After a little more than a year in business, Austin's immediately popular Dead Rabbit pub is updating its nextdoor space at 204 E. 6th St. with a new cafe called Grá Mór Café. This is a second attempt following the opening and closing of the Neighbourhood Café, which was a collaborative effort; this time, the Dead Rabbit team is in full control. Grá Mór will open September 3.

The Dead Rabbit first opened in New York City in 2013, followed by its Austin outpost in July of 2024. Neighbourhood Café first opened in Belfast, Northern Ireland, in 2021, and joined forces with the Dead Rabbit team in Austin for an opening only a few weeks after the Dead Rabbit's debut. The respective moves to Austin were the first time each concept had migrated outside of its original markets.

Neighbourhood Café's closure was not explicitly announced, but a press release announcing Grá Mór has made the rebrand — or perhaps more technically, the replacement — official.

Grá Mór means "big love" in Irish, and is intended as "a warm space that feels like home, and invites connection," according to the release. It'll be open from morning until night, and will serve everything from coffee to cocktails, and brunch to grab-and-go bites. There will be about 44 seats.

“Grá Mór is our love letter to Irish cafe culture,” said managing partner Jack McGarry in the release. “We wanted to create a space that feels like home, where people can gather over great food and coffee, and where guests can then pop in next door for a pint when the moment calls for it.”

Although the café follows the pub's Irish theme, the menu also offers some departures into other world cuisines including Mexican and Indian influences. From a press release, food menu highlights include:

• Irish cheddar and herb scone with butter
• Apple crumble overnight oats with apple compote and honey
• The Dead Rabbit sausage roll with Branston Pickle
• The Dead Rabbit scotch egg with Colman’s Mustard
• Harry’s Hazelnut & Cacao nut butter French Toast (weekends only)
• Scrambled eggs and charred green onion avocado toast with Katie’s chili and peanut rayū
• Chilaquiles and poached eggs with Irish cheddar, salsa roja, pickled jalapeños, and avocado
• Charred steak crunch bowl with peanut and chili rayū, quinoa, and onion crumble
• Spiced salmon bowl with masala yogurt sauce and roasted sweet potato
• Grab-and-go chilled items including scones, overnight oats, chia pudding, and yogurt bowls

Besides what sounds like a more airy atmosphere, the grab-and-go items may be the strongest reason for visitors to choose Grá Mór after early morning or afternoon when the Dead Rabbit opens. Both restaurants' unique position on Sixth Street — almost the exact place that the businesses shift from nightlife to hotels and nicer eateries — also make this nextdoor pairing make a bit more sense. (They're also a block away from the Irish Consulate.)

The beverage program will include daytime coffee shop drinks like banana cream cold brew, and blueberry crumble or matcha lychee lattes, plus teas, smoothies, CBD sodas, and cold-pressed juices in collaboration with Virtue Juices, which bottles juice in Austin and sends it to other local businesses to be sold.

At night, visitors can expect matcha martinis, boozy Arnold Palmers, a Gránch Water with tequila and aloe, and an Iced Irish Coffee made with Dublin's famous Teeling Small Batch Whiskey. There will also be a "concise" wine list, beers including local options, and of course, the obligatory Guinness.

Grá Mór Café will be open daily from 8 am to 9 pm.