Best Fresh Mozzarella, Fresh Pasta for purchase in Bensonhurst or nearby

[dietndesire]

Lioni's? Frank and Sal's?
Please be honest and not a homer if none of it is that special just say that.
For comparisons in any borough, Cassinelli's or Borgatti's(for pasta) are very good, nothing else I have encountered is worthwhile.
I do not think any of the fresh mozzarella in Manhattan is so great. Most are similar, fine but not the best. Casa Della Mozzarella is quite good, though.
Have been to Coluccio's and was not impressed. Perhaps I missed something.
Thank you.

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Cassinelli Pasta
31-12 23rd Ave, Queens, NY 11105

Borgatti's
632 E 187th St, Bronx, NY 10458

Casa Della Mozzarella
604 E 187th St, Bronx, NY 10458

Coluccio and Sons
1214 60th St, Brooklyn, NY 11219

[bigmackdaddy]

Since Cassa Della in the Bronx and Vito's in Hoboken is a bit of trek, I heartily suggest you bite the bullet and go to Caputo's Fine Foods in Cobble. They're on 460 Court St between 3rd Pl & 4th Pl, and IMO, have some of the best homemade muzz as well as pasta in Brooklyn if not the city.

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Caputo's Fine Foods
460 Court St, Brooklyn, NY 11231

[carfreeinla]

I just tried Frank and Sal's for the first time this weekend. I loved the experience but I feel awful in saying that it was not a stellar experience. Burrata ( which last time I checked, Lioni no longer made) was sharp enough for me to think had turned. My daughter found a white hair in the mozzarella. I still have proscuitto and fontina to try- hopefully, they will be better experiences.
I am really disappointed.
Yes, I will give them another shot.

[bob96]

Sorry to hear it--my family's been shopping there for ages, without trouble. That said, burrata can be tricky--it's fragile and time-sensitive--and Frank + Sal might not be the best place for it. No excuse for the white hair ion the mozzarella, though. They'd probably not disappoint on salumi or hard cheeses--and their heroes are just great.

[carfreeinla]

Where have you found good burrata in the neighborhood and why wouldn't Frank and Sal's not be the best place for it?

[rosmarino]

Sorry to hear about the hair, which is highly unusual (you should tell Francesco when you go back, and I'm sure they will compensate you).... I've been shopping at Frank and Sal's for many, many years. Produce, meats, cheeses, etc. are all great there. I buy cases of tomatoes in the late summer for jarring, cases of olive in the fall for curing, etc. They are quality conscious and reasonably priced, exactly what one should expect in an ethnic community! And, hey, where else can you shop and watch calcio on a RAI International feed? Ah, the old days... anyway, I recommend them above and beyond Lioni's for mozzarella. The stuff at Lioni is not bad; but it's far from great. I don't know if I'd call Frank and Sal's great either, but it's better. Oddly enough, I've always liked the mozzarella at Faicco's on 11th Avenue, though to be honest, I haven't eaten it in years.

I can't comment on the burrata... I don't buy it, though I've seen it at Frank & Sal's and Coluccio's, imported in both cases, I believe. As bob96 says, it's got to be fresh to be good (or at least have a chance of being good), and if it's imported, then it's already a risk. The Fratelli Pesce at C-Town on 13th and 79th make some in house, but if it's anything like their mozzarella, then it's probably average at best (though I must give C-Town props for their imported Italian products and their fish monger... the folks from Mola di Bari know their fish... used to prefer a fish monger from Sciacca, but no more). Obviously, there are many more neighborhood possibilities (not as many as the old days, unfortunately) for burrata and mozzarella; you just need to do a bit of exploring and experimenting.

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Faicco's
6511 11th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11219

Frank & Sal
8008 18th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11214

[bob96]

Sorry if I managed to imply otherwise, but I really don't like and don't buy burrata. I was suggesting that since it's a fairly fancy import that needs tender care, F+L might not be set up for it--in the way DiPalo's certainly is, with its more "demanding" clientele.

[jen kalb]

ditto. Id be suspicious of any imported burrata - ive bought past its prime burrata in Rome - I think its very perishable, and at this point I have had so few good samples that Im reluctant to even try - maybe I will again when I visit the production zone. Ditto bufala.

Fortunately we love fresh cowsmilk mozzarella which is available here.

[bob96]

Agree. Grew up on old fashioned fior di latte mozzarella and scamorza from the corner latticini (and where has the treccia, or braided form, gone?), and can live easily without bufala, unless we're near Battipaglia.

[Cheese Boy]

When I was a teenager, stopping in at Calandra cheese on Arthur Avenue and ordering their treccia in salted water was a regular routine for me. I'd have the owners slice it up for me into about six or eight pieces and I would eat it while walking around the neighborhood dripping milk all along the way.

If I felt daring, I'd duck into a store somewhere and get some Sicilian salami and some nice Italian bread and have myself a nice little walkfest. Great times.

[bob96]

Looks like heaven.

[carfreeinla]

I had no idea that burrata was this complicated. It seems so common in LA that I never thought that it would be so "problematic" here in NY.

[rosmarino]

It's not problematic; rather, it's just that those of us who have responded don't consume it enough to recommend a place! Personally, I, like a lot of Italian Americans, am lactose intolerant! But, as I indicated above, Frank & Sal's, Coluccio, Fratelli Pesce/C-Town all have it, the latter makes it in house (good since it's best consumed w/in 24 hours of being made). I'm sure there are many more places in Bensonhurst that have it, but those are the places at which I shop... you'll just have to explore. Who knows, maybe the C-Town one is good, since they are Pugliese owners, and Burrata is a Pugliese cheese... The area has a decent sized Pugliese community... but, who knows. Go and give it a try!

