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Highly anticipated Asian food hall and supermarket sets Austin opening date

Market Eatery will feature a variety of Asian food vendors, both local and national.

The wait is finally over. H-Mart, the wildly popular Asian supermarket chain, has finally set an opening date of February 15 for the first Austin outpost and attached food hall, Market Eatery. Both will be located at 11301 Lakeline Blvd., near Lakeline Mall.

H-Mart already has stores in Houston and Dallas, but Austin will be the first city to see the food hall concept before the company expands the concept nationwide. Since CultureMap announced the opening, H-Mart has tweaked the lineup of eateries, doing away with two of the previously announced vendors and adding three more.

The new vendors include Korean snack food stop MIX; sushi stand Sushiya; and JeonJu Korean Grill, which will feature Korean-American fusion street food. Korean barbecue from Seoul Sausage and sushi from Maru Maki will no longer be part of the project.

Market Eatery will be anchored by two concepts from renowned Korean chef and cookbook author Deuki Hong: Korean fried chicken concept Sunday Bird and Korean barbecue eatery Sunday BBQ. Locals Lai Lai (Chinese); Tous Les Jours (Korean baked goods); and Snow Monster (Taiwanese shaved ice, boba tea, and waffles) will also be on board.

The food hall will also offer a variety of beer; saké; and specialty wines like plum, raspberry, and makgeolli, a traditional rice wine made in assorted flavors like peach, banana, and black soybean. Each day, Market Eatery will offer drink specials like $1 beer and $10 bottles of wine.

A performance stage is located adjacent to the hall, and projectors will screen movies and sports. While waiting for their food, customers can also peruse a handful of shops, including Korean cosmetic seller The Face Shop, teashop Cheong Kwan Jang, gift store Tori Gift, and drapery peddlers JDX. An onsite salon, Jessica Hair, is also part of the complex.

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Grocery news haul

Grocery service Farmhouse Delivery returns to Austin with fun surprise

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After suddenly halting its operations in May, grocery service Farmhouse Delivery is on its way back, with an extra surprise for Austin: a new storefront.

Known for offering locally prepared foods and produce from small Central Texas farms, the subscription-based service emailed its loyal customers on Monday, November 18, to share the relaunch news and outline its plans for the future.

“We’ve missed you and are beyond grateful for your patience as we’ve been hard at work planning the next chapter of Farmhouse Delivery,” the newsletter reads. “Soon, you’ll once again have fresh, local food delivered straight to your doorstep[.]”

Farmhouse Delivery is aiming for a December date to resume deliveries, they say. They've used the intervening six months to not only revamp their existing business model, but to expand their offerings.

The biggest surprise in the newsletter was a revelation of plans for a new storefront in Austin, blending a cozy farmer’s market vibe with what they call “the best parts of your favorite grocer — where you can discover fresh foods, refill on essentials, connect with other members on sustainable living, and, of course, [shop] our best local products — all in innovative, reusable packaging.”

The email did not divulge details for the location or timing of the storefront project.

The company also plans to introduce a new membership model with exclusive benefits such as sneak peeks of new products and promotions.

Underscoring its commitment to sustainability, Farmhouse also announced that it’s working toward a completely plastic-free delivery:

“Expect to see your favorite items in sustainable packaging, with rewards for returning and reusing Farmhouse materials. Together, let’s reduce waste and make sustainable choices the coolest thing to do.”

The newsletter invited customers to complete a survey to help shape the ongoing Farmhouse experience. There, customers can indicate their desired delivery day (or days) and the factors that influence that preference (meal planning, work schedule, etc.), as well as specific products they would like to see in future deliveries.

Survey participants can also designate their preferred price point for memberships and the most appealing benefits from a long list, including free deliveries, additional delivery days, free products, members-only cooking classes, exclusive content, and more.

Neither the newsletter nor the Farmhouse website announced a specific date for relaunching, but returning and new customers can keep an eye on the website and social media for further details.

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