The Galveston County Daily News

McDates: The excruciating wait is nearly over for fans of McDonald’s Restaurants on the island. Franchise owner Robert Flores plans to open two newly built restaurants to replace eateries closed a year ago by Hurricane Ike damage.

A modernized McDonald’s opens Wednesday at 5223 Broadway. The play center for children won’t return, but the eatery has more seating.

Meanwhile, Flores plans to reopen the 2912 61st St. restaurant Oct. 14 with an interesting amenity: a 10,000-gallon fish tank.

Flores also owns a McDonald’s on Stewart Beach and another in Walmart, 6702 Seawall Blvd. Those restaurants already are open.

Upsized: Shoppers at fashion retailer Forever 21 are soon to get more elbow room. For those who missed last week’s Buzz Blog, Los Angeles-based Forever 21 plans to open a large format store in the 82,000-square-foot space formerly occupied by Mervyns in Baybrook Mall.

General Growth Properties, which owns the mall, Interstate 45 and Bay Area Boulevard, announced last week it had signed deals for six new Forever 21 stores at its shopping centers. The six stores total 580,000 square feet. That’s not shabby during an era when malls are struggling to fill empty anchor spots.

By moving into the old Mervyns space, Forever 21 will operate in a two-story venue. Its existing store at the mall always is crowded.

“The retailer will have the space to expand its collection over two stories and offer our shoppers even more,” Baybrook Mall General Manager Brian Schroeder said.

Forever 21 is known for trendy fashions at affordable prices.

Look for construction of the Baybrook Mall store to begin at the end of the year, with a spring opening.

Bling thing: With 115 orders for her custom rhinestone T-shirts, Santa Fe resident Ginger Eckenrode is reporting the busiest month yet for her online boutique Trendytees.net.

The boutique, which sells T-shirts for girls and women, even received an order from Hong Kong, Eckenrode said. Eckenrode, a surgical nurse and mother, launched the boutique just after Hurricane Ike. Popular requests are for T-shirts with sports designs.

Football and baseball moms like them, as do mascots, she said.

Rhinestones are the latest trend in women’s wear, Eckenrode said.

The cyber boutique offers 250 stock rhinestone designs.

Greek revival: Island restaurateur John Ragusa has reopened Papa John The Cajun Greek, which had been closed since Hurricane Ike damaged the popular eatery, 2226 61st St.

After opening, Ragusa noticed the new lighted “Open,” sign wasn’t on.

“He fiddled with it for a few minutes, flipped the switch and muttered to himself, ‘Well, that only took a year,”’ reports one Buzz reader there for opening day.