Summer Time in Waltham

It's summer time in Waltham, which means Farmer's Markets, parades, and hopefully some hot days if this weather ever turns.

It's also cookout season, so be sure to swing by as we always get compliments on the quality fresh sausage we sell - made locally! With more people staying home, we expect to see more of you at the shop to have "staycation" cookouts. The owner & butcher, Paul, will be able to make just about any cut of meat you want to throw on the grill, be it ground hamburger, steak tips, steaks, or chops. And we also sell Cowboy Hardwood Charcoal wood chips for your grill, for a nice wood-smoked taste to add flavor to your favorite meat.

And again, don't forget we do party platters for all occasions, including cold cuts, relish (olives, peppers, etc.) - just about anything you see on the shelf can be put on a tray for you to take home & serve.

Summer is where things tend to slow down on Moody Street, but don't worry, we're always prepared and never cut our hours down in summer, for your convenience.

Also of note is that some of our prices have dropped lately. This is a function of both reduced demand for some higher quality goods as well as rough economic times in Europe as well as the US (most of our imports come right from Italy). Parmigiano Reggiano is down to $13.99 per pound for the moment, and Prosciutto di Parma is down $1 per pound from $19.99 to $18.99. And DelVerde pasta - most non-specialty cuts - and are now down to $1.99 per pound - again, imported from Italy. .

It goes without saying among the employees, but we like to remind you: we have the freshest inventory of these fine imports around by far, due to the fact that we order just enough to sell for each week and get more in more often instead of hanging onto inventory for long periods of time. So stop in for your summer gathering or just to stock up on some good food soon!

Website update, some notes

The Salem Foods website has been updated...not much of a cosmetic update, and someone had the idea to throw everything on one page, but there's now a blog link there at least. Some other minor updates should be forthcoming. We'll welcome any suggestions; drop us a comment!

If there's anyone who surfs on in from Waltham or the surrounding area, it would be great to see this blog added to your Blogroll if you know the store.

Otherwise, things are winding down after Easter, and as I mentioned in an earlier post, it's now time for Communion, graduation, and anniversary parties, as well as Mothers' & Fathers' days thrown into the mix. It's a great time of year and we strive to make it easy for you by offering deli platters & all manner of prepared foods for your occasion.

Spring has arrived!

This is the time of year where many families are celebrating anniversaries, birthdays, First Communion, Confirmation, and just around the corner are things like Mothers Day, Fathers Day, and graduation parties. As such, we should remind you that Salem Foods carries plenty of prepared food & fresh bread for these occasions. After all, what's a good graduation party without a tray of chicken parmigiano or a dish of pasta, chicken, and broccoli? We prepare many items that you don't even see on our prepared foods menu as the combinations are yours to choose and too many to list! From hot 5 pound trays of chicken, veal, sausage, etc. to pizza to dozens of freshly baked rolls with your deli and/or relish tray, we can meet the needs of your catered affair. (We do not, unfortunately, offer full catering services or delivery as we're too busy focusing our efforts on the quality of your food!)

Check out the Salem Foods website. Not much has changed, but a few things have been updated for your convenience, and it was a long time between updates.

Popular items to try

Some of our most popular items are our lunch specials. Even though the main business is as a grocery store, we still make sure to stock up on plenty of fresh sub rolls each day from our baker so we can satisfy the craving many of you have for our hot chicken cutlet sandwiches, cold italian subs, or more healthy options like turkey & alpine lace swiss cheese. Though a lunch menu is directly over our kitchen area in the store, note that pretty much anything you see in the display cases can be prepared for lunch - you can feel free to mix any cut of meat and cheese that we can put into a sandwich!

One of the things that seems to fly off the shelf are our authentic arancini, or rice balls. These are prepared in a traditional manner; rice with ground beef, sauce, spices, and a small block of cheese inside which melts when fried. Egg and breadcrumbs assist in holding together this delectable treat. Some folks buy a dozen at a time; others grab either an arancino or a slice of our Sicilian-style pizza with their sub for lunch. An arancino can be eaten as a mid-day snack too, though it'll fill you up!

Other popular items to try from our lunch menu:

• prosciutto, fresh mozzarella, and tomato sub (with spices/oil)
• eggplant parmigiano (either with pasta or as a sandwich)
• chicken cutlet sandwich (or dish w/ pasta) - always with fresh cutlets taken right from the butcher counter
• pasta with marinara sauce
• sausage, pepper, and onion sandwich

We are open 8am to 6pm Monday through Saturday and 8am to 4pm Sunday - stop by any time for any of the items on our prepared food menu!

Chocolate Easter Eggs & fresh Tuma cheese

This was another successful Easter at Salem Foods. We sold completely out of Columba-type cakes - be it chocolate, limoncello, or plain, none were left on the shelf.

We also were pretty much cleaned out of the fresh Tuma cheese, an Easter special and Italian holiday tradition. This cheese can be used for cooking or simply for putting into a sandwich (though this latter would be an odd use to some).

Though many of the traditional Italian recipes are beginning to fade, Salem Foods still sells fresh lamb and fresh rabbit. Offputting as it may be to some, the owner & butcher, Paul, will get whole baby lambs - skinned, cleaned, and ready for cutting - from a local meat distributor, and cut them up into halves for purchase. Some of our customers will even want the heads to add to stew - traditional Italians waste nothing! :)

Another special of ours, hard to find elsewhere these days, are hollow dark or milk chocolate eggs. They come in varying sizes, with the largest this year costing as much as $24.95 for a 1 kilogram, dark chocolate, hollow Easter egg.

We also ran some specials during Easter week, including:

• $9.99 per pound for fresh veal (cutlets, chops, etc.)
• $1.19 per pound of imported Italian pasta
• $12.99 for parmigiano (ground or whole)

One of the best things about this family business, and something that is truly valued by our customer base, is the personal level of service given to anyone who walks in the door. We are not the butcher counter of Whole Foods, Stop & Shop, or Shaws. Everyone behind the counter has a stake in the well being of the business, and so we do our best to satisfy anyone who walks in the door.

We hope you enjoyed your Easter shopping at Salem Foods, and if you haven't yet visited us, be sure to do so ASAP!

Menus, specials, and a website update are all in store for the coming days.

Please feel free to comment and ask questions!

New website for Salem Foods

This will eventually be the new home base of Salem Foods. Watch for updates and news for your favorite Boston-area deli!!

For now, click here to go to the Salem Foods website.