The Grocery List Ferry Building Special Edition- Part 4: Mastrelli’s
In San Francisco, the Ferry Building has become THE place for fancy food shopping in a matter of months. Premium local artisanal brands (like ACME and Scharffen Berger Chocolate) are side to side with one-of-a-kind specialty food stores, creating an interesting “food vibe.” You can hunt for your perfect Italian dinner there- and here’s a set of articles to prove it!
Mastrelli’s Delicatessen
The Ferry Building retail arm of North Beach legend Molinari is called Mastrelli’s. The long lines you will find here are due to their quite good selection of panini, attracting crowds during the lunch hours. Cold cuts are definitely their specialty, but I like to shop at Mastrelli’s for all those pantry necessity when I BART in the city.
In the past two weeks I have written a lot about risotto (more articles coming soon!), so I have started looking a bit harder to where to find each type of rice. At Mastrelli’s, they carry carnaroli, a fabulous rice that makes perfect risotto. You will also find the As Do Mar canned tune, my favorite.
I also find here a very reasonably priced double zero (”00″) flour, a wonderful ingredient for pizza and fresh made egg pasta. This is the most common flour available in the North part of Italy, and it is a bit softer than the semolina flour used in the South for dried pasta.
Speaking of pasta, Mastrelli carries a nice selection of homemade pasta, as well as a few items on the shelves that I like to buy- a few unusual pasta shapes, pre-made gnocchi (I know, I know, but keeping it in the pantry saved many a dinner for me!) and even polenta flour.
Savoiardi, Italian lady fingers, are an integral part of tiramisu’. Savoiardi are crunchier and sugary o the outside, and soak the coffee of tiramisu’ perfectly- so I really like these. My favorite are the Vincenzi brand shown on the bottom shelf, but I also like the Bonomi. Panforte and torrone, typical holidays sweets in Italy, are somewhat easier to find around, and they’re long-lasting pantry items that I like to keep around for dinners and friends.
Before you head out the door, don’t miss the chance to grab a Sperlari candy- or to buy a handful for your dinner guests. They’re hard to find and really good!
Mastrelli’s Delicatessen
Ferry Building Marketplace
One Ferry Building
San Francisco, California 94111
(415) 397-3354
Filed under: San Francisco, The Grocery List
[...] talked about pretty much all the Italian food at the Ferry Building by now (see part 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5)- but there are a few more vendors delivering Italian excellence at the Ferry [...]
[...] Mastrelli’s [...]