Where Can You Buy Di Bruno Bros Cheese

South Philadelphia's iconic Italian Market is the oldest operating open-air market in the country, and no trip there is complete without a visit to Di Bruno Bros, with its extensive selection of cheeses, cured meats, antipasti, olives, and much more. Founded by Italian immigrants Danny and Joe Di Bruno in 1939 as a humble grocery store, Di Bruno Bros. has evolved into a Philadelphia culinary institution.

Third-generation owner Emilio Mignucci explains that his grandfather and great uncle decided to turn the store into a cheese shop after Danny returned from his first trip back to Italy in the 1960s. Mignucci, together with his brother and his cousin, took the reins when their grandparents were ready to retire in 1990, and at that time, the shop carried around 40 cheeses. "It was a little store, only about 400 square feet. But they had a great following of people who shopped there all the time because if you wanted really fresh food you went to the Italian Market."

Today, Di Bruno's sells hundreds of cheeses from Italy and all over the world, in addition to an incredible array of specialty foods. There are now five retail locations in Philadelphia, in addition to an independent bottle shop, and many of their products are also available online. Recently, Mignucci spoke with La Cucina Italiana USA about some of his favorites, as well as essential pantry items and Italian cheese pairing ideas.

What are some of the most popular Italian products at Di Bruno's?

Parmigiano Reggiano is king—it's the number one seller in our stores, always. Locatelli or a Pecorino Romano is another very popular item; also around Easter time, basket cheese because everyone is making their Easter pies. Prosciutto is always a huge seller, and other cheeses like Asiago Stravecchio, Piave, mascarpone, fresh ricotta…plus really good quality pastas from Italy, and olive oils and balsamic vinegar for sure.

What Italian foods would you suggest for people to keep on hand in their pantries?

I think every pantry should have a variety of olive oils—when I was growing up, my grandmother and my aunts used different olive oils for different things. So my cupboard has olive oils from all over Italy: a Ligurian olive oil that's much more delicate and a little lighter that I like to use with fish; a nice Sicilian olive oil that's more artichokey with round notes of almond that I like with grilled veggies; then there's the Abbruzzese olive oil that's a little harsher, but has this real grassiness in the finish; and then the Tuscan one that has that spice, like black pepper spice. One olive oil doesn't do it all, you need a variety for different flavors.

We sell a line of jarred vegetables (Agnoni) that are all really nice to have in the cupboard. Long-stemmed artichokes, cippolini onions in balsamic, eggplant, zucchini, broccoli rabe—you can just put those out as an antipasto, they are so good. Of course, pasta, because you never know when someone comes over, you can just drop it in and make it quick. And our imported pesto and olives are always great to have in the cupboard.

Which Italian cheeses and meats are staples in your house?

I always have Parmigiano Reggiano in my fridge, and Taleggio, that's such a great cheese. I love mascarpone, and burrata, my wife loves burrata—we make a beautiful simple pasta dish with it. When the pasta is cooked, cut the burrata over top with some roasted tomatoes and olive oil, throw some olives in there, toss it up, rip some basil, and you're good to go. I had that in Bari when I went to meet my olive producers in Italy, I couldn't stop eating it the first time I had it.

For our prosciutto, we deal with a small mom-and-pop producer in Parma, Greci & Folzani, we've worked with them for 25 years and their prosciutto is stellar. We get a Rotondo Dolce from them and a Black Label and they are just sublime. I love speck for its smokiness, I like to use it in cooking. I make a pasta with speck and peas—cut the speck up in little sticks, sweat that with a little bit of olive oil and garlic, then just add some peas and fresh pasta.

Tell us a few of your favorite pairing combinations with Italian cheeses.

One of my go-to pairing combinations in a sandwich is Gorgonzola Piccante or Taleggio with long-stem artichokes. Burrata with roasted tomatoes is always great, and we also make fresh burrata in our store, besides importing it, so sometimes we do flavored ones with our pesto, or black truffles. Something unique that I love to pair with Parmigiano Reggiano is a delicious pine cone bud syrup, Mugolio, it's spectacular.

What are some Italian restaurants that you'd recommend for takeout or delivery in Philly right now?

I'd recommend Fiorella in the Italian Market—Marc Vetri (Fiorella chef and owner) is doing fresh pasta and sauce on the side for pickup, my wife just ordered a bunch yesterday. Pizza Plus is taking pizza to another level; it's fast-casual but really great quality. Amis is a Roman-style trattoria that is excellent. And Di Bruno's does curbside pickup that includes all of our prepared foods such as chicken cutlets, lasagna, other baked pasta dishes, and veggies. We offer to put meals together for people, suggesting items that go together.

Where Can You Buy Di Bruno Bros Cheese

Source: https://www.lacucinaitaliana.com/trends/restaurants-and-chefs/chatting-cheese-and-more-with-emilio-mignucci-of-phillys-di-bruno-bros

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