Food Sensory Overload Contd.

Okay, moving on...

The more I think about the marketplace, the more it makes me want to create mind blowing delicacies. Yeah, SURE I can make that $25 a pound Chilean sea bass with a lemon butter caper sauce....you say you want a fresh goat cheese tarte to accompany that? SURE NO PROBLEM! This place really is FOOD PORN PARADISE. It inspires even the most timid of pallets to try the unknown, the sexy and the exotic. If you are leaning towards exotic transatlantic cuisine, the international aisles (YES AISLES, for every culinary region) have every kind of exotic spice, sauce or candy you can think of. Had a really great cookie in Cancun during Spring Break? They probably have it here. Most of the labels are in the corresponding language though, but if you are looking for an out of the ordinary ingredient, this is the place to find it.

Now, to one of my favorite spots in the store. The olive bar. And when I say olive bar, I mean a 20 foot spread of beautiful black green and deep red olives stuffed with almonds, 6 different kinds of blue cheese or garlic. L.O.V.E. Also available are olive salads, boccacini mozzarella balls, stuffed grape leaves, and an assortment of marinated yummies perfect for an antipasto plate or a night in front of the tube watching TV (no, just me?). Clear containers of differing sizes are available to stock up and mix/match anything you want.

Speaking of olive bars, the olive OIL and vinegar bar is also available. This sexy set up has beautiful spouted jars where one can pour their own olive oil from all over the world. It also contains just as many vinegars with such concoctions as blueberry, fig, or white balsamic. I was lucky enough to have a tasting of the fig balsamic and lemon infused olive oil. The olive bar barrista was kind enough to offer fluffy chunks of rustic bread to use for dipping.

Ahhh, I could really go on all day about this place, and maybe I will again after I've been there again. Going to hit it up around Christmas time and hopefully get a few pictures of the loveliness that this place really is.