Eating out at the grocery store

These days, in-store dining is something my family does weekly. We’re not the only one who has embraced this upward trend of shopping and dining. This grocery segment has increased nearly 30 percent since 2008, according the NPD Group, a Chicago research firm that tracks groceries and restaurants.

Grocers, including H-E-B, Central Market and Whole Foods, have upped their shelf-to-table offerings, and choices abound, from foodie haven Revival Market (550 Heights Blvd.) to Jerusalem Halal Meats deli (3330 Hillcroft), with its juicy chicken and beef shawarma sandwiches. And for Central Americans, a breakfast of sweet corn tamales and cinnamon coffee tastes like home at Fiesta Mart (6200 Bellaire). There are restaurants and counter-service offerings that flank Hong Kong Food Market “4” (11205 Bellaire Blvd.), where Vietnamese gather for steamed pork buns, baguettes stuffed with pate, jalapeño and cilantro, beef pho, and freshly squeezed sugar cane. Here are other grocery stores where you can shop and dine.

Super H-Mart ( 1302 Blalock Road) is a Korean mega-mart that’s a destination not only for the Korean community, but also chowhounds who storm the killer food court inside. The plus-handful of options include Daddy N Daughter, a perennial personal favorite, mainly for the gigantic gorgeous bowl of jjambbong seafood noodle soup, chock full of spices, octopus, mussels, seaweed and shrimp. For $15, it’s plenty for two people. Another favorite is Yori Yori, known for its barbecue short ribs and stir-fried clear noodle.

99 Ranch Market (1005 Blalock Road) is the store of choice for many to stock up on Asian pantry staples. While the sheer number of frozen-dumpling offerings is impressive, the highlight is the affordable, quick-service eateries, from chicken pho soup at Pho Quynh to salt toasted shrimp at L.A. Crawfish. Towards the back, there is a steam table with stir-fry vegetables and meats, but the main attraction is the dim sum – from cushiony pork buns and fried taro roots to steamed xiu mai dumplings.

H-E-B (5898 San Felipe) is officially in the “grocerant” business with five restaurants, including Houston’s Table 57. Here, shoppers don’t have to settle for a run-of-the-mill deli counter when on the hunt for meat. Instead, they dine on stellar barbecue brisket, pulled pork, grilled salmon and chef-composed entrée salads, such as the lemon-pesto grilled tuna with kale and marcona almonds. Even the turkey is smoked in-house, and so a stack is more than a sandwich at Table 57 with its full-service cocktail and wine bar.

Phoenicia Specialty Market (1001 Austin Street) is the offshoot of the original Westchase location, where you can spend hours upon hours exploring imported goodies from the Middle East. The downtown location places emphasis less on the shopping experience and more on the dining, with a terrific selection of skewered meats at the hot-lunch counter along with the full-service MKT Bar for fish and chips and a cold brew.

Asia Market Thai Lao Food (1010 W. Cavalcade Street) changed owners, and the food has gotten better. The tables of Thai diners attest as much. Large groups of downtown workers gather for sticky rice and fried pork sausages. Platters of crispy fried fish, and even more sticky rice with fried quail, crunchy papaya salad, pad thai noodles, fish soup and beef stew are shared among friends, who after a hearty lunch will head straight to the refrigerator section of this tiny market for Thai and Chinese sausages to take home.

Find out where the experts eat, with our new Chef’s Corner column. This month, restaurant writer Dai Huynh interviewed chef Randy Evans.