SOS Chefs
Atef Boulaabi has sold spices out of 104 Avenue B since 1996. The shop makes fifty of its own vinegars behind the counter.1
Why go
She was selling truffles to New York restaurants before she had a shop.1 The name is Save Our Spices. She runs it with her husband Adam Berkowitz, a chef, who stays out of the front.1
The stock is the argument. Bob Krasner counted over 375 spices in 2020, out of Syria, Turkey, North Africa, Sri Lanka, Mexico and Indonesia. Beside them sat honey from the Mariola, the smallest bee in the world. So did a Chaga mushroom from upstate New York, sancho peppercorns from Japan and almond syrup from Beirut.1 Elle McLogan found sesame seeds soaked in plum juice on the same shelves. Beside them was a protein powder milled from squash seeds.2
David Chang comes in to see what is new, by Krasner's account. So do home cooks and people hunting the flavors they grew up with. Nothing has been written about the shop since 2021.12
Order this / avoid
- Order: a vinegar. The shop makes fifty of them on the premises.1
- Order: the freeze-dried sea urchin powder if it is in. It was the newest thing on the shelf when Krasner visited. There is always a newest thing here.1
- Avoid: shopping to a list. Boulaabi's method is to hand you products and make you taste them.2
What locals & experts say
- Bill Brasile, chef and owner of La Grande Boucherie, who has known her since the truffle years:
I use their spices for all my dishes,
he says.They have the best selection, the highest quality and the freshest spices.
1 - Atef Boulaabi, to Elle McLogan for CBS News New York, on what she thinks she is selling:
It's a repertoire of notes and a library of texture and smells.
2 - Boulaabi again, to amNewYork, on her job: she is
a curator of rare product, always looking for the best quality.
1
Good to know
- The shelves worth finding: the house spice blends, the Japanese pantry and the vinegars.3
- There are collaborations on the shop's own shelves with Danny Bowien, with Mission and with Yana Volfson.3
- The door: 104 Avenue B, between East 6th and 7th.2
Verdict
should-visit — This is a shop for cooks who are curious before they are organized. Come with a dish in mind and leave with a different one.