Arthur Avenue

[jaylhorner]

I'll be going in a few weeks for Saturday lunch and to experience the stores with no particular purchases in mind.
Any recommendations will be appreciated.
Thanks.

[jaylhorner]

Enzos... Any recommendations?

[jaylhorner]

Many thanks for all the replies.
Any more restaurants that I should look into?

[roxlet]

We really have enjoyed going to Zero Otto Nove

[coll]

We tried to go there last summer, but they are so European that they close for several hours between lunch and dinner. I will plan accordingly next time.

[janie]

full moon pizzaria on corner of 187 and arthur ave makes the best spinach artichoke (long stemmede) slice you will ever have, perfection--and agree with casa della mozzar which is next door to pizza place for excellent fresh mozzarela-they also make good sandwiches to go there too if you want that---there is also a good little spot across the street from there and up the street--i'm blanking on the name, hopefully someone will chime in with it, it's a cute little place with prepared foods in circular case that goes around, gelati to the left, and small seating area..a lot of the prepared food are very good...-madonia bros for fresh filled cannoli,

[Cheese Boy]

Tino's --> http://www.tinosdeli.com/

[janie]

oh thank you! it was driving me nuts!!

[erica]

Tino is the brother of Roberto Paciullo, owner of Robertos and the pizzerie on AA and in Manhattan..089.

I've not made many visits to his deli, but from brief stops there, Ii find that prices for dried pastas, jarred and canned goods, are higher than elsewhere in the area. Have not tried their prepared foods since they moved to that spot, though. What else do you find there apart from the prepared dishes in the case?

[bob96]

His tavola calda is fairly good, and suprisingly wide ranging--with a very busy lunch crowd. Prices are fair. He stocks a wide varieyt of pastas, cheese, oils, cookies/taralli, and some random groceries, but I've never found any real reason to buy these at Tino's. He does get some odd dried pasta brands and shapes from time to time. The cheeses are salumi are better served elsewhere. The oils can be old, and overpriced. But if you can avoid the crowds, a pleasant spot for an eggplant parm hero or some frittata and a cold Manhattan Special to watch the street.

[erica]

Thanks, Bob! Will stop by one of these days. BTW: Have you by any chance noted the varieties of dried pasta at the various outlets (re: this thread)? I have not been to the area since December and wonder if the supply is back to normal by now...

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/880144

[bob96]

Erica, managed\e to miss the earlier pasta thread. Haven;t been to AA for a while (last fall), but the shop inside the AA Market usually carries the widest selection. Teitel never did carry much beyond Del Verde, DeCecco, and such. And scattered other brands elsewhere. Inventories always vary, since importers and suppliers change off all the time (remember Rummo?). Rustichella and Cocco seem most reliably available; there are also various rotating labels from Puglia and Calabria that look artisanal and can be priced accordingly, but which I've usually been let down by--one brand packed in Calabria offering fileja and other local shapes is simply not very good. They appear in clear plastic bags with somewhat tacky closures on top; my guess is they're smallish industrial producers. Right now, I'm sticking to mid-market brands like De Martino, Setaro, and larger quality brands like Garofalo and La Molisana, mostly for economic reasons. Eataly's dried pasta from Gragnano and surrounding areas in pretty good.

[coll]

I would drive all the way into the Bronx just for a slice or two of that spinach artichoke pie at Full Moon; you were the one that first told me about it a long time ago, janie, when I first started exploring Arthur Ave. Belated thanks!!

[janie]

glad i could help...it's good to make a day at the botanical gardens or zoo, and then head over there

[coll]

That's exactly what we do, especially at Xmas. The nighttime zoo thing is not happening anymore, but the holiday train exhibit at the Gardens is worth the effort.

[bronxer]

Casa della mozzarella has closed. Try Calandra on Arthur Avenue - they have the best fresh ricotta in the city! And their mozz is yum too.

[janie]

what???? when?? why??

[JohnAM]

I thought it was impossible. They are alive and well......I just called and spoke with Orazio and he working the curd.

[bronxer]

So sorry about that. When I was by earlier in the winter (January), they were shut. Maybe they were smart and went to Italy for a break!

