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There's a moment that happens at the counter on Washington Street, and it's one of my favorites. Someone walks in — usually because a friend told them to — and stops just inside the door. They've been buying Opa's at their grocery store for years. But they're looking at a case that holds about twice as much as they thought Opa's made. A tasting station with four sausages on a griddle. A butcher counter with fresh cuts behind the glass. A market side with cheeses and mustards and Texas beverages. You can watch it land: this is bigger than they knew.
If you love Opa's from the grocery store, this post is for you. You're not missing something — Opa's Smoked Meats supplies major grocery chains across Texas and surrounding states, and the products you find at your local store are exactly the same products we've been making here in Fredericksburg since 1947. But the grocery shelf isn't the whole story. There's a deli and a specialty market at 410 S Washington Street where all of it starts, and there's a lot more going on inside than most of our loyal customers realize.
This is a walking tour of Opa's Deli & Market — what you'll find when you come, why it's different from anywhere else in Fredericksburg, and how it fits into the rest of the Opa's you already know.
First: The Building
Opa's Deli & Market is a limestone building with wood double doors and flower pots out front, two blocks off Main Street, just off Highway 87. If you're driving through Fredericksburg on your way to the wine trail or Enchanted Rock, you've probably passed it without knowing. That's part of the reason most visitors miss it. It doesn't sit on Main Street with the tourist foot traffic — it sits on a quieter side street where the actual work of making smoked meats happens every day.
The building has been the home of Opa's Smoked Meats across three generations of the same family. The original walk-in cooler doors are still in daily use, still fitted with their original heat strips. It's the kind of place that tells you something about the company before anybody behind the counter has said a word.
The Case
Walk in through the double doors and the first thing you see is the case. It runs the full lineup of Opa's smoked sausage — Country Blend, Beef, Jalapeño Cheddar, Jalapeño, Hatch Green Chile, Habanero, Bratwurst, and the Chicken Sausage with Poblano and Monterey Jack. Every variety that appears in grocery stores appears here too, usually with a wider selection of formats and pack sizes than you'll find on any single shelf somewhere else.
But the case also holds products most grocery-store customers have never tried: Knackwurst, Head Cheese, Liverwurst, Cured Peppered Smoked Beef, Cured Peppered Smoked Turkey Breast, Smoked Beef Tenderloin, Smoked Pork Tenderloin, Summer Sausage in both Regular and Jalapeño Cheddar, Sausage on a Stick, and Smoked Whole Chickens. These are the heritage products and the specialty items that don't fit on a grocery shelf — because they're the kind of products that reward being explained by somebody behind the counter, or because they're built for fresh deli pickup rather than shelf distribution. The deli is where you find them.
The Tasting Station
This is the move that turns first-time visitors into regulars. The tasting station is a griddle near the front of the counter with four sausages cooking at any given time — usually a rotation that includes the Jalapeño Cheddar, the Country Blend, and two others depending on the day. You don't have to buy anything to try it. The staff will cut you samples of whatever's on the griddle, tell you what you're eating, and answer any question you have about how to cook it, how to serve it, or what goes with it.
Most people standing at the tasting station for the first time have the same experience: they try the Jalapeño Cheddar, the casing snaps cleanly, the cheddar finishes in the back of the bite, and they start looking for a pack to take home before they've finished chewing. It's the clearest demonstration of why Opa's tastes the way it does, and it's the reason a lot of grocery-store customers walk out of the deli with products they'd never considered before.
The Butcher Counter
Next to the smoked meat case is a full butcher counter with fresh cuts. This is the part most people don't expect. Opa's isn't just a smoked meat brand — the Washington Street location operates as a full butcher shop with fresh cuts available for grilling, roasting, and custom orders. If you need something specific for a weekend cookout or a dinner party, the butcher counter is the place to ask. The staff can cut to order and recommend pairings with the rest of the lineup.
