This is where Philly’s chefs shop for the best meat, produce, dishes, knives, and more
If you want to cook with the same goods and tools as the people who define Philly's dining scene, here are the stores and vendors that they love most.
Have you ever found yourself at a restaurant, perhaps staring into an open kitchen, and thinking to yourself, “I wish I could cook like that”? Well, you might never be able to slice tuna with the finesse of Royal Sushi’s Jesse Ito or win a bakeoff against James Beard pastry chef semifinalist Abby Dahan of Provenance, but you can buy a knife forged by the same skilled knifemaker and put the same chocolate into your baked goods, which is to say: Whatever your skill level or ambition in the kitchen, you can always at least shop like Philly’s best chefs.
There rarely is a one-stop shop for everything that goes on the plate, or even the plates themselves. While many establishments lean on wholesale distributors like Baldor, FarmArt, and Ambrogi, you’ll still find chefs hand-selecting produce at Headhouse Farmers Market, popping into Fishtown Seafood to grab something for a special event, or sourcing unique plateware from secondhand shops. Most of these vendors sell to anyone (though not anyone will get wholesale chef prices). Here are the stores and vendors most beloved by the people who define our city’s dining scene.
Meat
Esposito’s
Chefs continue to lament the closing of Heather Thomason’s Primal Supply Meats, which supplied dozens of restaurants throughout the city. Many find solace at this old-school Italian butcher in the Italian Market, where ESO Ramen sources its bones for its rich tonkotsu broth, and Nok Suntaranon visited on her episode of Netflix’s “Chef’s Table.”
📍 1001 S. 9th St., Philadelphia, Pa. 19147 🌐 espositosmeats.com
KP’s Fine Meats
“For all our proteins, we go to KP’s Fine Meats,” Chance Anies of Tabachoy said. “[Owner] Kevin [Penney] is my favorite vendor because he’s consistent, his product is awesome, and he’s always cracking jokes when he drops off our order. We buy about 80 pounds of bone-in short ribs a week ... We ask him to cut them specific to our needs and he nails it every time.”
📍 2329 E. Clearfield St., Philadelphia 19134 (located in Jim’s Meat Market) 📍 8221 Germantown Ave., Philadelphia 19118 (inside Market at the Fareway) 🌐 kpsfinemeats.com
Seafood
Fishtown Seafood
On Suntaranon’s episode of “Chef’s Table,” you also see her perusing the wares at Bryan Szeliga’s Fishtown Seafood. Fishtown Seafood supplies chefs at their restaurants and at their homes. Szeliga said he broke into the restaurant scene as a supplier by sourcing a “gloomy octopus” from Australia. “This species spends its days eating Australian rock lobster, and it’s pot-caught, making it the finest eating octopus in the world,” he said. “It’s a different species than the octopus vulgaris from Spain and Portugal. I’d brought in this octopus hoping a chef would eventually discover it in our shop.” The octopus eventually made it onto Suraya’s menu. Fishtown Seafood then began supplying other Defined Hospitality establishments, like Picnic, Condesa, and of course, Kalaya.
📍 2131 Pine St., Philadelphia 19103 📍 339 Belgrade St., Philadelphia 19125 📍 114 Kings Hwy E, Haddonfield 08033 🌐 fishtownseafood.com
Giuseppe’s Market at Samuels Seafood
Samuels Seafood is the big fish of seafood suppliers in this pond and far beyond. Their recognizable white box trucks traverse the city and provide restaurants with local seafood and specialty fish flown in from Japan and the rest of the world. If you’re unlikely to have a bluefin tuna delivered to your door, you can still shop for their seafood at close-to-wholesale prices by visiting Giuseppe’s Market, Samuels’ retail arm, located to the right of the wholesale operation. (Ippolito’s, Samuels’ retail storefront at 13th and Dickinson, is slated to return soon as well.)
📍 3400 S. Lawrence St., Philadelphia 19148 🌐 giuseppesmarket.com
Produce
Bhumi Growers
There are many chefs and bartenders who, in support of using only local produce, avoid citrus, which normally doesn’t grow in the Mid-Atlantic — with the great exception of Bhumi Growers in Bordentown, N.J.. Owners Vivek and Seema Malik cultivate yuzu, limequats, kumquats, calamansi, and a vast array of rare citrus favored by New York’s Michelin-starred restaurants and Philadelphia chefs in the know. When their fruits are flowering in the warehouse, one is in danger of fainting from the scent. Vivek is constantly experimenting and growing difficult-to-find produce, like wasabi leaves. You can get your hands on their Buddha’s hands by ordering through their website.
Headhouse Farmers Market
“One of the strongest motivations of me choosing the location of Provenance was the proximity to the farmers market,” said Nich Bazik of Provenance, one of Philly’s most ambitious restaurants. “When it is open I shop there every Sunday morning. The farms that are represented there dictate what is on our menu — Root Mass Farm, Blooming Glen Farm, and Savoie Organics (among others) grow the most incredible produce, which I consider the greatest of luxury ingredients we can provide for our guests. Plus, it’s a great atmosphere where you can run into the rest of the city’s best chefs.” Sundays 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
📍 2nd and Lombard Streets, Philadelphia 19147 🌐 thefoodtrust.org
Local Bound
“I love supporting local businesses when I shop, and I have a few favorite spots that keep my kitchen stocked. Local Bound is my go-to for bulk local produce and hard-to-find items that make cooking an adventure,” Tim Dearing, chef-owner of the supper club Ule, said. “It’s the perfect place to discover unique ingredients while keeping my food as fresh and local as possible.”
