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West Loop Development in Tyler

November 24th, 2009

Da Hippie
Update: The shopping complex in Tyler TX that houses such places as Da Hippie and DragonBytes has gone through a massive renovation since this article. Bravo! (said in a snobby accent) The new commercial facility renovation looks great!

Over the past few years, I have been excited to watch the economic growth and expansion occurring in West Tyler. The west loop has seen numerous decayed and crime ridden businesses closed and the real estate sold to make room for legitimate, contributing entrepreneurs. We’ve seen the likes of Wingstop, Subway, Walgreens, Starbucks, Papa Murphy’s, and numerous others, set up shop along the west loop and sixty four. Even the west loop Wal-Mart, as messy and sometimes run-down as it is, has brought with it quite a bit of development since its arrival around five years ago. It all goes to validate the maxim that a rising tide lifts all boats, something most of our current political leaders have either forgotten, or chosen to ignore. The expansion also proves that a great way to foster healthy communities is to allow healthy individuals and businesses to succeed. Give people the opportunity to buy up infected areas and they will purge the corrupted property and bring in new dollars.

With this principle in mind, I must express a certain amount of disappointment that up until this point, the West Loop and thirty one has been largely left out of the recent renaissance. I’ve long been embarrassed by the look and content of thirty one west. It has been Tyler’s ugly back door for quite sometime. It has been, and remains my hope that the development of the Cascades and the new Airport will help buoy property values and bring improvements to this ugly highway.

When the developers do decide to take the plunge and move towards Chandler, I would like to suggest a few eyesores I eagerly await seeing bulldozed completely. I do not even care whether or not they are replaced with more reputable establishments… Well that’s not true, I do hope for improvements. However a pile of rubble is preferable to these businesses (and I use the term loosely). The originally named “Sports Club,”(once named the Unicorn Club), as well as close neighbors “Da Hippy” (I can barely contain my contempt as I type this), the “Dragon’s Byte,” (their spelling not mine) and the nondescript corner gas station, have long been a breeding ground for drug use, crime, third rate tattoo artists, and general filth. The real estate is located at the corner of thirty one and Greenbriar, where a healthier more upstanding business could potentially make a successful go of it. As developments like the Cascades expand toward highway thirty one, properties like the ones I mentioned could be a source of prosperity for some entrepreneurial risk taker. The day “Da Hippy” is bulldozed I’ll be there with popcorn to watch.

On Target in Tyler

November 11th, 2009

As a traditional male, I hate shopping. While they do have the advantage of offering a huge variety, department stores can be a source of frustration. Service is often bad, the stores become disorganized quickly, and I often find it necessary to sift through a lot of low quality merchandise before finding what I want. Of all the major department store chains however, I do have my favorite.

Target is not only a great department store, but as huge corporations go, it’s a good Tyler neighbor. Between the distribution center, located just south of Lindale, and the area stores, the company employs thousands of East Texans. It is also very involved in community affairs and local charities. The store itself is always neat and clean which for me can make or break the department store experience. I find there is almost nothing worse than wandering the aisles of a dirty disorganized store looking for the one thing I came to buy. Target usually does a great job keeping the store attractive and easy to navigate.

Another of the store’s strengths is its staff. The employees of Target’s biggest competitor in Tyler are often disheveled and unhelpful. Those of Target are always attractive, neat and knowledgeable.

I will concede that the store’s prices can be slightly higher, but I remind the reader that you tend to get what you pay for. And with the Christmas season just around the corner, I trust there will be a lot of sales to bring in even the thriftiest customers. The quality of products like clothing is definitely higher than the competition’s, and I should mention the selection is better, particularly for business casual attire.

So if you’re looking for a better shopping experience and better quality goods overall, I suggest giving Target a try. While it’s admittedly not a local business a good portion of the dollars spent there do stay home in Tyler Texas. Target is located at 7003 on South Broadway, next to Wal-Mart. For more on Tyler area department stores, see the Tyler blog section of this site and look for the title “Wal-Marts in Tyler.”

Fast Food Freak Out

October 21st, 2009

Tyler has so many different locations for each of your fast food cravings. Each place has it’s own feel and more importantly taste. Every restaurant you eat at it is very important to know how clean the restaurant and kitchen is, but also how clean the food is.

