We’ve had multiple mentions of Formaggio Kitchen on this site, but no all-inclusive thread. Shame on us (and me, in particular), for allowing a jewel of the Boston food scene such as this to lie on the sidelines of the fringe commentariat.
Let me get the arancini rolling by saying that their prepared foods are among the tastiest things that the GBA currently offers. Consider their fish cakes, always loosely bound, with chunks of fish, not a paste, yet held together in the boundary of their crust. Almost a Platonic ideal. From yesterday a bad picture of their hake cake:
And there was also this:
New peas in an artichoke heart. Mine own heart brimmeth over.
This thread has more on their prepared foods:
Oddly, there are few mentions here of their extraordinary cheeses, salamis, etc., apart from occasional sniping at their prices. I hope to address this in detail in future posts, but let me preempt such talk by saying that the price comparisons that are sometimes leveled are based on comparing FK’s online prices with in-store ones elsewhere. I have done a careful in-person to in-person comparison with other stores (especially the nearby Whole Foods at Fresh Pond) and the FK prices are competitive at worst, and often better. Plus, a person cuts and wraps your cheese, down to a sliver, and you are not forced into a larger slab of something wrapped in plastic.
I agree that FK’s online prices are high (much higher than in-store), and I’ve asked them. Their reasoning is that there are significant additional costs with packaging cheese for shipping. I offer that to you without taking a side on this particular issue.
As a local store though, they are non pareil.
Disclosure: My wife and I have had various social involvements with owners, staff, etc., of FK over the years. But I write what I mean, and they are not aware of my online comments or persona.
