In a bold departure from our usual method of discovering good Stinktown eats through comments from friends who live far, far away, Jason found this one all on his own while poking around Urbanspoon's website one afternoon. Salume Beddu has been operational since 2008 and they are a small, artisan company that specializes in Italian and European cured meats, sausages, and regional Italian specialty food items. They are small, family owned, and use only the best, most fresh local ingredients - what's not to like???
The store opens at 11AM Tuesday through Saturday and offers a small but incredibly tasty lunch menu. Jason and I shared the salumi and cheese platter - a steal at only $15 - and each ordered a sandwich as well. There were plenty of sausages and specialty meats for sale - I wish I'd snapped a picture of the pancetta they were selling - Holy Mother of Pork! It was so thick and succulent in appearance that I had to stop myself from licking the case it was stored in. Salume Beddu also offers some Italian, French, and Spanish cheeses for sale - all firm as far as I could tell, but tasty nonetheless. Additional homemade product offerings include various tapenades, mostarda, and caponata - on Saturday fresh sourdough bread and focaccia are also available for purchase.
Meat Case ... yum!
Our salumi and cheese platter was far more generous than we expected and the taste was just amazing. There were four meats - calabrese, soppressata, finocchiona, and coppa romana; and three cheeses - a French-style cheddar, a rosemary manchego, and a sheep's milk that shall remain nameless. You will see a dollop of fig tapenade in the middle of the platter and we also received a basket of fresh bread; had Jay and I not been such little piggies this would have been more than enough for a light lunch on a hot day.
The fresh herbs and spices that the family uses in their meats really shine through. The calabrese is made with red wine and three different types of chilies - my first bite yielded a hint of sweetness that was quickly followed by a tingling heat in the back of my throat with wonderful overall flavor and minimal greasiness. I've always liked chorizo but I do believe I'm now in love with calabrese!
The finocchiona was another big hit. We were told it's a Tuscan specialty that is flavored with fennel, peppers, citrus zest, and white wine - it was a true taste revelation. The fennel was noticeable with every bite but well balanced with the other flavors and truly one of the most addictive selections of cured meat I've ever had the pleasure to eat.
Salumi & Cheese Platter
Jay ordered the Soppressata sandwich with fig tapenade and mozzarella and loved every bite of it. I had a taste as well and it was really good with a generous serving of meat and cheese with tapenade smeared in between and served on beautiful, soft, fresh bread.
Soppressata Sandwich
I ordered a sandwich they had just added to the menu: Jamon Iberico Ham with rosemary manchego and romesco. This was not your everyday ham and cheese sandwich, my friends - this was a sammy for the gourmet within us all. It was so good that I couldn't stop eating, even after my stomach begged me to stop stuffing myself silly.
Jamon Iberico Sandwich
We had no choice but to purchase a few samples for future enjoyment and selected some calabrese and finocchiona to take home. It's a good thing for us that Salume Beddu is located more than 30 miles from our homestead or we'd be there every weekend stuffing ourselves full of cured meats and fresh bread. As it is, we now know that there is a fabulous little place that can supply us with fresh, artisan salumi and sausage whenever we need a fix. In the meantime, we're telling everyone we know locally to pay this place a visit because they are producing amazing products with incredible flavors.
Check out their website for more mouth-watering details: http://www.salumebeddu.com/Home_Page.html
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