Rocky Horror at 11:59 P.M. Explains How the River Oaks Theatre Pays for Itself
October 8, 2026
October 8, 2026
"When you do movies, there's only so much somebody's going to pay for a movie ticket," Jason Ostrow, Star Cinema Grill's director of development, told Nareit. "When you start doing live events like Rocky Horror screenings or comedians or concerts, your price points can be significantly higher."
That quote explains the River Oaks Theatre better than its restored marquee does. The theatre first opened on November 28, 1939, closed in 2021 and reopened on October 3, 2024, which made last Saturday its second anniversary. Its operator is Culinary Khancepts, the Houston company behind Star Cinema Grill. People often assume Alamo Drafthouse runs it, but that's a mix-up. In early 2022, Kimco announced that Culinary Khancepts would take over the theatre's lease, and the company spent two years on a studs-to-screen renovation. The rebuilt room has new screens, two bars and a stage for live shows, along with the original Art Deco design, marquee and terrazzo floors.
For anyone living a few blocks away near Shepherd and West Gray, the stage and the kitchen matter more than the history. The theatre's business depends on evenings that last longer than a single movie, and the newer businesses on the West Gray side of River Oaks Shopping Center have arrived to serve those same evenings.
The theatre's events page shows how the model works in practice. Here is what it lists for the rest of October, as of October 5, 2026:
That's ten special events in 26 days, and regular screenings run alongside them. The Rocky Horror screening Ostrow named as his example of a higher-priced night is on the schedule for this Saturday at 11:59 p.m. The calendar continues into November with two films scored live by Invincible Czars on November 7: Nosferatu at 6 p.m. and Faust at 9:30 p.m. Joe Bob Briggs and Darcy will appear in person on December 12.
Ostrow said the theatre was seeing high demand for event bookings. The theatre's own description of itself lines up with that. It calls itself "Houston's premiere film and live events venue" and lists art house films, awards contenders and classic cinema next to comedy and live music.
The second half of the model is food. In the theatre, guests order from their seats by scanning a QR code and pressing a button on the armrest. That food comes from Leo's River Oaks, a 5,000-square-foot supper club next door that Culinary Khancepts also owns. Leo's opened on October 22, 2024, at 2009 West Gray, less than three weeks after the theatre. It serves New American food with a New York supper-club feel: seafood towers, caviar service, lobster thermidor and prime steaks, plus live music played most often on a grand baby piano.
"The ability of having our own restaurant next door with a shared kitchen gives us the flexibility to make the menu that best suits the movie or event that's going on," Ostrow said. "That's all significantly added revenue versus popcorn, candy, and soda."
The landlord was planning on the same scale. Kimco Realty, which owns River Oaks Shopping Center, made the theatre "part and parcel of a broader redevelopment," according to a city official Nareit interviewed in December 2024. That plan included bringing in some new tenants. At the time, the work included outdoor patios for five new restaurants, updated sidewalks, lighting and landscaping, a full repaint of the center, and about 40 new palm trees along the street. Those are 2024 details. The order of the restaurant openings since then is what shows the plan taking shape.
The center's own website now marks Leo's, Maison Chinoise, Goode Co. Bar Buena and Honest Mary's as "Now Open," along with Everything But Water and Flea Style.
The newest change to the strip came from a departure. Perry's Steakhouse & Grille opened its two-story location at 1997 West Gray in February 2019 and closed it on January 24, 2026. The company said the closing was "due to a contractual dispute with our landlord."
Eight months later, no replacement has been announced. As of October 5, 2026, Kimco's property page for River Oaks Shopping Center lists a 12,288-square-foot space as available, labeled "Former Restaurant." That's larger than the 10,885 square feet Ballard Designs occupies in the same center. Whatever leases that space will be the biggest single addition to West Gray's evenings since the theatre reopened.
Next door, the next confirmed tenant is a store, not a restaurant. Lilly Pulitzer is planned for 1993 West Gray, Space 34, according to Community Impact. The state filing with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation schedules the interior remodel from September 22 to November 22, 2026. That's a construction window. No opening date has been announced.
For someone who lives close enough to walk or take a short drive, the events page is the best way to plan a West Gray evening, because that's where the theatre's own priorities show up. The 6 p.m. Nosferatu screening on November 7 leaves enough time afterward for Bar Buena at 2002 West Gray. Saturday's 11:59 p.m. Rocky Horror leaves a full evening beforehand for dinner at Leo's or Maison Chinoise, both within a short walk on the same block. With Leo's, a smaller order can also come straight to your seat in the theatre, since both run from the same kitchen.
The theatre has been open again for two years. In that time, three new evening spots have opened within a block of its marquee, and one 12,288-square-foot room is still waiting for a tenant.
If you're curious what the next tenant at 1997 West Gray could mean for your corner of River Oaks, The S Group Houston watches these leasing changes for our clients year-round, and we're always glad to talk through what they mean for your block.
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