The Made-to-Order Sandwich Counter
The sandwich counter at Opa's is built around one idea: a good sandwich starts with good meat. Order Opa's ham or smoked sausage and you're eating something made right here in the building you're standing in. Round it out with fresh-sliced deli meats, cheese from the market case, and the condiments that belong with them. Order at the counter, they build it while you wait, and you take it with you or eat it at the picnic tables out front. The lunch special runs daily — any sandwich with chips and a drink, a dollar off, and a cookie on the way out.
This isn't a sit-down restaurant. It's a deli counter, which means it's fast, it's real, and the sandwich you walk out with was built by somebody who knows these products inside and out. If you've been eating Opa's at home for years and you've never had the ham or the sausage on a sandwich made fresh at the counter, you've been missing out on one of the better lunches in Fredericksburg.
The Prepared Foods Case
Opa's makes a rotating selection of prepared sides and cold items in-house every day — potato salad, deviled eggs, smoked chicken salad, pimento salad, and other items depending on the day. These aren't reheated catering products. They're made in the deli kitchen, usually first thing in the morning, with the same standards as everything else behind the counter.
If you're building a weekend cookout around Opa's sausage, the prepared case is where you round out the table — sides made the way you'd make them yourself if you had the morning free. This is also where locals tend to linger. The prepared foods are one of the reasons a lot of Fredericksburg residents shop here regularly.
The Market Side
The market side of Opa's Deli & Market is the part that surprises people who think they're just coming in for sausage. The cheese case runs a serious selection — smoked gouda, smoked cheddar, jalapeño cheddar, creamy white cheddar, rotating specialty flavored bars, imported Havarti with caraway, and rotating artisan options from Texas producers. The condiment shelves carry German mustards (Dusseldorf, hot Bavarian, stone-ground), Fischer & Wieser sauces and preserves, and premium crackers in several styles. There's a Texas beverage case with craft sodas and specialty drinks that go deeper than the basics. There's a knife section with premium chef's knives, carving knives, and cheese knives in olive wood and walnut handles.
Everything on the market side is curated to complement the meats — the idea is that you can build an entire charcuterie board or provision a full weekend in one stop, without needing a second grocery run. A lot of what's on the market shelves isn't made by Opa's — the cheeses, the mustards, the Fischer & Wieser preserves, the crackers — but all of it is chosen because it pairs well with what we do make. The market is the part of the deli that says "come in for the sausage, leave with everything else you need for Saturday afternoon."
Where Else You'll Find Opa's
The deli is where everything starts, but it isn't the only place Opa's turns up. If you've been a customer for a while, you've probably crossed paths with Opa's in more than one of these without thinking much about it.
Most people know Opa's from the grocery store. It's how the brand has reached Texas kitchens for generations, and the lineup has expanded onto shelves across surrounding states. If you've ever bought Opa's at your local store, that product was made in the same building on Washington Street we've been describing here. To find out which stores near you carry it, use the store locator at opassmokedmeats.com.
You may also have eaten Opa's without knowing it. More than a dozen Fredericksburg restaurants serve Opa's products on their menus, and you'll find it at local school fundraisers, area fire departments, and catering tables around town. If you've had sausage at a restaurant in Fredericksburg, there's a good chance it came from Washington Street.
For anyone outside Texas — or anyone who wants Opa's delivered — every product on opassmokedmeats.com ships nationwide from the Washington Street smokehouse, packed in insulated containers with ice packs. It's how Opa's reaches the customer who moved away, the family that discovered the brand on vacation, or the person sending smoked meats as a gift across the country.
And then there's the deli itself — the place where all of it starts. It's the one spot where you can see the source firsthand, try something new at the tasting station, pick up heritage products like head cheese and liverwurst, or walk out with a sandwich built from the highest quality meats.
However you come to Opa's, it's the same Opa's. Same smokehouse. Same family. Same products. Same standards. The deli is simply the way in that fills out the whole picture — especially for anyone who's loved Opa's from the grocery shelf but never been to Fredericksburg.