Taco Bell is know for its cheap prices and one of the few successful Mexican fast food restaurants. But to most people it is known for its puddles of grease, and want to be ground beef. There has been so many times that I have been there and the floors were dirty, the bathrooms filthy, and walked out discussed. I will not return to Taco Bell after once being grossed out by the mold growing on the side of my cheesy gordita crunch and one time I had someone’s hair in my taco. It was so disgusting that I can hardly drive by a taco bell with out my stomach turning.

Everyone across the world has seen the two golden arches. McDonald’s cheese burger is one of the most famous burgers. Kid’s faces light up every time you drive up and they see the huge play place. For some reason all the McDonald’s except a couple, have taken out their play places. Personally, I don’t see what people like about the food here. I recently went to a McDonald’s that was inside the Wal-Mart off of Broadway. My family ordered and not a single thing was made the way we asked for. I was so frustrated that I wanted to complain along with half the other customers whose order was wrong, but it took so long for the food to come out the first time that I did not have the time to deal with waiting that long again. I get frustrated walking into a McDonald’s restaurant and how dirty the play places are. But the play place is the thing that kids love the most about McDonald’s.

Subway is the healthy way to go when you decide to go to eat at a fast food restaurant. Walk through the great vegetable bar and pick out exactly what you want on your sandwich and how you want it. Toasted or not, pick out the bread, meat and cheese. You can look on the menu to get the healthiest sandwich that is advertised to help you loose weight. You can always find fresh vegetables and fresh sandwich meat. They even sell pizzas that you can put whatever you want on it. They also have great new flat bread that is my new favorite thing to get there. So if you want to get fast food I suggest to go healthy and stop by Subway.

I don’t know how people can still eat at Long John Silver’s. I have not eaten there in a long time but I have all the reason to not go there. I got so sick when I went there when I was little. I don’t know why some one would think that “rubbery” fake sea food would taste good. Even the thought of the food just sounds really gross.

Texas has a great fast food chain. From miles away you can spot the bright orange and white metal roof or Whataburger. It is no regular fast food restaurant each one has it’s own feel. There you can also have a great place to watch a game and hang out with your friends. Have a great juicy burger and some great fries. Enjoy the real ice cream taste and have a great strawberry, chocolate, and vanilla shake. Whataburger’s prices are usually higher than other chain fast food restaurants but the food is so much better. You can be able to make your burger your way. Stop by for the best specials around. Stop and enjoy great food, environment, people and enjoy a cold Dr. Pepper.

The ultimate drink stop in the United States is the well known drive threw, Sonic. Have fun hanging out side and play some sand volleyball, or play with the kids on the play place. Come over to get a drink for half off from 2:00 to 4:00. You can get a lot of different flavors in your soda or get a refreshing slushy in any flavor. The food is terrible. I have mentioned before that I hate greasy food. I get discussed by the puddles of grease floating on the top of chili cheese tots. But there is not many things more wonderful than to cool down with a cold drink or ice cream on a hot Texan summer. So stop by and get a drink for half off.

I hate watching the television and seeing those retarded Jack In The Box commercials. I hate them so much that I wont even eat there. I once ate there and my burger and fries were cold. I heard of great deals on food there, but because of the nasty creepy commercials I refuse to go there.

Another of the best fast food chains in Tyler is the most popular, Chick-fil-a. Everyone knows the cows that are able write, yet misspell the word “more”. Get the best chicken and a wonderful fresh salad. Get a drink of great sweat tea or one of their new milkshakes. Try all their great sauces. They have wonderful waffle fries and the best chicken sandwiches. Enjoy a fun time and let your kids play in the fun play places. Come to “cow appreciation day” and dress up like a cow for a free meal. have some fun and great food. Bring your kids to Chick-fil-a.

For the worst food of all the fast food restaurants, but one of the cheapest places to get ice cream, go to Dairy Queen. Last time I went there it took forever to get my food and the Dairy Queen was dirty. But kids have a fun time eating ice cream and playing, but the food was awful. The chicken was hard and the salad brown. It was one place that I wont go back to.

