Are you comparing prices with those at the source (where I imagine they will be cheaper), or with other retail stores in Cambridge?
About Momma’s I beg to disagree. I am a big (although quickly lessening) admirer, but they are a very expensive store, on every count.
As a Huron Village resident I add that I take umbrage at a statement such as “mark up for being in Huron Village and many of the patrons seem to be able to afford it”. I think such markup as there is at FK arises from the convenience of getting a lot under one roof, not from squeezing the Huron Village supposed-rich.
love me some Rancho Gordo beans. I usually buy them directly from them. I actually also found them super randomly in a gas station in Easton for whatever reason. They seem to be cropping up on the retail side more and more
Agreed - Formaggio was always about the very good cheese (and to a certain degree their charcuterie) selection under one roof but everything else wasn’t overly impressive and often overpriced (I still remember some dried pasta which was close to double the price what you paid at Eataly (which itself is often already overpriced). When we lived there and Russo’s (and even WF) was still open and relatively close by we never understood for example who bought their very expensive produce (in often questionable conditions as they might have low turnover)
I don’t know - my wife was about a year ago at the new location and wasn’t still overly impressed with their produce. There are too many Armenian places around there where you can get a lot produce at better prices
yes, and free shipping direct from Rancho Gordo. Momma’s used to stock RG beans and they were several $ cheaper than the same RG beans at Formaggio, so I did buy there in the past. I’ve tried to find them elsewhere local, but haven’t succeeded and since I order enough to get free shipping, I’ve gone back to that, especially since I also like the non-bean items at RG. I got a beautiful bean pot and banana/pineapple vinegars.
I have noticed, as I wrote in my post, that several times I’ve purchased the same Jasper Hill cheeses at WF at less per pound prices than FK, and also there’s a brand of sour cream at FK that is cheaper at WF…I’m blanking on the name.
The produce as honkman noted is often not high quality (sitting around for a while) at high per pound prices. I can get the same radicchio and treviso chicories that FK has (and WF’s doesn’t) delivered free from Eataly via Mercato at lower price with higher quality. freshness. Occasionally at FK I’ll buy a few heirloom apple varieties I haven’t seen elsewhere just to try them, but the price keeps me from doing that regularly.
I do love the olive mix at FK and get it as a special treat for myself occasionally. Christina’s Spices in Cambridge has a huge variety of speciality condiments and grains (including sometimes products from Anson in Columbia, SC) at much lower prices than FK.
Oh do I miss Russo’s! So much! Everything, unusual stuff, high quality, fast turnover, low prices!
Yeah Russo’s was great. At least we still have Wilson Farms in Lexington which is pretty awesome (although more expensive than Russo’s)
I’m near Volante Farms in Needham and they’re also great but pricey. That’s really one major thing I miss so much about living in Europe: accessible, great quality produce. It’s so much more expensive here if you care about quality…
I live near the Stop and Shop at the McGrath in Somerville. The produce there is so depressing and so expensive that I can only bring myself to walk in there a few times a year for something we really, really need close by.
I wish I lived further west sometimes to be closer to the farms. I love to go to Concord a couple of times every summer and fall (Verrill and others). It’s fantastic that both Audubon and Hutchins are are the Somerville Union Sq farmers market and Hutchins is also at Central Square FM. Hutchins often has some uncommon vegetables and also some unusual pepper varieties.
Berman’s Wine and Spirits in Lexington (on Mass Ave near the Arlington line) has a decent selection of Rancho Gordo beans - maybe a dozen varieties or so - as well as a few of their hot sauces.
Ooh that’s good to know, I was about to place an online order in the next few days once I finish looking at the Rancho Gordo cookbook and figure out which beans I need.
Only concern I’d have with the Bermans stash is how old it is. I know dried beans don’t go bad quickly but I’m also not trying to grab a bunch of dusty, 3 year old bags either
Rancho Gordo doesn’t appear to date their products so I don’t know - but they don’t appear to be old I bought and cooked some midnight black beans from them recently and they seemed fine.
I was there a few weeks ago and the produce looked quite bedraggled. Not the fruit, but the veg and greens. Maybe slower turnover when so many people are on vacation, but I also recall a few winter visits when some of it looked quite past peak.
