East Austin is about to get a whole lot meatier. Tiny Grocer, the specialty market founded by Steph Steele, is moving into the former Longhorn Meat Market site and turning it into the brand’s third, and largest, location. The new shop will lean hard into its carnivorous side, with a full butcher counter, an in-house barbecue program, and enough room to scale the concept into 2026.
Inside the East Side Meat Makeover
As reported by Austin Business Journal, the third Tiny Grocer is slated to span roughly 3,500 square feet and will feature a full-service butcher counter and a dedicated barbecue counter. The meat program is set to be led by a Michelin-recognized consultant, giving the operation some serious fine-dining pedigree. According to the Business Journal, the buildout is designed as a deliberate nod to the building’s meat-market past while expanding Tiny Grocer’s capacity to prep proteins and baked goods on-site, lining up with local filings and community reporting on the property’s change of use.
Taking Over a Longtime Neighborhood Butcher
Community Impact reports that the new Tiny Grocer will take over 2411 E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., the longtime address of Longhorn Meat Market. The East Austin outpost will bake bread in-house and put a strong emphasis on meats and barbecue in an effort to honor the butcher shop that came before it. Community Impact notes the location is scheduled to open in 2026 and will replace the longtime family-owned meat market, effectively tying Tiny Grocer’s curated retail model to a more industrial-style deli and smokehouse setup along the busy commercial corridor.
From South Congress Standby To Multi-Neighborhood Player
Eater Austin first covered Tiny Grocer’s original South Congress opening in 2021, when the concept debuted as a compact grocery and cafe. Trade coverage later detailed the company’s larger Hyde Park location and its attached restaurant, Bureau de Poste. Those moves chart a clear pattern for owner Steph Steele, pairing highly curated retail shelves with robust prepared-food programs as the brand grows. Design and trade outlets documented how the Hyde Park space transformed a former post office into a combined market and bistro, setting the stage for this new, protein-forward evolution on the East Side.
What the Switch Means for East Austin Neighbors
Longhorn Meat Market has been an East Austin fixture for decades, and local coverage has consistently highlighted how much the spot has meant to nearby residents. EastSide chronicles Longhorn’s long tenure at 2411 E. MLK and its role as a community butcher. Tiny Grocer is stepping into a space with deep neighborhood roots, and the company has signaled that updates on hours, the opening timeline, and that all-important smoke schedule will roll out through its website and reservation platforms as the 2026 debut gets closer.
