A new Indian restaurant is now open in Round Rock, adjacent to Curry Pizza House. 

About the business: Zatka Bites, a restaurant offering Mumbai-style Indian comfort food, opened in Round Rock in January. 

It is locally owned by Bageshri and Kiran Dhotre, who said they intend to remain at this location for at least five years. 

What's on the menu: The restaurant's specialty is Vada Pav, a vegan slider with a fried potato patty. Kiran Dhotre said the buns used are vegan and baked fresh daily. Zatka Bites also offers boxed vegan and non-vegan meals, fried chicken, chicken sandwiches and other Indian fast foods as well as beverages including chai and chilled fruit sodas.

A Latina-owned medical spa is now offering a variety of services in downtown Round Rock

What you need to know: Nova Aesthetics opened in a space on Lampasas Street in downtown Round Rock in February, bringing a mix of beauty services to the area, such as:

• Laser hair removal
• Customized facials
• Acne treatments
• Botox
• Dermal fillers

The Hutto City Council has approved a new incentive program aimed at encouraging reinvestment and revitalization in the city’s historic downtown district.

Two-minute impact: Council members voted Feb. 19 to adopt the initiative, which city officials say is intended to help business owners and property owners improve aging buildings, preserve historic structures and spur additional activity in the area.

The program was crafted with input from the Downtown Hutto Business Association, whose members have advocated for policies that balance economic growth with preservation of the district’s character.

City staff worked alongside local stakeholders to design what officials described as a more accessible and streamlined process for applicants.

During an arctic blast last month, the Texas power grid remained stable throughout the storm and the state came away largely unscathed. The Lone Star State has not seen widespread blackouts since February 2021, when millions of Texans lost power and nearly 250 people died.

The response: In Uri’s wake, state lawmakers and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas made changes to restructure ERCOT’s governing board, mandate earlier public alerts during tight grid conditions and require that energy providers “weatherize” their facilities to withstand extremely hot or cold temperatures.

Roughly 40,000 megawatts of power—enough to serve about 10 million residential customers—have been added to the grid since 2021 and the state’s energy supply has become more diverse.

Looking ahead: State leaders have expressed confidence that the grid would hold up during “a storm similar to Uri.” Yet some energy analysts caution that rapidly rising electric demand, driven by the construction of new data centers throughout Texas, means challenges may still lie ahead.