Where would you say you can find products of that quality in LA. I find Creekstone to be very good quality, I Didnt know that that was the beef sold at Marcando but that place is my go to for beef. One thing about Eataly is that it’s all under one roof. Also I find fish in LA to be severely lacking compared to NYC would love to know where you can get high quality seafood retail (I don’t find Santa Monica seafood to be very good and going downtown at the break of dawn is an inconvenience) (also produce, cured meats, selection of EVO, dry pastas, fresh pastas, vinegar ) For me at least the ability to buy quality retail products in LA seems fairly had compaired to NYC in general but I am always looking to check new places out.
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Vinegar, dry pasta, olive oil, salt packed anchovies / capers. Spanish canned goods, Italian flour go to Bay Cities. I know someone will say Guido Marcello but I only prefer them for fresh pasta
Bay cities is good, I think Eataly is better, but I guess let’s wait and see what it’s like in LA. Also like I said one great thing there is that, if you are cooking vaguely Mediterranean you can buy everything under one roof. But hey I’m starting to sound like PR for Eataly. I expected to be disappointed in it in NY but ended up shopping there quite a bit.
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Ive never been to eataly but look forward to it. Bay Cities is great for its size but I would certainly be disappointed if Eataly wasnt better with all the hype and square footage
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Pearson’s Port in Newport Beach, their Santa Barbara prawns were the sweetest prawns I have had in the US. maybe OC has better stuff than LA?
I agree, Eataly does provide all that under one roof, but it doesn’t really blow LA out of the water in terms of quality.
Nijiya Market in Torrance carries Meyer Ranch prime beef, which is the red angus breed and amazing flavor.
Marconda serves Piedmontese beef, which is the same beef sold at Eataly NYC. Good stuff, but I’ll take Creekstone and Meyer Ranch over it any day of the week. Personal preference of course.
Don’t get me wrong, if Eataly opened up nearby, I would probably shop there, but much of their products can be found at the many smaller Italian markets around LA.
Cape Seafood if you’re going to just a specialty fish market.
Otherwise, for markets, I think Mitsuwa is very underrated for its fresh seafood selection and the accommodative nature of its fish mongers.
I love Eatly… but it really is more of a showcase than a serious international market like Bay Cities. It has a wide selection and I always leave with some wonderful things (for what I think are decent prices) But it always surprises me that they don’t the breadth of items that others do. Tuna for example, Bay Cities has a wonderful selection. As does Urban Radish. Eatly always just has one or two.
I look forward to their opening. If anything just the the Focaccia bar.
–Dommy!
When I was at Eataly they sold creekstone beef as well, all of it coming from Pat Lafrieda which is the first place I got creekstone beef from. I agree with you, I’m not a fan of the Piedmont beef I’ve had. I generally don’t like free range beef but actually like a lot of the product at Belcampo, super expensive though. Newport Beach is about an hour anway but next time I am in the area I will check it out.
Cape seafood is very good but also super limited. Mitsuwa is my go to.
All Mitsuwas or just the one in Torrance?
Cancel that Nijiya is my go to, find the fish to be more consistent, but I sometimes go to Mitsuwa in Culver City as well
Actually, Costa Mesa.
Also, if you’re in SGV, I think Yama is a very underrated choice for fresh seafood.
Super limited?
I’ve never thought of their selection as anything but worthwhile and interesting, and certainly more varied than, say, Eataly NYC. Of course, seasonality notwithstanding.
I almost agree. The dried pasta and olive oil selection at Bay Cities is larger, but the products at Guidi Marcello in those two categories are the best of the best. Plus the olive oil is a much better deal at Guidi Marcello. The range of cheeses found at Guidi Marcello is also better that that on offer at Bay Cities.
But Bay Cities had loads of stuff I also love and “need.” I buy probably more at Bay Cities.
Both are required by me.
A different kind of bang bang.
Super excited about Eataly, too!
Piedmontese is a breed of cow, not a ranch.
Correction, there’s certification, so that’s sort of a brand.
You think? I thought you nailed it before when you said it was basically “Whole Foods with an ethnic slant.”
It can’t be both?
It can but a Whole Foods in the Flatiron doesn’t suggest tourist trap to me. I mean, there are lots of tourists there, no question. But it’s never struck me on my visits as a place that’s trying to trap them. Lots of locals shop and eat there, too.
Anyplace that depends primarily on tourists is pretty much limited to picnic stuff. If they have raw meat, produce, baking supplies, and the like, they must have a good percentage of locals.
I guess “trap” might be the wrong word here. Tourists definitely flock there, but that may be just a confluence of circumstances (i.e, location, notoriety, good eats, etc.) and not something that Eataly is actively trying to do.
Perhaps “tourist magnet” is better than “tourist trap” cuz, really, the entirety of Manhattan south of Central Park North could be considered a tourist trap.