[janie]

thank goodness....i love their mozz, best ever

[versicle]

Are the shops generally closed on Sundays?

[roxlet]

Yes, most shops are closed. I'm not sure about the bakeries. Some of them might be open for part of the day.

[erica]

Borgatti, one of the best shops in the area, or in NYC for that matter(!) is open until 3pm Sundays. Casa della Mozzarella is open until 1pm, I think, but you should double check.

Bakeries should be open. Best to go on another day, but beware that Borgatti closes Mondays.

[coll]

I thought Monday was the bad day? But I usually go around Easter and Christmas, they're open all day Sunday then.

[roxlet]

I always go before Easter to get the makings of my Pizza Rustica. When you eavesdrop on the conversations, you realize that so many of the shoppers have come from far away. They buy tons and tons of stuff, take it all home and freeze it. It's a pretty long drive for you, coll, isn't it. And it's so hard to park, but now if I can't get a spot, I send my son in with money and the list, and he does the shopping while I double park.

[coll]

I met a friend who lives in Yonkers at Arthur Ave last summer, and she gave me the lowdown on the new parking meters. They are all over the place by the curb, you can swipe your credit card and then you put the stub on your dashboard (and make sure it's right side up or you will get a ticket anyway), it's a nice system once you figure it out. I always, always park in the municipal lot in the middle of Arthur Ave but didn't bother getting a parking stub at first because I came the back entrance and I usually don't bother anyway, but an hour later, while dropping off goodies, the attendant warned me that the cops were out in full force (middle of summer, no special holiday though)so I ran and got a ticket and all was well. He wasn't lying, maybe just because it was summer but there was an army of them out there. Easy money! But yes it's a trip for me, and well worth it: I plan on a good few hours at the least, arrive with two or three coolers and lots of ice. If I was a guy, I'd call it a hunting expedition!

[versicle]

A lot of the shops were open yesterday and parking was a breeze at about 11:00 in the morning. We got ravioli and dried pasta at Borgatti; fresh mozzarella, marinated artichokes, and bufala butter at Casa della Mozzarella; amaro and wine at Mt. Carmel; a Parmesan / gouda at Calandra (which was open on a Sunday in preparation for Easter); olive bread, prosciutto bread, and chocolate cherry bread at Madonia; and a sandwich at Mike's Deli, which was also not supposed to be open but was.

[versicle]

Here's a pic of the haul.

[coll]

So funny, my friend posted a photo of her "haul" last year on Facebook and there were a lot of jealous friends.

[bob96]

Often enough, there's free street parking if you head west a few blocks toward Webster Ave along the N-S named streets but more likely along the E-W numbered streets. On Saturday mornings outside of pre- Christmas and Easter seasons I've been able to find spots fairly quickly. During a normal weekday, much easier, too, but pay attention to the many school parking areas.

[erica]

Many threads on CH cover this topic; among them:

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/801619

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/883331

[didactic katydid]

After your Italian lunch, hit up some Albanian pizzerias for desserts and snacks (bureks, tolemba, baklava). I included some information on a link but it got removed so I guess you'll just have to look for it.

[roxlet]

It's hard to go wrong on Arthur Avenue. We go to Biancardi's for meat, and fabulous Italian sausages; either Casa Della Mozzarella or the place at the end of Arthur Avenue for ricotta; the pasta shop is on 246th Street, perpendicular to Arthur Avenue; Teitel Brothers on the corner of Arthur Avenue, which has all sorts of oils, dry goods, cheeses and meats, Calabria Pork store for all kinds of dried sausages. Just wander down Arthur Avenue and across the side streets. Poking your nose in and out of the stores is really the way to enjoy the street!

[roxlet]

I misstated the location of the pasta shop! it's 187th Street. Sorry if this caused any confusion.

[jaylhorner]

Thanks...
Still looking for more ideas.

[NYCfoodblog]

Casa della mozzerella on 187th just off Arthur ave is a must. The fresh Mozz is among the best I've had, and I've had a LOT.
Also, the Arthur Ave retail market is a great stop. Several stores, restaurants and gift shops all in one indoor marketplace.

[foodwhisperer]

Dominick's for lunch. Be sure to try their meatballs.