"I saw 'Batman' there, I think the one with Jack Nicholson," Origo Works Director of Development Ramiro Gonzalez told The Brownsville Herald last month. He was talking about the ABC Cinema 1 & 2, the old theater at North Park Plaza. Its screens went dark in the 1990s. The space has been renovated and renamed The Livivo Music Hall, and it's set to anchor a shopping center with a new name too.
Some of the newest dining spots in Brownsville this fall are moving into two shopping centers that have been around longer than a lot of us. One is Palm Village Shopping Center, built in the 1950s. The other is the former North Park Plaza, built in the early 1970s. Both are open for business right now because a handful of tenants kept their doors open while construction went on around them. The newer restaurants are filling in the spaces next to those tenants.
Sabal Market Center, Still "El Globo" to Plenty of People
North Park Plaza is now called Sabal Market Center, at 800 Frontage Rd. 77/83. The Herald notes that plenty of people still call it "El Globo," after the supermarket that anchored the site for years. El Globo announced in November 2022 that it would close at the end of that December, according to ValleyCentral.
The redevelopment is a partnership between Varco, the investment arm of Origo Works, and the family that originally owned the center. Gonzalez put the total investment at about $12 million. He said the hard part was the tenants who stayed open the whole time. "There were a lot of tenants that lived through it, right? And by saying lived through it, literally we were building around that." At the end of October, he said parking, signs, lighting and landscaping were 85% to 95% finished.
The Four Who Rode It Out
Bocata, Malachela, Nerve and Williedean Bagels were all at Sabal before the remodel, and they stayed open through it. Between them, they cover a full day at the center, starting with breakfast.
- Williedean Bagels, 800 North Expy #35. Hours are 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekends. The menu runs from an egg, bacon, sausage, potato patty and cheese bagel to a ham and turkey club.
- Nerve Coffee, 800 N Expressway Ste 10. It opens at 7 a.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m. on weekends, and closes at 7 p.m. every day except Sunday, when it closes at 6.
- Malachela, 800 N. Expressway, Suite 28. It's a self-pour taproom with 30 taps of craft beer, wine, cider and seltzer, and it has a food menu. It's closed Tuesdays and open until 10:30 p.m. on Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
- Bocata is the fourth tenant that stayed open through the remodel.
These four are a big reason Sabal never really emptied out. They kept people coming in while the center around them was torn up.
Who Is Filling In Around Them
Among the newcomers, Santo Pez is already open. It's at 800 N. Expressway, Ste. 9, and its own site describes it as a seafood and artisanal mixology spot. It highlights pescado á la talla, carpaccio de pulpo, tostada de atún and camarones asados.
Several more food tenants are on the way. Gonzalez named Brunetta's Tinto & Pasta Bar, Itoko Korean BBQ, Mori Japanese Grill and Sumo Ramen Bar. He also said New York Deli is coming back to Brownsville under new management, in part of the old El Globo space. "They're actually under construction as we speak, so it's a thing. It's going to happen," he told the Herald.
According to Gonzalez, Sabal is fully leased except for the former El Globo space, which still has about 40,000 square feet open. That means the supermarket that once anchored the center now has the most room left to fill. The new anchor is the former movie theater.
Jason Wolfe, a Sabal partner and owner, is the one who renamed the theater space The Livivo Music Hall. It's meant to host live music, performances and events, and Gonzalez said the first phase could hold about 750 to 1,000 people. Here's how he described the gap it fills:
"Brownsville doesn't have any of that, at least not in private hands. If you ever need to do an event or a concert, it's usually at a city park or university or this or that."
The Brownsville Society for the Performing Arts lists the venue's address as 800 N. Expressway. Its website, thelivivo.com, has a sign-up for opening-show dates and ticket releases.
Palm Village, a Mile and a Half South
Palm Village is less than a mile and a half from Sabal as the crow flies, at 1400 Palm Blvd. Gonzalez said it was "pretty much empty" when Origo took it on. The work wrapped up about a year ago. It included a new parking lot and a faithful reproduction of the center's original mid-century-modern sign. "There's a lot of nostalgia about Palm Village. It's a gem. It was built in the '50s," he said. Varco is now the sole owner, and Gonzalez expects the full project to cost $9 million to $10 million. That's close to what went into Sabal, for a center that started out with far fewer tenants.
Like Sabal, Palm Village kept a few businesses through the work. Chicken Run, Dollar General and SpinXpress Laundry stayed open during construction. Here are the newer arrivals:
- Nikkori, 1400 Palm Boulevard, Ste. 22. It's a Japanese-Mexican fusion restaurant, and Texas Border Business covered its arrival at Palm Village. The Herald says it got its start in Matamoros decades ago, before sushi was available in Brownsville.
- Crepe Town relocated here from its longtime spot in the former Brownsville Museum of Fine Art.
- Doña Maria Gorditas is leasing space at the center. Texas Border Business reported it as the brand's first Brownsville location, in 1,020 square feet.
- KidCreate Studio offers art classes for kids, and Eternelle Hair Couture is another new tenant.
- F.I.T. Lab Fitness moved into the space that was once Minimax Super Market, then King Mart, then Trevino's Furniture Store.
What's Still Coming
A few more changes are lined up at Palm Village, and one of them involves a Frontage Road regular.
| Place | Where | What's planned |
|---|---|---|
| Mi Torito | Palm Village, three doors down from Crepe Town | Moving from its longtime 715 Frontage Rd. spot, probably in February or March |
| Freestanding Pinkberry | Its own building at Palm Village | Frozen yogurt shop planned "hopefully by the end of the year" |
| Former Ho's Garden units | Palm Village | All three units available for lease |
| Brunetta's, Itoko, Mori, Sumo Ramen | Sabal Market Center | Announced tenants |
| New York Deli | Former El Globo space at Sabal | Under construction as of late October |
The Herald's October story placed Mi Torito at its longtime 715 Frontage Rd. address, with its Palm Village spot to follow. The restaurant's site lists hours of 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily and a breakfast menu that includes menudo. When the move happens, Palm Village will have Mi Torito's breakfast, Crepe Town and Nikkori under one roof, and Sabal's bagels, coffee and taproom will be a short drive north.
Gonzalez said the goal at both centers is to rescue some of the city's most beloved commercial spaces. He counted two other Origo projects on a similar timeline in that effort, The Livery Venue and the Olvera Building.
Most of my days are spent on the island, but a good bagel or a new taproom is worth the drive up the expressway. If you've already tried the pescado á la talla at Santo Pez, or you have a favorite memory of a movie at the ABC Cinema, I'd love to hear about it. And if questions about Valley homes come up along the way, Sarah McKinlay is always happy to talk. Let's Connect.