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Frank & Sal
8008 18th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11214

[carfreeinla]

Went back to Frank and Sal's this weekend.Again loved the experience, especially because they had so many gluten free pastas and cookies but.. the mozzarella was so disappointing. Porchetta was good. Lioni's for me...

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Lioni Fresh Mozzarella
7803 15th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11228

Frank & Sal
8008 18th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11214

[Sluggo1407]

Frank & Sal's makes their mozz fresh almost every day. You can buy it still warm there. However, I never thought mozz had much flavor no matter where I bought it. If you want a good melting cheese, why not try Fontina? It's much tastier. Frank & Sal's has that also. If you are going on a Sunday, keep in mind that they close at about 2:00 p.m.

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Frank & Sal
8008 18th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11214

[JFores]

Lioni's again for the mozzarella. As a kid I used to have to pick EVERYTHING up grocery wise frm Frank and Sal's and then trek with it down to Lioni's to get the one thing we bought there. Frank and Sal's is an amazing market though. Definitely check it out as they've got a really good selection of everything and last I checked the prices were pretty low. Fresh pasta is surprisingly hard to find in the area compared to the Bronx. A bit of a shot in the dark but near my old house on 13th Avenue there's Gold Star Bakery and that's where we'd get fresh pasta if we had to.

You can get food at Gino's Foccaceria. They do for NYC very good panelle (for Palermo ehhhh) and for NYC good milza (for Palermo BIG ehhhh) but you can hardly find that stuff elsewhere nowadays. In all seriousness, Bamboo Pavillion is the best restaurant on that stretch now.

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Gino's Focacceria
7118 18th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11204

Lioni Fresh Mozzarella
7803 15th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11228

Spicy Bampa
6920 18th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11204

Frank & Sal
8008 18th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11214

[jen kalb]

I think LIoni's mozzarella is very good not great (ate for dinner tonight). Maybe Im jaded at this point- but it seems like Saturday noon is as good a tme as any to expect dead fresh milky tasting mozzarella thats still warm/not yet refrigerated. Like I used to get at A&S and even better, Latticini Barese. I got a piece at M&S last week and it was pretty good. Coluccio's is not bad (they use at least a couple of different cheesemakers - sometimes they have different marks I suspect because there regular clientele prefer one or the other? I happen to like their cheese guys and the cheeses, and they will always let you taste but its not a special cheese store by any stretch.. Coluccio's is a must in that neighborhood as is Royal Crown. Ive not gone to Royal Crown's restaurant on 14th across from Santa Rosalias but it looks good.

Really love Frank and Sal's market. I dont always buy anything but I just like being there. If you want to buy tradtional italian vegetables thats the place. They, Lionis and the place next to Lioni's all have the packaged refrigerated fresh pasta from the Cilento (several traditional shapes). For fresh pasta generally, I always liked Dairy Maid on Ave U.

[bob96]

Jen, you're on target as usual. I've had very good Lioni's, mostly, and think Coluccio's strength is in price and freshness (turnover) of very traditional hard cheeses--caciocavallo, provolone, scamorza, and some nicely maintained pecorinos form Sardinia and Calabria. Their ricotta (fresh and slated into baskets) is also nice. Fresh pasta--except for holiday ravioli, stuffed shells, and manicotti--has never, in my long family experience, been a Bensonhurst speciality, reflecting local past'asciutta preferences. Borgatti's on E 187St in the Bronx is without competition here. That said, I've heard good things about Dairy Maid. Frank and Sal's is a throwback experience, especially when packed with local demanding buyers., for vegetables, specialiy cuts of humble pork and beef meat for Sunday, and a crazy array of groceries.

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Borgatti's
632 E 187th St, Bronx, NY 10458

[erica]

Which of these places keeps the mozzarella on the counter after making, and never puts it in the frig? (Like DiPalo)

I think that packaged Cilento pasta, Sapori del Vallo, is pretty good, although it does not touch Borgatti. Oddly enough, I saw an Italian man awaiting a flight to NYC open his suitcase in the Naples airport and it was filled to the brim with that brand.

http://www.saporifreshpasta.com/order...

Related question that I hope I can ask here: I bought a few bags of fresh cavatelli recently from Borgatti. I put them in my freezer after zip-loc ing them. A couple of days later, I took a bag out to cook and the pasta was all gummed together. This has never happened before. There was a lot of cornstarch in the bag, as usual. Any thought?

[Wet Towel]

Lioni's, far and away.
Frank and Sal's is pretty good, but Lioni's is another level. A&S Pork Store in Bay Ridge also makes good fresh mozz. In Manhattan, Joe's on Sullivan Street and DiPalo are also excellent. But I think Lioni is the best. (I agree with you about Coluccio's cheese, although they have plenty of other great things.)
For fresh pasta, Pastosa is your best bet.

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Lioni Fresh Mozzarella
7803 15th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11228

Coluccio and Sons
1214 60th St, Brooklyn, NY 11219

Frank & Sal
8008 18th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11214

Pastosa Ravioli
5223 Ave N, Brooklyn, NY 11234

A&S Pork Store
8614 5th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11209

[dietndesire]

That was the default but the area does not get so much air time, wanted to check.
I hope the cheese from the location is far superior than the massive commercial product they sell across the US. Of course, this should be fresher, at least. I hope they make it on Sunday when this will be had. Joe's is not that good and DiPalo is OK. Hopefully, this is better.
Pastosa is not very inspiring, perhaps the pasta will be a no go.
Have you or anyone had pizza at Valentino's? I think it is closed Sunday when the subject will be in the neighborhood.

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Valentino's
1702 86th St, Brooklyn, NY 11214