible.” Windham said the increased visibility in the area is translating to increased sales online. “People have seen us in the area,” he said. “We have a very good crowd.”
After 53 years, we’re retiring.
New tenant in place for Market at Houston Heights By Betsy Denson betsy@theleadernews.com
tween $7-$10 per serving. Windham asserts that all of the meals are “dummy proof.” “You don’t have to be a chef to do food,” he said. “There are no obscure ingredients. We’re not playing games.” In addition to the Heights, Grit brings its truck to locations in Downtown Houston, East Downtown and the Museum District.
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