Avenue B Grocery & Market in Hyde Park (Credit: Nomadic Pursuits)
I love Hyde Park for its quaint cottages, abundance of trees and multi-cultural vibe. You’re just as likely to see grandma walking her lapdog as you are a tattooed pedestrian on a unicycle.
But there’s another reason I gravitate towards this area of Austin. It’s a place where Star Wars and Brie imported from the Isle de France co-exist. A place where you can buy an ice cold soda pop and deli sandwich wrapped in paper and sealed with tape, then glide past squeaky screen doors to an outdoor picnic table to unwind amid the jaunty tune of birds serenading in oak trees.
This place is my little slice of Hyde Park heaven, Avenue B Grocery & Market.
First Visit I Won’t Forget
The first time I met the owner, Ross Mason, he shoved a silver spoon in my mouth. No kidding. Walking down the aisle of this tiny neighborhood grocery store, he was exuberant for someone, anyone, to try his homemade quinoa salad of the day. The mixture of cherry tomatoes and balsamic burst with flavors of summer.
He waited silently as I chewed and assessed his culinary creation. Luckily, for both of us, it was divine! I knew after that exchange, I would return.
What to Expect at Avenue B
Delight in simplicity: Queen B sandwich
I’ve been back several times since then, mostly in the summer with my kids. They enjoy picking out an ice cream from the cooler and sitting outside. It’s a nice way to disconnect from the fast pace that accompanies us in the 21st century. I appreciate that Avenue B doesn’t have Wi-Fi to distract from the surroundings. When I’m there, I’m present, and so are my teenagers.
While Avenue B carries staples you’ll often find in a convenient store: bread, paper products and dairy products, it’s the deli in the back that locals have really fallen for.
My favorite deli selection is the Queen B sandwich on multigrain bread. It tastes like a summer garden. Wash it down with a Sanpellegrino Lemonata and you’re in the realm of nirvana!
The owner Ross Mason has been working within the walls of Avenue B for over 30 years. He’s happy to share the history, like the black and white photos of past owners that hang over the doorway. Like an old pair of jeans, Avenue B Grocery & Market fits Ross. Both are sturdy, resilient and determined to appreciate the present…even when surrounded by the past.
4403 Avenue B – Website
@theAustinot wants to know:
Have you paid a visit to Avenue B Grocery & Market in Hyde Park?
This is my go-to spot when I’m working in the area around lunchtime on pretty days. Ross always has something new to try, and it’s such a joy to sit out under the trees!
I used to live around the corner from Ave-B grocery. I loved getting the old Blenheim’s
#3 Red hot ginger ale there..it was the first (and last) time I ever found that. You can buy it online I’ve discovered since. That stuff will have smoke coming out of your mouth!
thinking of visiting with mi familia on a Sunday afternoon for lunch. any idea if the seating out back can handle a decent sized group? say…10-15 peeps?
There are enough picnic tables, but they’re closed on Sundays.
I used to live nearby, as well, and it was nice for a quick sandwich when I needed to get out for a few minutes and clear my mind.
OMG!!! I used to live next door to Avenue B Grocery!!!! This would have been in the mid-1980s or so. We were all college students. We would run next door and by stuff all the time. Sadly, the person who loved Avenue B Grocery the most, we lost several years ago to cancer.