A Little Bit About a Lot of Things

Tuscan Market is located just past the border in Salem, New Hampshire, a 45 minute drive from the city. We went up on Saturday afternoon for lunch and a tour.

Tuscan Market is a more casual restaurant and retail shop, whereas Tuscan Kitchen next door is focused on fine dining. The Market offers house made pastries, house made charcuterie and a variety of prepared foods.

The market also has an impressive wine selection.

Retail Manager Mark Trumble, who has been at Russo’s in Watertown and Formaggio in Cambridge, tries to import as many goods from Italy as he can.

Owner Joe Faro began his career right out of college, making pasta and distributing it to all the major local businesses. He grew his business and eventually sold it. He didn’t want to stay retired, so he developed the Tuscan Brand. The house made pasta is impressive – with over a dozen fresh pasta options to choose from (or grab some from the freezer to take home).

All the bread and desserts are also made in house. In addition to the full size cakes shown here in the case, they also sell cake slices, tarts and delicious Italian cookies.

For lunch, Chef David Crinieri came out with an assortment of antipasti. The burrata is made in house and was drizzled wit honey – a nice combination that I never thought of. In addition, there was prosciutto, olives, roasted peppers and roasted tomatoes.

The next course was a sampling of their paninis. (L-R) The New York Italian Grinder made with soppressata, spicy coppa, prosciutto di parma, mozzarella fresca, and hot pepper. The porchetta may have been my favorite with sliced pork, mascarpone, pear mostarda (an Italian condiment made from candied fruit and mustard flavored syrup), roasted onion and rucola. On the right, the caprese, made with heirloom tomato, basil and mozzarella – a delicious classic.

I was stuffed, but pushed through – hour 2 of our lunch started off with pasta. The ravioli ai quattro formaggi was delicious on its own, and came topped with mascarpone crema and San Marzano tomato sauce, giving the dish a hint of sweetness.

Next up was the cappellacci di zucca: butternut squash in a brown butter sage sauce, topped with crushed amaretti and Parmigiano. This was my favorite pasta of the afternoon – there was just right mouth of sweetness.

If you are looking for something truly decadent, try the truffled mascarpone gnocchi, topped with shallots, oyster mushrooms, white wine and thyme. The dumplings, even though they were filled, still felt light as air.

I was busting at the seams, but there is a special place reserved for dessert right? We had the cannoli, filled with orange zest and topped with pistachios.

On the right, a traditional tiramisu and on the left, a lemon tiramisu – which may be my new favorite dessert.

And here is a sampling of their gelato – my favorites were the gianduja topped with hazelnuts, the pistachio and the stracciatella the Italian version of chocolate chip).

It was a great afternoon – everyone there, Mark, David, Lisa and our server made sure that we had everything we needed. It was a pleasure to spend time with all of them – it’s a sign of a great company when the people are truly passionate about what they do.

See my review for their sister restaurant Tuscan Kitchen in Burlington.

Disclaimer: I was invited to Tuscan Market as their guest and they provided me with a complimentary lunch. All opinions are my own.

Tuscan Market

63 Main Street, Salem, NH

http://www.tuscanbrands.com/Market/Salem/

Tags: breakfast, casual dining, italian, new hampshire, outdoor seating, pasta, restaurant