Gourmet Grocer Opens on Fort Worth's Magnolia Avenue

Store offers option of day to day shopping

Ryan's Fine Grocer and Delicatessen opened its doors Wednesday morning, bringing a new gourmet grocer to Fort Worth's Near Southside.

"We're never gonna be Central Market or Albertson's or Fiesta. We don't want to be a supermarket," owner Brittany Ryan said. "We want to provide the option of day-to-day shopping, where you can grab something for dinner."

Siblings Brittany and Hunter Ryan opened the store at 815 W. Magnolia Avenue very close to a neighborhood linked to her family, she explained when talking about the store's name.

"We got really creative with it," Brittany said as she laughed. "First of all, my brother and I live here, "but Ryan Place is a development my great, great grandfather started. And we're proud of what our family's contributed to Fort Worth."

The Ryan siblings hope to make their own mark on a street packed with independent restaurants, such as the comfort food of Paris Coffee Shop, the award-winning menu of Ellerbee and the authentic Italian at Nonna Tata.

"Everything is the best I could find at its price point. For example, I have some lovely, lovely olive oils and one is from California," explained Brittany. "It was number two in a competition last year. I couldn't find number one, honestly," she laughed.

Ryan's is part grocery store, part deli. The grocery side offers a small selection of fresh meat, fruits and vegetables. There are spacious aisles of metal racks stacked with everything from the olive oils Brittany talked about to dried pasta, peanut butter, dried fruit, even feminine items and gourmet food for the dog.

The deli side is where customers can order a salad or sandwich and sit inside to eat or outside on the patio. Specialty salads include the $7 Grapefruit and Orange, the $10 Rocket and Fruit or the $16 Crab Heirloom and Avocado. It's $22 when prawns are added. Sandwiches range from the $10 Chicken Salad, the $12 Melted Ham and Brie to the $28 1 1/4 lb Lobster Roll.

The bread used for the sandwiches comes from the nearby Black Rooster Bakery, a small place quickly gaining popularity. 

"MarcheAnn (Mann, the owner) makes the best bread in town, if you ask me," said Brittany.

The Ryan siblings feel they're prepared for this big challenge. They both trained as chefs at the French Culinary Institute in New York. They're young; Brittany, 27, and Hunter, 25, and they live close to work so they can be there as much as needed.

"Hunter lives 27 seconds away on foot, and I'm just a little further away," said Ryan. "We love this neighborhood and what's happening here. We wanted to help it grow."

The grocer will be open Monday - Saturday from 9 a.m. to  9 p.m. and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.  You can follow them on Twitter @RyansFineGrocer and on Facebook here.

Contact Us