Want to eat at a place whose bread is old, the wait is long, your food always is brought out wrong, but the food is good? The stop by Wendy’s. Try food off of the one dollar menu. I do admit that they have great new chicken and some times there are things that are pretty good. But I don’t think there was once that I went there and it didn’t take for ever for the food to come out, or my order was wrong. I don’t have the time to eat there, but if your patient enough for it, go ahead and eat cheap at Wendy’s.

So here is my opinion of the fast food restaurants to go eat or stay clear. Tyler has a great variety of fast food restaurants, you just need to know which ones to stay clear of. Take out your kids to have a fun time, and enjoy a quick bite on your lunch break, just know where to go.

Wal-Mart Confusion

September 18th, 2009

When I walk into Tyler’s Wal-Mart, on the corner of the Loop and highway 64, I am greeted by a group of strange men just hanging out by the entrance. I get sick of these groups of guys that shout at woman to get their numbers. I can not believe girls would actually give these guys their numbers. As I walk through the dirty store that always seems like the floor is sticky, I get run into a bunch of little kids running through the store with no parents in sight. I get frustrated and walk down to get a tube of toothpaste. As I grab a tube of tooth paste, a shirt is stuffed behind it. I go to get a few groceries and grab something to eat at the Deli. Some woman sell barbeque chicken chunks with flies flying all around. Some chicken falls on the greasy dirty counter and they just grabbed it up and threw it back in the container with all the other food. I was really grossed out and decided not to eat there. There is a McDonalds connected to this Wal-Mart. I don’t think I would ever eat there. It always looks really dirty and really greasy. This Wal-Mart is known to be very dangerous and be very careful if you go there, especially at night, when really strange people can not find a better place to hang out at 11:00 at night.

It seems like some of the most stuck up people drive around the Wal-Mart off of Broadway. I always get cut off while walking into the store. One time a car was waiting for me to load my bags of groceries into the car put my two babies into the car seats and buckle them in and put my cart away, just so they could get my spot. I was trying to hurry to be nice and they kept honking and when I looked up at the driver I noticed that they were signaling for me to hurry up. Excuse me? They should just go find another place. Oh, and by the way, please do not park in the pregnancy parking unless you are pregnant. So I hate going there because of all the rude people that shop there. But there isn’t any other Wal-Mart that is so convenient. I can just go right across the street to Target, or stay in the same parking lot and enjoy a great burger at Whataburger. The store inside is a lot cleaner than the Wal-Mart I formally talked of, but it always is so crowded. Every time I go to check out it seems like they have about twenty lanes and maybe five are open. So there will be at least ten people in front of you with their baskets over flowing with stuff. So Wal-Mart, open a few more check-outs, will you?

My very favorite Wal-Mart in Tyler is the newest one on Troop Highway. It is the furthest for me but I think it is worth the drive. It is the largest Wal-Mart in Tyler and always the most orderly. The food always seems so much cleaner and even the people are nicer. The parking lot is larger so people can find their own parking space and don’t have to be so rude to park. They have great furniture for babies. It is easy to register here because everything so organized compared to the other ones. The people are nicer because they don’t feel cramped into and over crowded store with rude strangers. The greeter is even nicer. Which I think greeters are so funny. What a great job. They are called “greeters” but honestly,  how often do they really greet you. Its like security. Security from all those strange pathetic people that shop lift. But that is off the point I am trying to make. Troop Wal-Mart greeters actually tell people hello. But I don’t think they deal with as much shop lifting as the Wal-Mart off of highway 64. There is always police there. So if you need to go to Wal-Mart go to Troop, even if it is out of the way. They always seem to have more lanes open so it takes a lot less time to come in and get out.

I’m not the biggest fan of Wal-Mart, not like I use to be. But it is the one stop for all your needs and the prices are amazing. I can ever leave the store with out first checking out the five dollar movie rack, or the three dollar sales in the baby clothes section. Wal-Mart has a policy that they will not be under sold, so you are sure to find what you need or want at a  great price. You will find everything for every room in your house and for your car. If you need a new bed spread or a new rug, if you need new furniture or television, you will always find it at Wal-Mart. Keep your eyes open for the seasonal selection at great prices and when it starts to becomes out of season look for amazing sales. Have fun shopping with your kids in their toys section, I always have to take a walk down the pink aisle just to see what is new and what is on sale. So shop Wal-Mart to find off-brand and brand names at a great price, “always”.