We had a large family gathering at the new Tokyo Steak & Sushi at the Villagio Retail Center in Cinco Ranch, Katy Texas. The food was great...and our chef was one of the best Hibachi chef's we have ever had the pleasure to be served by (he said his name was Tom Cruise...but I think not!)

The Hibachi and Sushi are wonderful...good sized portions and very fresh. The Steak and Shrimp were cooked to perfection and the wait staff was wonderful. Our table of ten ordered everything from lobster to chicken and we did not have a complaint from the bunch. The fried rice was done very well...maybe the best I have had in Katy.

The atmosphere was just OK...a little sparse if you ask me...but the  chef and food overcame that small negative. The sit down menu is reasonable and the lunch prices are a steal. Children always love the Hibachi show!

Tokyo Steak & Sushi is located on the corner of Westheimer Pkwy and Peek Rd in the heart of Cinco Ranch.

The Website is:

www.tokyosteaksushi.com

I often go to lunch with one of my favorite clients...and we decided on the new Potbelly Sandwich Works on Cinco Ranch Blvd. 

This is a great lunch choice when you are in Katy running around. The line moves quickly to order your sandwiches, salads, soups, and sweets. Every Sandwich is only $4.19...and they are the right size...not too large...not too small. The salad choices are limited but good...and they do have non-fat dressing. The soup options change daily and the Chicken Noodle and Loaded Baked Potato are great!

I tried the Chicken Salad sandwich on wheat...toasted. It was quite good, fast, and they have an extensive selection of soft drinks (including my favorite...diet IBC Root Beer in the bottle!) and chips.

They also had a live band playing for lunch (well...it was a guy with a guitar and amp...but he was pretty good and he played requests)!

This place is definitely worth a try...and is a change of pace from the usual in and out sandwich shop.

Potbelly Sandwich Works is located at:

23701 Cinco Ranch Blvd. Ste.180
Katy, TX

It is just west of the LaCenterra Mall in Cinco Ranch...across from Cinco Ranch Jr High.

Visit them on the Web at: www.potbelly.com

We have been receiving many calls and e-mails from well wishers who figure the storm that hit the Gulf Coast must have ravaged the entire area...and it has destroyed much of Galveston and other coastal Counties. Houston has also sustained great damage to many parts of the City.

Here in Katy the blow from Hurricane Ike was far less. No flooding, far less wind damage (mostly a few down trees and fences), and only a few power outages. Schools should be back in session on Wednesday and like is largely back to normal.

The question we are being asked is why does this area seem to always have fewer storm related problems then other parts of the Greater Houston area?

Here are some of the reasons:

1. Tremendous flood control. The first homes in the Katy area south of I-10 were built in the middle 1970's...by that time the Army Core of Engineers knew quite a bit about flood control and the entire area has been built with the possibility of Hurricanes and other storms in mind.

2. We are 50 to 60 miles inland. Because of this fact we tend to miss the most powerful winds...and the storm surge!

3. Katy was once a large producer of Rice. OK you need to understand that trees and rice did not go together...they would clear cut the land to plant rice. Because of this we do not have as many real high trees...this reduces the damage from fallen trees and branches.

4. The Gulf Stream tends to move west to east. This means the Hurricanes tend to make a turn to the right when they hit land. This is important because the Katy area is located of to the west...and tend to miss the hardest blow from the Gulf storms.

This all adds up to some downed trees...downed fences, and a few roof shingles blown off...but little else...and we are back in business!

The Annual Cinco Ranch Triathlon will be held this year on September 21st starting at 7am. The race starts at Lake Point at Cinco Crossing and Cinco Ranch Blvd. This is Houston's original triathlon and is considered a premier triathlon event throughout the Southwest United States.

The Course is made up of a 400 meter swim, a twelve mile bike race, and a three mile run. The entire event is sponsored by the Katy Rotary Club.

This is an update on the Katy Gaston Rd project: Katy Gaston is closed from Boxfield to the west up to Falcon Landing. Briarlilly will soon have a direct connection to Spring Green (in about a month if weather permits). At that time it will open up at Briarlilly. From Boxfield to Cinco Ranch Blvd Katy Gaston will remain open until the full Spring Green connection is designed and built. This should take about 18 months. At that point Newland (the developer of Cinco Ranch) and Fort Bend County will decide what to do with the existing Katy Gaston Rd.

This is not a heavily traveled section in the west side of Katy and Cinco Ranch so it should not have a dramatic effect of commutes or travels through the area. We will keep you posted if anything changes.

The LaCenterra Mall in Cinco Ranch, Katy Texas has a new e-club. You can join eClub now and they will make sure you're the first to know about events, sales and LaCenterra happenings. This is a great way for local Katy residents to find out about what sales and events are going on in advance!

go to: http://visitor.constantcontact.com/email.jsp?m=1101588321829&p=oi

Fill out the online e-mail registration and you are on your way!

The LaCenterra Mall is located in the Master Planned Community of Cinco Ranch. It is on the corner of The Grand Parkway (Hwy 99) and Cinco Ranch Blvd.

For all your Katy area Real Estate questions do not hesitate to contact Team DiMuria...your Katy area experts at www.KatyHomeFinder.com or call 281-492-5916.