Battista the butcher is located on a side street just off La Sala. Every visit to his shop is a discovery of new ways to think about meat! Sauro is the source for Tuscan produce, beans, truffles and advice on how to cook them. His shop is located on La Sala.

Learn From the Maestros
Like most modern women, Ombretta works and takes care of the house. That doesn't leave time for much else, but in her family, eating well has always been important so she's always made the time to buy the right foods. And since -- like in many European countries -- their refrigerator is small, that means shopping for groceries almost every day.

Douglas: There's a small outdoor fruit and vegetable market a short walk from our place. It's set in a small medieval piazza and called La Sala (the dining room). The market has many vendors, though one of my favorites is an older couple that comes down from the mountains each morning to sell their produce. One look at these farmers faces (and their hands) is enough for you to know that their vegetables are guaranteed organic!

Ombretta: Battista is our butcher. He's always showing us new cuts of meat and explaining to Douglas the differences between prosciutti (cured ham) or various types of salami (Douglas's favorite is finocchiona, which is a fresh salami seasoned with fennel).

Douglas: Our friend Sauro has the most unique products imaginable: tartufi (truffles) the size of softballs, funghi porcini (porcini mushrooms, a Tuscan delicacy), and special beans and grains that only grow in the surrounding hills. He's always pointing out what's in season. And Sauro has recently become something of a food celebrity. He's even appeared in a few cookbooks by Mario Batali.

Ombretta: Other vendors in our piazza include sellers of pecorino con latte crudo (cheese from mountain sheep), fresh eggs (laid that day!), a shopkeeper who sells Mediterranean fish, a half-dozen bakers (including a few who bake bread in wood-burning ovens) and even a butcher who only sells horse meat.