A fast-casual Vietnamese restaurant called Phi Pho Viet Kitchen is preparing to open in Cypress this month, moving into the storefront on Fry Road that The Waffle Bus vacated after closing its location there permanently in September. The new concept plans to serve chicken pho, rice plates and vermicelli bowls, picking up where the chicken-and-waffle shop left off in the Lakeland Village Center space.
Owner Phi Nguyen announced the new restaurant in a Facebook post shared Nov. 1, saying he was hiring staff ahead of the opening, according to Chron. Community Impact separately reported that Phi Pho Viet Kitchen has plans for a soft opening in November, taking over the space previously held by The Waffle Bus. The menu is expected to lean on chicken pho, rice plates, vermicelli bowls and more, per that outlet’s reporting.
The Waffle Bus’s Cypress Run Comes to a Quiet End
The Waffle Bus operated at the Fry Road address for about two years before shutting down in September. The closure left behind what Chron describes as a fully equipped second-generation storefront, ready for a new tenant to move in. Nguyen did not share details about the decision to close the Cypress location and has not provided additional information to Chron.
The shutdown was confirmed earlier in a Facebook message to Community Impact, which reported the Cypress spot was now permanently closed. At the time, the outlet noted that two other Houston locations, in the Montrose and Heights areas, were still open.
Flagship Heights Location May Be Next to Go
Nguyen is also seeking someone to take over the lease on The Waffle Bus’s original storefront at 1835 N. Shepherd Drive in the Heights, meaning the brand’s flagship restaurant in Houston could be on its way out too. “It’s been a good time serving the Heights, but it may be time to call it quits on this location,” Nguyen said…