For Ryan Borinaga, the words fellowship and coffee are synonymous. When he opened Fellowship Coffee last May, he knew he wanted to blend the two. 

“We’re Christian-based, and coffee for us has always been a way to just kind of come together,” Borinaga said. 

How it started: The business started as a mobile pop-up coffee cart that catered for events such as weddings and corporate events before the opportunity to open an additional coffee shop arose. 

What they offer: Fellowship Coffee is a family-friendly coffee shop offering specialty coffee flavors, such as bourbon vanilla bean lattes and coconut matcha with an ube cloud. The shop makes most of its syrups by hand and also offers pastries, scones and empanadas for customers to snack on.

• 3434 FM 1092 Road, Ste. 350, Missouri City

A new Indian grocer is set to open in Richmond, just miles from the Riverpark neighborhood.

The gist: Vishala is set to open at Richmond’s Mega Square, a 27,000 square foot retail center building, Huntington Property leasing agents Tooba Patoli and Abdul Sabha confirmed. The complex has also leased to Safari Dental and Orthodontics, Le Drip Coffee and Tea and Adore Lux Family Clinic and Medspa.

What they offer: Per the company’s social media, the grocery offerings will include:

• Fresh produce
• Frozen and fresh samosas and naan
• Rice, including Basmati and Mansoori, dal and chickpeas
• Flours including atta, or wheat flour
• Dried fruits, such as dates and raisins, and nuts
• Dairy including ghee, yogurt and paneer

• 4120 Richmond Parkway, Richmond

With Thanksgiving right around the corner, see what grocery stores in the Houston area will be open and closed Nov. 27. This list is not comprehensive.

Aldi

• Nov. 27: closed

• Nov. 27: 6 a.m.-noon (stores); 7 a.m.-11 a.m. (curbside); 7 a.m.-10 a.m. (home delivery); closed (pharmacy)

• Nov. 27: Closing at 4 p.m. (stores); closed (pharmacy)

• Nov. 27: closed

• Nov. 27: closed

Waymo is gearing up to roll out fully autonomous driving in Houston and Dallas.

The gist: The move comes as Waymo begins driverless operations in Miami, with launches planned in four additional cities—Houston, Dallas, San Antonio and Orlando—over the next several weeks, according to a Nov. 18 news release.

Waymo leaders said expanding to new markets has become increasingly streamlined thanks to its “generalizable” Waymo Driver and a consistent operational playbook.

According to the company, the shift to fully autonomous driving—once viewed as a major technological leap—has become routine as its safety systems and deployment strategy mature.

Diving in deeper: The company reports its vehicles have already shown strong safety performance, with 11 times fewer serious-injury collisions compared with human drivers in its current operating areas.

This year, voters in communities across Texas were skeptical of local property tax hikes and supportive of larger tax breaks for homeowners and businesses, results from the Nov. 4 election show.

The overview: Voters in Community Impact’s coverage areas approved just over half of the local bond propositions and tax rate elections on the November ballot, according to previous Community Impact reporting. Statewide, 40% of tax rate elections and 45.9% of bond propositions passed, according to Sen. Paul Bettencourt, a Houston Republican and property tax policy writer.

Zooming in: Cities, counties, school districts and other local government entities use funding from tax hikes to build new schools and facilities; hire educators and first responders; and maintain local infrastructure. However, amid high inflation nationwide, more Texas residents are tightening their belts and asking local officials to do the same, fiscal policy experts told Community Impact.

Local governments whose tax hikes were shot down are now grappling with how to make cuts while maintaining essential services, Community Impact reporting shows.