Interesting local stores? [Boston/New England]

In an effort to support small local businesses, I’m trying to find different establishments/brands to buy from, especially those that offer unusual items or changed their operating model during the pandemic. Here are the ones I’ve placed orders at thus far:

MEM Tea
Curio Spice
EHChocolatier
Mushrooms for My Friends
Hooked Fish Shop
Island Creek Oysters
The Spirited Gourmet
Barry’s Hot Sauce

Would love to hear suggestions from the community on more places to try out!

5 Likes

Capone Foods, Somerville
Formaggio Kitchen, Cambridge and South End
Elmendorf Baking Supplies, Cambridge
CurioSpice is amazing
I’ve ordered from Spirited Gourmet in Belmont, Sevan in Watertown, Formaggio, Stillman Farm, and Siena Farm via Mercato…all wonderful.

6 Likes

@Madrid, your mentions of Curio Spice drew me to try a virtual cooking class with them back in November. Thank you for the tip!

I thoroughly enjoyed the class, which was about a dish called Jamaican stew peas. The teacher taught from her home kitchen and the Curio team moderated the session via Zoom. The experience felt warm and welcoming. One-hour session was an agreeable length.

Curio Spice has a few virtual classes planned for the New Year. There’s one coming in January about Indian flatbreads that draws my eye. I hinted to my husband that the class could be a welcome Christmas gift for me, plus we’d be supporting a local business.

5 Likes

I’m so glad you’ve enjoyed Curio. I feel so lucky that this store is local. I sent a holiday package of Ethopian spices and the Ethiopia cookbook to some of my oldest friends. Curio is so busy the package may not make it to Utah by Christmas, but I know my friends will enjoy it whenever it arrives.

3 Likes

I stopped by Elmendorf right before Thanksgiving, and I loved it. So glad it’s somewhere I can get to!

2 Likes

Yes, it is an amazing store. I see now you can actually shop inside and also reserve a private shopping time on Tuesdays. They have a whole bunch of great merchandise packed in to a small space, and they are very nice and very well-informed, too.

1 Like

I had an email from Curio this morning (12/14) stating that they’re running about 2 weeks behind right now in processing orders. I hope this demand translates into a strong holiday season financially for them.

They also offered the option of cancelling in case someone is disappointed with the fulfillment delay, as well as a discount on a future order. How useful and considerate!

3 Likes

oh, I agree Curio is communicating well with explaining what is going on and I hope as well that this strong holiday season helps them. I got a message this afternoon that after days of creating the shipping label, my order to Utah is on its way and expected to arrive before Christmas.

I support Curio in every way and do so even if my order arrives later than expected. The products, ethically-sourced, service…I’m just so glad I live near such a great independent spice source.

Keeping this local business alive is a priority for me. Thanks for posting…they can use all the support.

I don’t work there and have no financial interest…except for my consumer interest in this business staying around for us in the Boston area and nationwide. We can’t travel our human selves much, but we can travel with Curio’s amazing spices.

2 Likes

+1 on that! We “adopted” an owner-operated neighborhood cafe when the March lockdown happened, with the goal of focusing our takeout orders with them as much as possible. Purchasing at small businesses really makes a difference for them.

1 Like