St. Germain on Main at Capital

Historic building on corner of Main Street and Capitol

with lofts and retail/restaurant space at street level.

Formerly Kress Store Building

The Capitol Restaurant closed in 2013 and the space is posted for lease
(January 2014)

The Capitol at St. Germain was a restaurant and bar at the historic Kress Building in Downtown Houston on the corner of Capitol Street and Main that closed in 2013. It is up for releasing in early 2014. The Flying Saucer is still operating there, with entrance and small patio/sidewalk seating on Main. The street-level space of the 8-story structure once housed the S. H. Kress & Co. Store. Today the building features lofts ranging in size from 600 to 2000 square feet in additional to retail space at street level. It is architecturally significant because of its terracotta facade, which is said to be unique in Houston. There are namesakes of the Kress Building in San Antonio and Fort Worth.

Terra-cotta facade building in Downtown Houston - Capitol at Main

The magnificent facade of the Kress Building will soon 

by obscured by the new Hines Tower that

will soon emerge on the corner of Main and Texas

(July 2014 pics)

OLDER PHOTO BELOW:

Kress Building - North side facade

Kress Building 705 Main Street

The historic Kress Building in Downtown Houston

features retail/restaurant space at street level (The Flying Saucer), and lofts on the upper floors.

S. H. Kress & Co was the trade name of a chain of five and dime retail department stores which was established in 1896 and spread to the Main Streets of hundreds of American cities and towns. In the 1960's the owners of the company changed marketing strategy and moved from the central cities to shopping malls. Many of the erstwhile stores are architecturally significant, including the Kress Buildings in Houston and San Antonio. A historical black and white photo of the Kress Building in Houston can be found in the Houston Library's digital collection (click hyperlink).

Terra-cotta facade on the North side seen across parking lot