I have been pretty busy these past couple of days getting ready to go to Jamaica but I did take some time out yesterday to visit Tutto Bene, a new wine and cheese cellar that just opened in Lowell. Way back in April, when the sun shone…
I got a sneak peek at the store and have been waiting for it to open ever since. Well, it’s open now and I am not disappointed! The shop itself is very cute and charming. They carry wine, cheese, some craft beer (but I hope they get more), bulk olive oil and vinegar, olives, chocolates, and other yummy little vittles.
They have a large wine selection, including some favorites, and most of the bottles are value-priced at under $20. There is also a nice selection of cheeses and Ellen, the lovely clerk, will encourage you to sample anything. I sampled a delicious Double Gloucester with Blue Stilton and a half-pound ended up coming home with me.
Tutto Bene also carries Ovedia Chocolates, which I had for the first time this year with Nance and Amanda on our way up to SPA Knit & Spin. Ovedia’s treats are amazing and I am so happy to know that I can get them locally and save myself a trip up to Amesbury. Of course I had to take some caramels home with me…
Tutto Bene is a great addition to the Lowell food scene between them, C’est and the Market Street Market, you can get just about anything you need all within walking distance. Anyway, I spent $12.83 on my cheese and caramels, bring my total for the week up to $34.70. The rest of my $60 will be spent on snacks for the airplane.
In other news, I am going to be doing a cooking demo at the grand opening of the Lowell Farmers’ Market on Friday, July 11th.* I am a little nervous because I am obviously not a professional, but I believe that most of the people attending the market are home cooks like me and I think hope that what I do will be useful. If you’re interested, please stop by, say “hi” and check out the market. It runs from 2:00 – 7:00 and I’ll probably be cooking around 2:30.
I am also, as a part of my CSA volunteer work, updating my CSA’s blog, Facebook page and Twitter stream. One of the things we’re trying to do is put together a comprehensive vegetable guide that has general information about different different veggies, along with storage, prep and cooking tips. I know that some of you are doing a CSA for the first time this year and some of the information may be helpful. Anyway, if you are interested, you can check it out here.
* I apologize to everyone that thought the market opened on Saturday the 12th. I was mistaken!
Art is the Handmaid of Human Good 
Thursday, July 2, 2009 at 1:30 pm
That is so cool about the cooking demo! Also, thanks for the link.
And finally, J thought that your CSA help in creating a cookbook is a great idea for self-owned business. Maybe other CSAs would be interested in something like it, and you could come up with a sample that could be customized. Just an idea!