H-E-B’s premium grocery store has evolved a lot over the past three decades. From breaking the Guinness World Record for the world’s largest charcuterie board to becoming the first H-E-B grocer to offer Apple Pay , Central Market has been been at the forefront of change for the San Antonio-based brand.
This year marks Central Market’s 30th anniversary and the gourmet grocery store has been celebrating its momentous birthday with Texas-sized events and specials. Inspired by European markets and dubbed the Erewhon of Texas , Central Market is an upscale H-E-B with premium offerings such as cooking classes, a full-service kitchen, complimentary wine chillings and more.
Although the store comes from the makers of H-E-B headquartered in the Alamo City, the first Central Market ever built was in 1994 on North Lamar Boulevard in Austin.
When the 84,000-square-foot store opened, the store didn’t sell everyday items like laundry detergent or toiletries in its early years, and instead introduced a revolutionary concept that was the complete opposite of an H-E-B – a high end grocery store featuring unique ingredients, imported meats, wines and cheeses. This catered “to the kind of cook who wasn’t necessarily shopping to save money or time,” the Austin American-Statesman reports .
It was a risk for the everyday low price company, but it quickly paid off as it became a foodie destination for shoppers in Austin eager to expand their tastes. The store had a large prepared food section, four in-house eateries and aisles that flowed together like a maze with new offerings at every corner, similar to modern-day grocery store models.
Before there was a True Texas BBQ in H-E-B, there was a barbecue eatery called Cowboy Kitchen in Central Market. Store officials expected 40,000 customers in the restaurants each week, but when they served more than 98,000 patrons in the first week, they had to rethink everything from the menu to how they cooked the food, the Statesman reports…