Restaurant Updates 7/17/26

🆕 Denny's (Liberty Hill) — A new state filing shows a Denny's headed to a Highway 29 development, with a second restaurant lease space still open beside it.
🆕 Taco Bell (Cedar Park) — A new drive-thru location on East Whitestone has cleared review and is wrapping construction.
🆕 Pepper Lunch (Leander) — The Japanese chain that serves meals on 500-degree cast-iron plates is confirmed for a Leander opening by year's end.

🆕 = new this week.

🆕 Pepper Lunch (Leander) — An interactive Japanese fast-casual concept where your meal finishes cooking on a sizzling 500-degree cast-iron plate, anchored by its signature beef pepper rice.
⏰ ETA: End of 2026
📍 Address: Leander (site TBD)
🌐 Website: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/tbd
📞 Phone: TBD

🆕 Haywire (Cedar Park) — A Texas-flavored concept from FB Society spanning Tex-Mex, barbecue and Gulf seafood, planned as a 10,000-plus-square-foot build with a large outdoor space at the 117-acre CedarView development.
⏰ ETA: Late 2027
📍 Address: CedarView development, Cedar Park
🌐 Website: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/tbd
📞 Phone: TBD

J. Alexander's (Cedar Park) — A refined American concept — steaks, seafood, salads and a full bar — making its greater-Austin debut on a project valued at more than $4 million.
⏰ ETA: Fall 2026
📍 Address: 750 E. New Hope Drive, Cedar Park
🌐 Website: jalexanders.com
📞 Phone: TBD

Conejos Tex-Mex Cantina (Cedar Park) — The Leander original is expanding, with the Cedar Park location expected in October or November.
⏰ ETA: October–November 2026
📍 Address: Cedar Park (suite TBD)
🌐 Website: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/tbd
📞 Phone: TBD

🆕 Mochinut (Cedar Park) — Now serving specialty rice-flour doughnuts in flavors like Oreo cheesecake, mango sticky rice and honey yuzu lemon.
📅 Opened: May 2026 (approx.)
📍 Address: Cedar Park (suite TBD)
🌐 Website: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/tbd
📞 Phone: TBD

🆕 Little Beijing (Cedar Park–Leander) — Now open for Chinese takeout and delivery — Kung Pao chicken, beef and broccoli, egg rolls — across the Cedar Park–Leander area.
📅 Opened: May 2026 (approx.)
📍 Address: Cedar Park–Leander (takeout/delivery)
🌐 Website: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/tbd
📞 Phone: TBD

🆕 Denny's — plus a mystery tenant (Liberty Hill) — A TDLR filing for a $3 million convenience-store-and-fuel development at 10280 W. State Highway 29 includes a Denny's in one side lease space and a second restaurant lease space still open — so there's a co-located concept yet to be named. Completion targeted for early 2027.

🆕 Taco Bell (Cedar Park) — A new 2,739-sq-ft quick-serve Taco Bell with a drive-thru is filed for the 3500 block of East Whitestone, a ~$700K build that has cleared review with completion targeted for mid-2026.

🆕 Unnamed restaurant (Liberty Hill) — A 6,337-sq-ft shell at 929 Main Street in Old Town Liberty Hill is being remodeled for a future restaurant; the tenant hasn't been announced. Completion slated for October 2026.

Pinthouse Pizza / New Hope–Scottsdale (Cedar Park–Leander border) — A newer TDLR filing (registered May 12) sets a September 30 construction start on the $7.43M, 13,640-sq-ft brewery-and-restaurant building at 1605 E. New Hope Drive.

Hopdoddy Burger Bar (Leander/Gateway 29) — Construction was slated to wrap in late June; opening status is still unconfirmed.

Haywire (Cedar Park) — One of the biggest dining announcements in our area is a full-blown Texas steakhouse-and-social concept staking a claim in Cedar Park's fast-rising CedarView district that includes Scheel’s and Nebraska Furniture Mart.

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Eric S.

P.S. Corrections welcome. If I got something wrong, email me at [email protected] — I try to double-check everything, but I’m human.