Community Impact featured a variety of businesses in the Round Rock area this year. Check out these six places to shop or visit.

1. Tammy Kay’s Boutique embodies community spirit with southern charm: With a sweet aroma from a Sweet Grace candle and country music, Tammy Kay’s Boutique creates an inclusive shopping atmosphere for Round Rock community members.

The background: Owner Tammy Munguia originally operated the space as a cheer gym before opening the boutique on Sept. 6, 2014, as ATC Boutique-Pretty in Pink.

2. Round Rock parents find supportive community space at Tot Box Play Cafe: As an indoor playground and coffee shop, Tot Box Play Cafe in Round Rock has invited parents and children to find community in its comforting space since November 2023. Owner Suzette Reynoso-Bivens became a mother in 2021 and felt a lack of support after moving away from home in the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Kenney Fort Pub in Round Rock will close its doors in early January.

The gist: The restaurant and pub announced via Facebook that it plans to close. The English pub, owned by Tim Jones, first opened in November 2020 after Jones and his family moved from England to Round Rock.

Kenney Fort Pub’s menu has featured American fare, but also included English options such as fish and chips, bangers and mash, and sticky toffee pudding.

Husband and wife duo Tracey and Nick Janowitz collaborated with couple Sara Odom and Sergio Abbud to open Hippo Social Club in October 2023. The four of them launched the wellness center to carve out a spot for all locals to access healthy living practices.

“The vision of Hippo Social Club was really about creating wellness and making it more accessible and making it integrated in day-to-day [life],” Tracey Janowitz said. “Hippo Social Club is a campus and a hub that gives you the framework based around our pillars of fuel, movement, and connection.”

What they offer: Hippo Social Club focuses on branches of wellness that include nourishment through food and experiences, social connection, exercise and movement.

The community center offers sauna and cold plunge therapy, a remote workspace, wellness support for men and women, onsite events and nature trails. The space is something that needs to be experienced, Janowitz said, and engaging in the communal aspect of Hippo Social Club is what nourishes people at the campus.