If You're Coming
Opa's Deli & Market is at 410 S Washington Street in Fredericksburg, Texas. Two blocks off Main Street, just off Highway 87. Open Monday–Friday 8 AM–5:30 PM, Saturday 8 AM–4 PM. Closed Sunday. Phone 830-997-3358.
Come early if you want the tasting station at its quietest. Come at lunchtime if you want to try a made-to-order sandwich and see the counter working at full tempo. Bring a cooler if you're driving somewhere hot and want to stock up — and if you didn't bring one, ask at the counter. Insulated bags and ice packs are available so you can pack purchases for the drive home. And if you've been buying Opa's at your grocery store for years and you've never been to the source — this is the trip that fills in the picture. The people who've only had Opa's on a grocery shelf understand the brand differently after a visit. You can feel the place where the work has been happening for generations.
The door is open.
For Everyone Else: How to Find Opa's at Your Grocery Store
If Fredericksburg isn't on your travel plans anytime soon, the fastest way to find Opa's is at your local grocery store. The store locator at opassmokedmeats.com will show you which grocery chains near you carry Opa's products. It's a good first step for anyone who's just discovered the brand or for anyone who's moved to a new area and wants to know where to pick it up locally.
And if it's not at a store near you, the full Opa's lineup ships nationwide from the Washington Street smokehouse. Either way, the same products are waiting for you — no matter how you choose to get them.
Small batch. Craft made. German tradition — since 1947.
Visit Opa's Deli & Market at 410 S Washington Street in Fredericksburg — open Monday–Friday 8 AM–5:30 PM, Saturday 8 AM–4 PM. Call 830-997-3358.
Not coming to Fredericksburg anytime soon? Find Opa's at a grocery store near you.
Or order online at opassmokedmeats.com — ships nationwide.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Opa's Smoked Meats have a deli?
Yes. Opa's Deli & Market is located at 410 S Washington Street in Fredericksburg, Texas — two blocks off Main Street, just off Highway 87. The deli has a full sausage case, a butcher counter with fresh cuts, a made-to-order sandwich counter, prepared foods, a tasting station, and a specialty market with cheeses, mustards, and Texas beverages. Open Monday–Friday 8 AM–5:30 PM, Saturday 8 AM–4 PM. Closed Sunday. Phone 830-997-3358.
Is the Opa's at the grocery store the same as the one at the Fredericksburg deli?
Yes. The Opa's products sold at major grocery chains across Texas and surrounding states are made in the same building on Washington Street in Fredericksburg where Opa's Deli & Market is located. Same smokehouse, same family, same products, same standards.
Where is Opa's Smoked Meats located?
Opa's Deli & Market is at 410 S Washington Street, Fredericksburg, Texas 78624. The deli is two blocks off Main Street, just off Highway 87. Opa's products are also available at major grocery chains across Texas and surrounding states (use the store locator at opassmokedmeats.com to find one near you), at more than a dozen Fredericksburg restaurants, and online at opassmokedmeats.com for nationwide shipping.
What's at Opa's Deli & Market that I can't find at a grocery store?
The deli carries heritage products that don't typically appear on grocery shelves — including Knackwurst, head cheese, liverwurst, smoked beef and pork tenderloins, Cured Peppered Smoked Beef, Cured Peppered Smoked Turkey Breast, a rotating selection of prepared foods made in-house, and made-to-order sandwiches. The deli also has a full butcher counter with fresh cuts, a tasting station, and a specialty market with cheeses, German mustards, crackers, Texas beverages, and premium knives.
Where can I buy Opa's sausage near me?
Opa's products are available at major grocery chains across Texas and surrounding states. Use the store locator at opassmokedmeats.com to find a store carrying Opa's near you, or order online at opassmokedmeats.com for nationwide shipping.