Westheimer: The Backbone of Houston

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Running from the Eastwood neighborhood at the east, through the city center and past three major loops of freeways, Westheimer Road is the most likely street you will end up on in Houston, hands down.

Dizzee Rascal and UGK in the 3rd Ward

The city’s five major universities are located adjacent to Westheimer, beginning in the 3rd Ward neighborhood where it is named Elgin Street. University of Houston and Texas Southern University are clustered in the historically black neighborhood south of downtown. Further west is the HCC campus in Midtown, where the street name changes from Elgin to Westheimer Road. Six blocks south of Westheimer at Montrose is Saint Thomas University, and further south in the Museum District is the beautiful Rice University campus.

Shopping along Westheimer ranks among the best in the city. Traveling west of downtown, small boutiques and antique shops mix with coffee houses and art galleries in the Montrose neighborhood. The Bookstop store on Shepherd Street is the oldest theatre in the county. The posh Upper Kirby District provides natural food grocery stores and upscale shopping centers as well as delicious Tex-Mex and fusion restaurants. The Greenway Plaza area is replete with strip malls and innovative fast food, but the best reason to go is the Edwards Theatre, the best place to catch a movie in town.

To the west of Loop 610 is the Galleria, name of both a cluster of four shopping malls and one of the fastest growing neighborhoods in Houston. The Galleria Mall houses 375 stores in 1.2 million square feet of air conditioned space. It is located at one of the busiest surface street intersections in the country, Post Oak Boulevard at Westheimer Road. The Galleria neighborhood between Loop 610 and Beltway 8 is a mishmash of residential, commercial and industrial neighborhoods, a product of Houston’s lack of zoning laws. The entire length of Westheimer along this portion of the city is packed with big box stores, strip malls and restaurants. There is something for any taste, and the delectable food of cultures from the world over. Just south of Westheimer is the Richmond Strip, packed with clubs and bars. It is a major spot for car culture and flashy behavior.