From Guest Blogger Umit Celebi, who also took these photos:

It’s been almost 30 years since I moved to New York City and I often ask myself, “What keeps me here?” Certainly, it’s the eight Vermeers at the Met and the Frick; it’s that first glimpse of the gloriously green field at Yankee Stadium when you emerge from the shadow world under the seats; it’s those two early evenings in the middle of each year when the sun sets precisely in line with the city’s grid casting a miraculous light directly down every street in Manhattan (click here); it’s the pan-fried chive dumplings in the dim sum parlors of Elizabeth Street.

But what really keeps me here are the overheard conversations. I can’t tell you how much I have gleaned over the years from simply being within earshot of just a handful of the hundreds of millions of verbal transactions that take place here every day. The very thing that sometimes most frustrates me about living in New York, (the throngs of people), also provides me with the thing I love the most – aural access to the thoughts and emotions of my 8 million neighbors. And since the food here is a very close second, something that combines both of these is a rare treat indeed. And that’s where Di Palo’s Fine Foods comes in.

I’ve been shopping at Di Palo’s for over 25 years, and every time I walk through the door I feel like I’m crossing a threshold: Leaving behind the bustling cusp of Little Italy and Chinatown and entering into an enchanted cornucopia that is bursting with possibility and, at the same time, completely composed. It’s as if everything that is delicious from Italy is on sale here: cheeses, meats, preserves, olive oils, mustards, confections, jams, jellies, coffee, biscotti….

Di Palo’s is not only determined to make the very best of Italy available in New York, they’re devoted to freshness. The cheeses and meats are never left unwrapped, not even for a moment – it doesn’t matter that the same hunk will be cut or sliced just seconds later. Let’s take two basic items: Parmigiano Reggiano and Prosciutto di Parma. Di Palo’s Parmigiano feels almost cake-like; it’s soft to the touch and crumbles in your hands. You always think twice before grating it – this is Parmigiano that you want to eat in big chunks.

The Prosciutto di Parma is similarly superlative – it drapes around your fingers like a Balenciaga gown and tastes like your first kiss. It forces you to re-evaluate all the prosciuttos you’ve had before: nothing compares. They always trim away the fat before slicing, saving you money and effort. What’s more, everything at Di Palo’s is competitively priced: Prosciutto di Parma is $22.99/pound and Parmigiano Reggiano is $13.99/pound.

Other imported items of distinction are torta mascarpone (a layered blend of gorgonzola and mascarpone cheeses), the asphodel leaf-wrapped burratta (“buttered” in Italian – where fresh mozzarella curds are plunged into hot whey, formed into a pouch, and filled with scraps of leftover mozzarella and fresh cream), and the truffle-infused hard sheep’s cheese, boschetto. Di Palo’s own made-in-the-backroom-of-the-store mozzarellas, plain and smoked, are just as mouth-watering.

Di Palo’s also carries incomparable items from local stores and producers, such as pizza bianca, a roman-style flat bread made only from flour, salt, yeast and rosemary (from Grandaisy Bakery, 15 minutes away on Sullivan Street); and eggs from the Bogdanffy family’s Feather Ridge Farms, 2 ½ hours up the Hudson Valley.

And then there are the tales, the conversations I have either overheard or been a part of myself. These chronicles have fed that other part of me that always has room for dessert – my soul. Lou and Sal Di Palo are not only companionable but also engrossingly conversant. Just as you’re experiencing ecstasy eating the sample of Parmigiano they’ve handed you, Sal says to all assembled that this particular wheel of cheese was made from milk from cows that chewed on spring grass. You suddenly understand that cheese is seasonal. Everything starts to make more sense after that. We remain connected to the seasons, sunshine, wind, rain, and animals we live and work with. It takes a Di Palo’s.

I’m not making this up. Go see, feel, smell, taste, and hear for yourself.

Di Palo’s Fine Foods
200 Grand Street (corner of Mott and Grand Streets)
Open Monday-Saturday 9:00 to 6:30; Sunday 9:00 to 4:00

212.226.1033
Phone orders: 877-253-1779

Mail order and online order available at www.dipaloselects.com

 

Umit Celebi is an actor who has lived in neighborhoods all over Manhattan. He currently resides near Ground Zero with his wife, Kate, and their daughters, Ajda and Mavi. His blog, Eat Me in Manhattan!, appears periodically here on Kitchen Scoop.