A funny thing happened on the way to the Wellmont. I was enjoying pre-show dinner at one of our local BYO’s, when just after my salad arrived, I poured the final drop of wine from my bottle.  It was my folly to have brought only one bottle, but what to do? Drink water? No. Call Amanti Vino?  Yes.  So I did.  Remarkably, right on time, a new bottle appeared at our table.

Amanti Vino, 30 Church St., Montclair, is not your typical wine shop, nor is Sharon Sevrens (pictured below) who received her MBA from the Wharton School, your typical wine shop owner. Though the past few years have not been kind to Church Street businesses, Amanti Vino, has not only survived, but since its October 2005 opening, has doubled in size, and more than doubled in revenue.  Why? Outstanding customer service, and quality product at the right price.

In addition to delivery service Amanti Vino also offers complimentary wine chilling that will bring any wine to the temperature desired in under five minutes.  Amanti Vino was designed to be unique and aesthetically pleasing, while maintaining a customer friendly, unpretentious atmosphere.  Custom designed chandeliers (shown above) are suspended on each side of the shop,  casting a bright, yet diffused light overhead.   The shelving clearly displays the bottles, making selection and comparison very easy for the consumer.

Anyone who has a vault in their basement dedicated to pork curing and wine, is a friend of mine – and  Lou Palma, The Gastro-Mechanic of Montclair, is a dear, dear, friend of mine.

Lou has lived on Summit Avenue in Montclair, with his wife, Susan, for 31 years.  Summit Ave is home to a few formidable Montclair foodies: Lou Palma, Christina O’Neill (pictured above), Alison Bermack, and Laura Schenone, to name a few.  After spending time in the Palma kitchen, the term “genius” seems a fitting moniker for  this untrained, yet consummate gastronome.

Lou was drafted during the Korean War and trained in Fort Bragg as a Military Policeman. He was then assigned to Hawaii, where the sergeant in charge of the kitchen, Conrad Hoffmeister, took him under his wing.  Hoffmeister, a graduate of the Chicago Institute of Culinary Art, taught Lou the basics of preparing roasts, making desserts, and baking bread.

I have a confession: I’ve never consumed a beer. As per my own physco-analysis, I suppose my desire for beer was forever quelled by memories of undershirt clad Italian men, sitting on a patio in folding chairs, knocking off cans of Narragansett beer,  then summarily emptying the last few drops on the hot concrete, and crushing the can under their shoe.  There’s a strong olfactory component that accompanies my visual memory, something like the opposite of apple pie; I’ve never been able to shake it. Therefore, I’ve always considered myself to be beer-illiterate -  that was until my recent tour of Cricket Hill Brewery.

The Montclair Farmers Market has a certain intangible quality. I might call it spirit, or maybe community, but je ne sais quoi seems more appropriate.

Each Saturday morning, New Jersey farmers and artisans of the highest quality and integrity set up tent in the Walnut Street Train Station Parking Lot. Soon, regular patrons swarm the space, enthusiastic and knowledgeable about the quality of goods they are purchasing. At the risk of sounding slightly utopian, it’s is more than just a Farmer’s Market – - it’s a communal experience.

The Montclair Farmer’s Market was started in 1993 with five vendors. It was located downtown, and was developed to enhance the failing commercial activity. According to Steve Schuckman, chairperson of the Montclair Farmer’s Market, local merchants protested the market, fearing its presence would diminish local revenue. As the market grew, business owners soon realized, much to the contrary, that the Market had successfully stimulated downtown commerce. Ten years later, the downtown shop owners were sad to see the Market relocate to its current location due to the building of the Crescent Deck.

Last week I visited Matarazzo Farm in North Caldwell. I brought home about twenty-five pounds of tomatoes, half Roma, and half Beefsteak. Not a single tomato met supermarket standards of visual perfection, yet all were perfectly suited for the sauce I created with Alison Bermack.

Alison is a Montclair mom committed to serving healthy food to her family. When Alison was growing up she spent much of her time in the kitchen with her father. There she learned family recipes, cooking skills and appreciation for communal cooking.

Tomorrow (Tuesday, August 24th) Greek Taverna, located at 292 Bloomfield Avenue in Montclair, is hosting it's Second Annual Open House Anniversary Party. Owners, Peter Hajiyerou and Wei Chen, will be serving up a free buffet, from 6-9 pm featuring skordalia, tangy Greek salad, spanakopita, lamb stew with orzo, pastitisio, and moussaka.

The preparation that goes into this party is serious business - the feast costs over an estimated $18,000.00. The chefs will be preparing 1800 meatballs, 15 trays of moussaka, 15 trays of pastitisio,15 trays of lamb giuvetsi, 15 trays of salad, 1800 pieces of spinach pie,and 10 trays of dips. Of course, if the hungry masses finish all the food before 9 p.m. the very generous Greek Taverna owners will provide more.