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Prosciutto San Daniele


mdt

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What I do appreciate are Italian imports. Le Valle canned tomatoes are the main reason I bother to shop here. Balducci's is the only retail store in town that carries Prosciutto San Daniele (not to be confused with the company "San Daniele" that sells packaged slices of cured meats) from Friuli and not just Prosciutto di Parma. (I wasn't at all crazy about the imported prosciutto cotto that I tasted.)

I am pretty sure that the Italian Store in Arlington sells proscuitto San Daniele.

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I am pretty sure that the Italian Store in Arlington sells proscuitto San Daniele.
I tried calling this store some time ago for an item they didn't have and promptly forgot about it. Thanks for mentioning it again. I found dcfoodie's write-up and now am curious.
So does WF-- at least the old town store.
As it turns out, they have a special old-fashioned slicer to cut it. None of the five other stores I called in the area carry--or carried--it when Balducci's came to the rescue. The Asst. Team Manager at the OT WH is very enthusiastic about a domestic prosciuttio also available in her department, one that Mario Batali likes. (Is it from Seattle?) Again, thanks.
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As it turns out, they have a special old-fashioned slicer to cut it. None of the five other stores I called in the area carry--or carried--it when Balducci's came to the rescue. The Asst. Team Manager at the OT WH is very enthusiastic about a domestic prosciuttio also available in her department, one that Mario Batali likes. (Is it from Seattle?) Again, thanks.

I'll see what I can find out about the domestic. There should also be more varieties of prosciutto available in the near future in addition to the regular san danielle and di parma.

You must have been speaking with Annette. She's very knowledgeable and enthusiastic.

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I buy the Prosciutto San Danielle from The Italian Store. I believe it goes for $17.99 a pound while the P. di Parma is a dollar less. I quite like the domestic from Litteri's for $12.99 a pound for sandwiches, but only when they are in the good meaty part of the ham. I find it a bit too salty when they first start cutting into it, and a bit hard and salty when you start heading into the skinny end.

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Second topic: Balducci's. Any opinions about this store?

As far as the area's "gourmet" specialty shops go, it pales in comparison to Dean & DeLuca. This is a category of store I rarely visit.

What I do appreciate are Italian imports. Le Valle canned tomatoes are the main reason I bother to shop here. Balducci's is the only retail store in town that carries Prosciutto San Daniele (not to be confused with the company "San Daniele" that sells packaged slices of cured meats) from Friuli and not just Prosciutto di Parma. (I wasn't at all crazy about the imported prosciutto cotto that I tasted.)

A huge can of salt-packed Sicilian anchovies sells for only $10. I did not recognize the name of the manufacturer, but it was less than half the price I paid for a known brand at Vace.

I found Vialone Nano rice for risotto and fregole from Sardinia.

Produce was mixed, but the favas looked good and were priced lower than WF ($2 a lb.) and there were actually some Cara-Cara oranges.

All area Whole Foods sell the San Daniele as well, just not with the vertical slicer.

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All area Whole Foods sell the San Daniele as well, just not with the vertical slicer.
Not my experience with at least 2 if not 3 of the stores in DC as well as 2 in nearby VA & MD when I called back in February and found what I wanted at Balducci's. New development? Tenleytown is often (and not just recently during construction) out of Parma. Some of its team are skilled, expertly trained in how to slice the ham, others not. Vace is usually a safer bet for me, although I do have to ask the busy staff to clean off the slicer first.
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Balducci's is the only retail store in town that carries Prosciutto San Daniele (not to be confused with the company "San Daniele" that sells packaged slices of cured meats) from Friuli and not just Prosciutto di Parma. (I wasn't at all crazy about the imported prosciutto cotto that I tasted.)
According to their weekly newsletter, Arrowine has Prosciutto San Daniele on sale right now for $16.99/lb (regularly $21.99), as well as 20% off all of their cheeses.
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Not my experience with at least 2 if not 3 of the stores in DC as well as 2 in nearby VA & MD when I called back in February and found what I wanted at Balducci's. New development? Tenleytown is often (and not just recently during construction) out of Parma. Some of its team are skilled, expertly trained in how to slice the ham, others not. Vace is usually a safer bet for me, although I do have to ask the busy staff to clean off the slicer first.

They buy coprporately.... while TT may be out of the product, if they have it is is SD. They all sell the same stuff. Of course their team members may not know the difference but that is another story.

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Actually that the tesm members don't know that they have San Daniele is a major problem at WFM. And its not just with the prosciutto. Someone on a list serve I participate in asked about Bocqueronnes and I steered him to Black Salt and WFM. He called the Whole Foods at Tenlye Town and was told they don't ahve them. I happened to be there the same day and there they were, where they always are, in the cheese department labeled white anchovies. No one could tell him that they were what he wanted and really no one answering the phone could even steer him to someone who could help him.

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This is my understanding of the situation:

At least until fairly recently, most WF stores in this area carried only one imported prosciutto from Parma, that is, the ham that requires slicing. There may be different varieties that are pre-sliced and packaged.

The OT store, according to Annette (? maybe), has made a concerted effort to expand in this area. She had just come back from a workshop, which suggests to me, that all the region's WF stores are being educated and given the incentive to expand in this category. However, it sounded to me as if Annette's team was trying to distinguish itself from the other WF stores in this area. Thus, the proud description I received when it comes to the department's nifty old slicer.

* * *

As I mentioned, this impression is based on experience in trying to source :) the product on my own. When I tried finding Montasio*, I had no luck at D & D, Balducci's, Cheesetique (name?), Litteri, etc., though Cornicopia (Bethesda) said they would have some the next week. Kevin the Cheesemonger at WF/TT offered a frank, knowledgeable explanation of the difficulty of finding this particular cheese and the ordeal he has to go through in seeking approval for a new product, special orders, etc. He thought Montasio simply wasn't available anymore as an aged cheese. However, I called the larger dept. at Georgetown and was told they just ran out. The team leader initially balked, saying no one ever bought it, and hurried off to get coffee. The coffee worked. He ordered it. It sold out again before my second trip back. I don't know why one store would be more savvy than another when it comes to the availability of an item, especially given the expertise of a person like Kevin.

*A DOP cheese sold in three different stages. I bought Montasio 2, aged to some degree, perfect for making frico, i.e. a fried wafer made exclusively of cheese. Fantastic stuff.

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