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| - I must add a caveat to the five star "Woohoo! As good as it gets!" rating. This place is as good as it gets for Italian grocers and delis in Pittsburgh, but is it not quite as good as my all-time favorite, DiPaolo's Dairy on the corner of Grand and Mott in NYC. Short of making the seven hour drive to Little Italy, this place is truly the best in Pittsburgh.
The star attraction of Penn Mac is their deli. They have a wide selection of nearly one hundred cheeses from across the US, to imports not only from Italy, but around the world as well. The people working the counters are very nice and helpful no matter how busy they are or how little you know. I remember I was there one busy Saturday afternoon and said "I am looking for a cheese to go with this sopresatta." Rather than roll their eyes and say "NEXT!", the lady and gentleman behind the counter broke out the cheese knives and handed me half a dozen slices of different cheeses. I ended up buying a pound of Spanish manchego and a pound of trugole, what they describe as an Italian table cheese.
Right next to the cheese counter is the meat department. Again, while Penn Mac definitely specializes in cured Italian meats, they also have a very wide selection of meats from around the country as well. "Is the Genoa salame from Genoa priced a little out of your league? Well then try this Wisconsin hard salame." Quotes like that fly back and forth across the deli counter so many time it is hard to keep track. To me, that's what customer service is about. The people there get it. They understand that by being nice to me, and helping me, and letting me try what I am buying before they slice it, they may not make a sale of something that sells for thirty dollars a pound, but they might mak a sale of something that is fifteen dollars a pound. Better to make a small sale than no sale. By treating their customers with such hospitalityand respect, not only am I going to come back, but I am going to send all my friends there too.
Don't think that Penn Mac is only good for meat and cheese either. They are a full on Italian grocer. My godmother is a full blooded Italian who spends six months out of the year in her parents' old house in Italy, and she would be impressed with the selection at Penn Mac. They have a pasta and sauce section that has almost every variety and brand of dried pasta fdrom the US and Italy. Right as you come in there is also a fantastic spice selection as well, maybe not as wide a selection as Penzey's but then again that is whay Penzey's specializes in. Penn Mac also stocks a plethora of olive oils and balsamic vinegars. Do yourself a favor, swing by and after you get your cured meats and cheeses, pick up a bottle of really good extra virgin olive oil, a middle of the road balsamic vinegar, and an expensive bottle of balsamic vinegar. I dropped almost a hundred bucks on a bottle of very very good balsamic vinegar (I am not saying which because I want it to still be there when I go back) and let me say, the cheap stuff you gett at Giant Eagle has nothing on this. It is sweet and salty and rich and complex. Sometimes I just drink it.
Penn Mac also has a very good bakery. The downside is that if you go there any time past noon, most of the bread is gone. What I have been able to get has been good rustic bread; soft and chewy on the inside and insanely crusty on the outside. Kind of like me come to think of it. If your cholesterol is making you feel guilty about all the meat, cheese and oil, Penn Mac is also home to a very nice little farm fresh vegetable section.
To sum it all up, Penn Mac is everrything a good deli should be. Wide variety, friendly staff, and a great location. I can't wait to go back.
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