Top Six Eataly Must-Haves
A plate of beautiful and beribboned scamorza, from Caseificio La Mozzarella. Photograph by Stijn, courtesy of Creative Commons
A trip to my local Eataly can temporarily calm me down about where I live. I self-soothe with the reminder that it’s less expensive to make a few luxury purchases at Eataly Los Angeles than it is to fly to Italy. The store is well-lit and it’s fun to fawn over the shelves, lined with intricate pasta shapes, jarred fish, pesto and tomatoes that outshine what the regular American grocery stores will ever offer. Nonetheless, sticker shock still hits the more budget-inclined (like yours truly), as nothing comes cheap here.
However, after many trips to this beautiful little empire, I’ve settled on some of my favorite purchases, the ones I go back to time and again, making sure I almost always stocked in my home pantry. In fact, I’m such a fan that I’ve been asked about certain products (like cookies) by fellow shoppers. Some have insisted I should get a job at the store, since I’m that passionate about their foods. (Eataly, if you’d like to hire me to be a personal food shopping assistant, I am available.)
On a recent trip to Italy I made a point to visit two Eatalys there—one in Florence, the other where it originated in Turin—and can safely say that the Eataly LA experience is Eataly on steroids. The Italian stores were very small and only one (Florence) had a restaurant that was not open while I was there. Both Florence and Turin offered some of the same products that I could find in LA (albeit at lower prices; for instance the cookies I mentioned below were under 3 euros in Italy.) Unlike in LA, the Italian stores weren’t very busy, and why would they be when similar foods could be purchased in other local stores for lower prices? However, the Italian Eatalys had the benefit of offering fresh, regional breads that you can’t find in LA! The Florence location offered an amazing local specialty, the schiacciata all’uva, a sweet grape focaccia, that you’d be hard-pressed to find outside Tuscany. (Also, Eataly in Italy deserves a special shout-out since it offers free wi-fi and restrooms, two things that usually cost money in Italy.)
The schiacciata all’uva (seedless grapes) focaccia at Eataly in Florence, Italy. Photograph by Rolling Pen Studio
But back to LA—when I shop at Eataly, I make sure to go with a list in hand so that it reduces the pain upon checkout. Nothing there comes cheap, however there are a few items that are really worth the splurge, every time. In no particular order, here they are:
1.
Offelle di Parona (cookies), $6.50 for 7.05 oz
This crunchy biscuit is made from only whole ingredients: flour, butter, sugar, eggs, olive oil and baking soda. They go so well with tea and coffee for a light afternoon pick me up. From the Friuli region in northern Italy, they come in several flavors, including classic (my favorite), coffee, chocolate, and a plain one coated in dark chocolate. The one downside is that it’s either feast or famine with these cookies. They tend to appear for short periods of time and disappear from the shelves for months. Snag a few boxes when you see them!
2.
Pappardelle (Garofalo brand dried pasta), $4.90 for 16 oz
This is a great pasta staple for your pantry, and a bonus for vegans, since pappardelle are usually made with egg. Instead, these are made from semolina flour and water, and when cooked al dente they have a nice, hearty bite. Cook these with a tomato and mushroom ragu for a hearty winter dinner.
3.
Frantoi Cutrera Primo DOP Monte Iblei Extra Virgin Olive Oil, $29.90 for 16.9 oz
This is for extra virgin olive oil purists, those who want to taste the flavor of the olive in every pour. It’s made from the Tonda Ibleia olive from Ragusa (Sicily). It has intense grassy notes and goes well on salads or a white pasta, as well as on slices of avocado toast. It keeps winning awards, but it’s best to buy the olive oil that you like the most, regardless of award status.
4.
Venchi Dark Chocolate and Hazelnuts Bar, $9.90 /3.5 oz
Ugh, it’s expensive, but it’s so good! You can’t go wrong with any of the chocolate or gianduja from this Torino-based chocolatier. The hazelnuts come from the famous Piemonte region of northwestern Italy and pair well with the dark chocolate. Splurge, splurge! (Note: Even more decadent and delicious is the Dark Chocolate Gianduja with Piedmont Hazelnuts bar. The soft creamy gianduja (hazelnut chocolate creamy goodness) is like a grownup version of Nutella.
5.
Taralli, various brands and sizes, starting at $4.90 for an 8.1 oz bag
Eataly’s house brand of taralli (or tarallini, as I like to refer to them) are among the more anemic looking ones out there, but they’ll do if you can’t find any others. This savory olive oil biscuit from Puglia (the heel of Italy!) is not to be missed. The most important ingredients are the extra virgin olive oil, white wine, and salt which differentiate it from so many other Italian crackers that have butter or lard. Go and buy yourself a few bags and they’ll quickly become your new favorite.
Note: They are highly addictive, and while they come in a number of flavors ranging from classic to onion, pesto and sesame, I am a purist and fan of the original or the fennel for the most pleasing bite.
6.
Cheese, $20-30+ per ounce
The only item here that isn’t shelf stable, and I’m including it because Eataly has some really great cheeses that you can’t otherwise find on LA’s Westside! One of my favorites is the cacciotta di capra pepe e olio, an intense goat cheese that’s perfect for any cheese plate, but also great on its own. Nibble away at the rind, which is coated in whole peppercorn, adding spice to each bite. Eataly’s smoked scamorza is the only one I can regularly find, and I love to use it when making pasta e patate, the Neapolitan pasta and potatoes dish, as it elevates it to another level with its smoky flavor.
