Pier 36 Seafood & Oyster Bar is expanding its Lone Star State footprint. The seafood eatery is planning to open a new location inside a historic Downtown Richmond fire station, according to the Houston Business Journal. The new Pier 36 Seafood & Oyster Bar is expected to open at 112 Jackson St.
The new opening will be part of a riverside restaurant hub at the repurposed old Richmond fire station. The 62-year-old building will house two restaurants, including the new Pier 36 Seafood & Oyster Bar.
Houston-based boutique real estate company Revive Development and the city of Richmond are working together to turn the historic building on the corner of U.S. Highway 90 Alternative and Second Street into the new gathering space, according to a Facebook post from Mayor Rebecca Kennelly Haas.
“Built in 1964, the former fire station served our community for decades. Now, rather than being forgotten, it will begin a new chapter as a place where residents and visitors can gather, dine, and enjoy Historic Downtown Richmond,” the post reads.
“Congratulations to Pier 36 owner Jimmy Cantu, ReVIVE Development, and everyone who helped bring this vision to life. This project is a wonderful example of preserving Richmond’s history while investing in its future.”
What Now Houston reached out to Pier 36 Seafood & Oyster Bar founder and owner, Jimmy Cantu, to find out more about the new development. Unfortunately, we did not hear back by the time of this publication.
“Pier 36 started the way the best places do — in a small family kitchen. Decades ago in Needville, Texas, Jimmy Cantu’s mother and aunt opened a restaurant built on flavor, family, and hospitality,” the Pier 36 Seafood & Oyster Bar website reads.
“Jimmy grew up in it, trained at the University of Houston’s Conrad N. Hilton College, and opened Pier 36 in Richmond, then Fulshear.”
Pier 36 Seafood & Oyster Bar is a family-owned Fort Bend County institution founded by Cantu, with roots tracing back to a small-town family kitchen in the late 1990s. Cantu took over the original Pier 36 location in Needville in the late 1990s before expanding operations. The business established a popular casual location along Highway 90A in Richmond and later debuted a new location in Fulshear on August 13, 2018.
Construction of what is to be called Richmond Station is currently underway. Pier 36 Seafood & Oyster Bar will occupy more than 3,800 square feet in the 7,110-square-foot building. It is expected to open by next Spring. The company is moving its longtime eatery on E. Highway 90 Alternative to the new location at the fire station. A second location has opened and will continue to serve the Fulshear community and its visitors.
“Twenty-five years later, we’re still family-owned and operated, still making our Gulf seafood from scratch, and still treating every guest — first visit or fiftieth — like one of our own,” the brand’s website reads.
“Pull up a stool at Pete’s Oyster Bar and taste what a quarter-century of doing it right tastes like.”
Pier 36 Seafood & Oyster Bar is anticipated to open inside the historic Downtown Richmond fire station at 112 Jackson St this fall.
(This is a developing story. As more information is made available, we will update this article. Stay tuned!)
