Story and Photos by Richard Arebalo
When I first moved to Austin in the 1980s, Hyde Park, just north of the University of Texas, was already long famous as a lovely tree-lined neighborhood filled with unique storybook homes.
The neighborhood, bordered by 38th Street, 45th Street, Duval, and Guadalupe, dates back to the 1880s when it was first developed as an “affluent (and restricted) suburb” to a town that had only been incorporated forty years before. Given its current, very central location, Hyde Park was, ironically, Austin’s first suburb. Stranger still, it was briefly the site of the State Fair of Texas before it moved to Dallas in 1884.
To encourage interest and growth in the then-rural location, developer Monroe Shipe facilitated a streetcar line to provide easy access to the central part of town. Though the original plan for an ‘exclusively’ wealthy neighborhood went by the wayside fairly quickly, the architectural character of Hyde Park had already been established. Bungalows subsequently joined the large Victorian, Queen Ann, and Classic Revival homes in various styles in the early 1900s. Despite steady growth in the late 1800s, the neighborhood’s most significant building boom occurred between 1924 and 1935.
In 1990, a section of Hyde Park was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a Historic District.
Some of the early amenities that Monroe Shipe saw necessary in the 1880s are equally important today. Churches, grocers, barbers, and mail delivery were early draws to the new suburb. Today, Hyde Park is home to one of the city’s largest and most prosperous churches. Though many in the congregation no longer live in the area, Hyde Park Baptist Church still draws over 2,500 attendees for Sunday services.
The most recent addition to the neighborhood was actually a swap. Though some folks incorrectly blame the new neighbor for closing the old post office, the facility had been gone for over two years before the new grocery store and restaurant opened.
Though losing a neighborhood post office is hard, in October of 2023, Hyde Park got a sensational consolation prize.
Bureau de Poste at Tiny Grocer is the brilliant collaboration between Whole Foods and McGuire Moorman alum Steph Steele and Chef Jo Chan of Eberly and Top Chef fame.
Steph Steele opened the original Tiny Grocer on South Congress in 2021 and quickly developed a reputation for her popular and very well-curated offerings. Everything from jams and teas to pots and pans are from labels with a high degree of cache.
Chef Jo Chan’s CV includes stints with Marcus Samuelsson and Nobu, and she was the Executive Chef at South Lamar’s popular Eberly restaurant. The two found common ground in a shared sense of community. i.e., little details like not carrying a wine label just because Antonelli’s down the road already has it is a sense of fairness that is very rare in business these days.
Although the Tiny Grocer does not occupy the entire old post office facility, its 3,200 sq feet provide ample space to shine. Dozens of wine labels share space with a myriad of spices, bags of candied lemon, specialty potato chips, cherry blossom-infused soy sauce, intriguing maple syrups, and little jars of Italian cherries. Despite its small size, the store offers a wide variety of products through efficient use of space.
Near the front counter are selections of delicate wine glasses and a line of local ‘Made In’ cookware. Just wandering the shelves just about counts as a foodie’s dream.
Some of the foodstuffs, like the Rancho Gordo’s Tarbais white beans, are used by Chef Chan in the restaurant. Easy access to an inventory of unusual spices must also be a plus.
Early in the day, another Tiny Grocer favorite, the Deli, provides a great variety of meats and sandwiches. Additionally, sweet and savory pastries are supplied by Sweetish Hill Bakery. The delicious meat empanadas are a great treat and refrigerate well for a few days. (Look for the fast-going items.)
In the evening, the star of the culinary show is Chef Chan’s excellent bistro.
I first met Chef Chan at last year’s Wine and Food Foundation auction at the JW Marriott. I enjoyed sharing some exceptional wines with her and her wife, Leah, as we talked about food, favorite restaurants, and travel. It made sense that French was the direction for the newly opened restaurant.
I’ve enjoyed dining at Bureau de Poste a few times now, though dropping in is not usually an option. Careful planning will get one of the handful of reservations for a table indoors. When beautiful weather allows, getting a table on the larger patio is only a little bit easier.
Situated along the 43rd Street side of the building, the restaurant is basically a long row of sleek leather banquets, tables, and chairs. The huge windows facing the extensive patio provide excellent light for the modern interior.
Like many small bistros, the menu is not extensive, but it features many classic French standards and is supplemented by a few special items. Easy enough for many return visits.
On our first evening there, a friend and I happily ordered too many appetizers, each better than the last, with a nice half bottle of Champagne.
We opened with a lovely Steak Tartar, prepared with a rough chop and topped with lemon zest and herbs. We asked for a bit of French mustard and made good use of the excellent bread that had come to the table early on. We followed with a large bowl of very fresh mussels cooked in wine, fennel, and tomato. It may seem odd, but this dish’s traditional French fries are a must-have, and the delicious broth under the mussels demanded… more bread.
The next item was Pomme Dauphine; these were pretty good-sized potato croquettes topped with crème fraîche and some delicate smoked trout roe. The well-seasoned potato was undoubtedly elevated by the brightness of the cream and perfect with the mild fish flavor.
So far, each dish had paired beautifully with our little bottle of Laurent Perrier, so we got another.
Our mains were the scallop special and Chef Chan’s modern take on Cassoulet. Scallops are often tricky to perfect; nice color can sometimes yield dryness, too pale, and the meat seems underdone. The scallops this evening hit the exact balance. The large scallops were served on a light vegetable purée and topped with fennel leaves and pomegranate arils. They were just big enough to share.
My favorite for the evening (twice now) has been the Cassoulet. While not strictly traditional, the deconstructed version of this dish is no less extraordinary. Chef Chan used the traditional Tarbais white beans from the on-site grocer but cooked the beans, confit duck leg, and Hudson’s sausage separately. The presentation was picture-perfect. Each part of the dish was fantastic: great herb flavor on the tender beans, tender duck, and delicious sausage.
A glass of the 2022 Presqu’ile Pinot Noir from Santa Barbara was just right with the meats in the Cassoulet.
Our desserts for the evening were a well-made Crème Brulé and another favorite, Clafouti. Clafouti is a rustic dessert including berries in a custardy, pancake-like batter cooked to a slightly golden puff. I’ve had a lot of these, and this one was perfect. (twice now)
The Wine list at Bureau de Poste is again limited to about twenty-four selections, several in sparkling, white, orange, rosé, and red. They’ve all been selected to pair well with the food at hand and have the great benefit of being one of the most reasonably priced lists in the city.
The fairly large selection from Tiny Grocer is available for a small corkage fee.
For neighborhood residents, walking a short distance for a great meal must be incredible; for the rest of us, there is a good-sized parking lot and plenty of street parking.
Bureau de Poste at Tiny Grocer is on the corner of Speedway and 43rd streets and is open 5-10 pm seven days a week, plus Brunch on the weekend.
Richard Arebalo
Features Editor
