Come Hungry, Leave Happy

Thanksgiving is a blast, and our food department was hit especially hard. This may seem at first like bad news, but actually the opposite is true. All that empty space means I had the chance to pack the place to bursting with a wide assortment of new, fresh items, just in time for the holidays. Please allow me to take this opportunity to go over some of them here. I'll try to be brief and succinct, but you'll have to forgive me if I get a bit carried away. I do love me some gourmet food, and I'm pretty excited about our newest offerings.

Both of our self serve refrigerators and our fresh cheese cabinet are packed full of goodies. Some of my favorites are the majestic Eppoisses from Burgundy, France. This triple creme cheese has a rind washed in brandy, giving it a hedonistic walnut and caramel note. A holiday classic available now through January or so. Price for this item tends to vary from year to year, but at $15.99 it's on the low end. Also just in are blue Stilton wedges from England, a Winter classic with walnuts and your favorite port; White Stilton discs with Cranberry, Apricot or mango are a family favorite; Tillamook cheddar with smoked black peppercorns for the spice lovers among you, and for the truly fearless, real German Limburger...yes Limburger, the stinky stuff.

But that's far, far from all we've got up our sleeve. We now offer a selection of cured meats, salami, even marinated steak tips, lamb in a Greek marinade, and customer favorite honey mustard turkey tips. Aidell's chicken sausages have been a big hit. They're pre-cooked, so simply heat and serve. Paired with a salad and your favorite wine, it's a quick and easy meal. Available in chicken and apple, garlic and gruyere, Italian style with mozzarella, or triyaki pineapple meatballs. All four flavors will be on deck for tasting at this week's wine tasting, so come hungry.

And if it's dinner your after, we've also got a line of hand made pastas by Cara Nonna, Don Pomodoro tomato sauces from Italy, marinated eggplant, mushrooms, and roasted red peppers, canned sardines, and a selection of fine olive oils and vinegars. In a pinch, we've even got Millie's instant soups in vegetable barley, minestrone, five bean, and vegetable rice. Bonnie's Jams from Cambridge continue to be a hit, and we've augmented them with Marcona almond butter, Greek honey, and Nutella! I call it our gourmet pb&j section.

Of course, nothing says holidays like sweets, and we have plenty. Chocolate bars from all around filled with all sorts of exotic things, things like lavender, pear, grilled almonds, hot masala, and even bacon. Of course, Somerville's own Taza chocolate is well represented.  Cookies from Germany, Lazzaroni amaretti from Italy, and of course, our constant supply of fresh home made baklava courtesy of Chris' mom.

So stop by and have a look. We're always happy to chat with our customers, and if you don't see something you like, I'm always open to suggestions.

Come hungry, leave happy!