A staple of Italian villages is the alimentari, a hybrid gourmet emporium, often found around the piazza, where locals shop for select meats, cheeses, produce, wines, jarred items, prepared foods (to eat in or take out), and basic provisions such as milk and eggs. Configured to the American vernacular, an alimentari would be a hopped-up bodega or a Mom & Pop store.

In the U.S., an alimentari is a rarity, unless you happen to live around Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, where a local son from a legendary family of purveyors operates A.L.C. Alimentari, bringing a unique Italy-centric experience to the old-school environs of this outer borough's outer reaches.