Last month, on January 24, amid little fanfare or celebration, the Despar supermarket opened its doors onto Piazza Unita’. Long awaited, much debated and controversial, the arrival of a supermarket on the most iconic piazza in Italy was largely frowned upon by almost everyone in Trieste, concerned that it would “cheapen” the piazza and quickly…
On a little winding side street, in the old neighborhood of Cavana one finds TERRA MATER, a little gourmet shop specialized in bringing to market small producer delicacies native to the Friuli, Venezia Giulia Region. The shop opened a little less than a year ago under the guidance of Ervin Rama, and with the help…
My awareness of the increasingly widespread problem of gluten intolerance has grown enormously since I moved to Italy. It seems ironic that a country that is synonymous with pasta and some of the most amazing bread in the world should have such a high incidence of sufferers. According to the Italian Health Commission on Celiac…
Where do Triestines go when they are looking for authentic home-cooked meals? Look no further than Mariabologna. I have often passed by this shop in Via Cesare Battisti and and immediately sensed that there was something special about this shop…that somehow time had stood still here, preserving all that was good. From the vintage whimsical…
Mase’ is the ubiquitous deli or “salumeria” of Trieste, specializing in Triestine delicacies. The stores are stocked with a variety of products from; dry goods like pasta and grains to wines and sausages, cheeses and precooked dishes and, of course, the assortment of “salumi” featuring the “Cotto Triestino”. Mase’ was created by two brothers who moved to…
Just up the hill near the Tram stop in Opicina, there is a remarkable shop specialized in frozen foods. When I say frozen goods I mean — EVERY KIND OF FROZEN FOOD IMAGINABLE — It’s basically the Disneyland of frozen food. Even if you never buy frozen, it is a SIGHT TO SEE! You can find…
Trieste is an international city where many cultures converge and, while we all enjoy the local fare (and what’s not to like?) every now and then we want a taste of “home”. Luckily, Trieste has several well-stocked ethnic food shops that make it easier to re-create those dishes that bring us back. For me, I…
Gelateria Arnoldo O. on Viale Miramare, continues to satisfy triestines’ and tourists’ ice-cream cravings alike. The story goes that the Arnoldo brothers, Attilio and Olivio, to escape the misery of life in Val di Zoldo, a small mountain town in the region, headed to Vienna to learn how to make ice-cream. When WW1 erupted they returned to…
Walking in the heart of Trieste’s Cavana district, you will find SaluMare, a small fish restaurant and wine bar that excels in small plates. Dominated by a large outdoor communal table, at night SaluMare gets jam-packed with the customers who gather there to catch up at the end of a busy day and drink prosecco from small squat glasses and…
Hidden away in the dead end of Riva Grumula, is the motherlode of health food stores — BIOLife Supermarket. Not the most beautiful location, but inside is an oasis of freshness and overwhelming options. You can find every kind of health food to address any dietary need or limitation. They also carry lots of organic frozen, fresh…
For us Americans, good meat is hard to come by in Trieste, mostly because Italian meat has a much lower fat content than we are used to. People will tell you to drive to Slovenia to buy good meat but I have yet to find a good source there. At Macelleria Igor, I have found the staff very…
