The Tavern originally opened as a grocery store in 1916, became a steakhouse in 1929, operated as a speakeasy and brother during Prohibition, and then became a German sports bar in 1933. The Tavern is owned by Shannon Sedwick and Michael Shelton as of 2018.

In 1916, just four short years before the Prohibition era began, R. Niles Graham hired first generation Austin resident Hug Kuehne to design a grocery – a fabulous one of a kind space to provide food, dry goods and sundries to the 30, 000 people living in Austin at the time. Kuehne, who went on to design many other iconic Austin establishments, brought the building plans from his native Germany and modeled the store after the public house popular throughout Europe. The Enfield Grocery Store operated until 1929 before moving next door and making room for the steakhouse that would one day become The Tavern. Legend has it that a popular yet secretive speakeasy & brothel operated on the second story of the building and that a former employee still haunts the second floor!

In 1933, after Prohibition, The Tavern was officially born and has been serving up good times ever since! Few other Austin gathering places have been home to so many students, soldiers, legislators, presidents, and our town’s general citizenry as The Tavern. Current management has given this old beauty a face lift with high definition displays, facility upgrades and an attention to detail that continues the tradition of this Austin Landmark as a defining part of our unique cultural identity. It is included on a Haunted Austin tour for its Prohibition era true crime connections and other local legends.