Crocetti's guarantees its customers receive high-quality, fresh proteins with a dash of tradition and customer care. The meatery is decorated with carefully hung or stacked products, which include beef, pork, chicken, seafood, lamb, veal, and items that have been gently bathed in a marinade. Bourbon Street chicken tenders (1.5 lbs. package for $7.95), pork tenders (1.5 lbs. package for $7.95), and beef teriyaki tips (2 lbs. package for $15.95) can be used for finger-food-friendly recipes, while Chinese pork sausage (1 lb. package for $3.69) and Italian hot sausage (1 lb. package for $3.69) require buns or 6-foot-long sausage forks.
In the early mornings, Lobster Express feels almost like a ghost town. The chilled seafood bins that normally hold fresh fish, mussels, clams, and shrimp are vacant, exhibiting a display of only crushed ice. The scene rapidly changes, though, as local fishermen bring in the day’s catch, filling the bins with a rainbow comprising maroon slabs of yellowfin tuna, orange salmon, and blue-grey oysters sealed in jagged shells. This transformation is a daily ritual and proof that the supplies at Lobster Express are as fresh as they come.
In addition to fresh, raw seafood, the bustling shop sells a cornucopia of already prepared foods, both hot and cold. Topping the list of customer favorites are housemade clam chowder, crab cakes, and lobster rolls, which won a South Shore Living Reader’s Choice Award in 2011. The shop also assembles take-home lobster bakes with all of the necessary components, including local lobsters, mussels, and miniature DVD players to keep antsy crustaceans entertained on the trip home.
In more than 1,112 stores worldwide, Edible Arrangements' expert fruit florists arrange pieces of premium fruit in stunning displays for all occasions. Customers can customize their order to suit any occasion, receiving chocolate-dipped fruit such as pineapples, granny-smith apples, grapes, and juicy Albion strawberries that, unlike the sodas found in most mummies' crypts, don't contain any preservatives. Staffers can dip fruit in gourmet semisweet chocolate, white chocolate, or their own special peanut-butter-and-chocolate blend. For birthdays and anniversaries, chocolate wielders can personalize gift baskets with gifts such as plush teddy bears and mylar balloons.
Hoping to revive the culture of the neighborhood butcher shop, with its personalized service, attention to detail, and artful products, restaurant-industry veterans Justin Rosberg and Jason Parent took a gamble on their first New Hampshire butcher shop in 2003. Dubbed The Meat House, their store quickly earned a foodie following, spawning additional franchise locations across the country. Today, The Meat House’s Mission Viejo location stocks fine cheeses, prepared side dishes, other gourmet grocery items, and hundreds of wines alongside the usual selection of traditional and exotic meats. Butchers also explain how to prepare each hand-carved cut of meat, sharing recipes, best slicing practices, and cooking techniques for giving pork chops the flavor of justice.