Riverwards Produce
“Riverwards is my haven for local cheeses and an ever-changing retinue of fun, tasty beverages I keep on hand,” Dearing said. Riverwards’ two locations were often mentioned by chefs as a place to grab last-minute local produce: It’s like a farmers market that you don’t need to plan your weekend around going to, carrying similar products to those sold at Headhouse, Rittenhouse, and others.
📍 2200 E. Norris St. #1906, Philadelphia 19125 📍 146 N. Bread St., Philadelphia 19106 🌐 riverwardsproduce.com
Cheese and specialty items
Di Bruno Bros.
“Di Bruno Bros. has become my go-to around the city,” Patrick Czerniak of Square 1682 said. “They always stock different cuts of meat and seafood as well as a variety of cheeses. Perfect for when any chef is looking to create a new menu or try things out without having to purchase case sizes from other vendors.” Multiple locations.
📍 1730 Chestnut St., Philadelphia 19103 🌐 dibruno.com
Éclat
“Chris Curtin is an award-winning local chocolate maker who has created truly wonderful coverture that rivals even the best French chocolate companies,” said Abby Dahan, the pastry chef at Provenance (whose cheese course was hailed by Inquirer critic Craig LaBan). “We love the 70% dark and have used it in recent dessert variations.”
📍 24 S. High St., West Chester, Pa. 19382 🌐 eclatchocolate.com
Perrystead Dairy
"Yoav Perry’s cheeses are absolutely top-tier,” Dahan said. “Perrystead’s Intergalactic truly lives up to the hype, as do his other award-winning cheeses. He is one of the nicest people around and one of the only cheesemakers using thistle rennet for his cheeses.”
📍 1639 N. Hancock St. Ste. 103, Philadelphia 19122 🌐 perrystead.com
Third Wheel Cheese
“They have a super-extensive list of cheeses from both local and nonlocal farms and we source our cheeses almost exclusively from her,” Dahan said. “[Owner] Ann [Karlen] is a wealth of knowledge and always happy to come by for impromptu cheese tastings.”
📍 707 S. 50th St., Philadelphia 19143 🌐 thirdwheelcheeseco.com
Grocery
“One of the best chef secret shops in Philly is Fante’s Kitchen Shop,” Sylva Senat of Liberte Lounge said. “Whenever I start a new project, this is usually one of my first stops. From peelers to new knife bags, to cookbooks and molds, they have everything you could need.”
📍 1006 S. 9th St., Philadelphia 19147 🌐 fantes.com
H Mart
“I often shop at H Mart with my family, and aside from online stores, H Mart has products that you simply can’t source elsewhere with products that are actually from Korea,” Provenance’s Bazik said. “Products from trusted producers in Korea get certified to verify their place of origin, which most wholesalers don’t carry.” Multiple locations.
📍 6201 N. Front St. #124, Philadelphia 19120 🌐 hmart.com
Hung Vuong
“We often hit up Hung Vuong for specialty items like our bagoong or patis,” Tabachoy’s Anies said. “We’re really lucky we have [an Asian market] nearby the restaurant.” And “for essentials like onions, garlic, and dried seafood, I turn to Hung Vuong, which always has exactly what I need,” Ule’s Dearing said.
📍 1122 Washington Ave., Philadelphia 19147 🌐 hungvuongmarkets.com
Juniata Super Market
“I like going to Latino grocers like Juniata Supermarket and just walking the aisles to see what Latino, Caribbean, and Middle Eastern ingredients I can find,” Amy Rivera-Nassar of Amy’s Pastelillos said. She sends others here, too. “I’ll sometimes need a particular brand of coconut milk or rice, for instance, either because of quality or because the recipe is based on that particular product (e.g. with coconut milk, the composition can vary widely and it can really throw off a recipe to change that),” Chris Sarachilli, a private chef and the buyer for Amy’s Pastelillos, said.
📍 901 E. Luzerne St., Philadelphia 19124 🌐 juniatasupermarket.com
Merzbacher’s Bakery
“We love Merzbacher’s Bakery of Germantown,” Andrew Petruzelli of Front Street Cafe said. “They make an Everything English Muffin that propels our Benedicts to be among the best around. I am often running there to pick up some kind of custom bread that we have discussed needing for specials or new menu items. Pretty much all of their breads are plant-based so we never have to worry about what bread we are using with which menu items. Pete [Merzbacher], who created and runs the business, still works, hands-on, in the preparation of his goods and is an amazing human being.”
📍 4530 Germantown Ave., Philadelphia 19144 🌐 merzbachers.com
Salt and Vinegar
“If I’m shopping for a private dining gig, it gets way more fun, because you’re buying smaller quantities and budget is typically much less of a barrier,” Sarachilli of Amy’s said. “I go to Salt and Vinegar for pantry products and gluten-free goods (and they stock Flakely baked goods, which I love).”
📍 905 S. 9th St., Philadelphia 19147 🌐 salt-and-vinegar.com
Tortilleria San Roman
“Another favorite shop of mine is an unassuming little shop, Tortilleria San Roman,” Senat said. “If you’ve had great tortillas at a restaurant in the city, they’re likely from Tortilleria San Roman.” (I also used Tortilleria San Roman’s blue corn tortillas at my former food truck. Poi Dog Snack Shop, because they were structurally sound enough to hold juicy kalua pig for tacos.)
📍 951 S. 9th St., Philadelphia 19147 🌐 tortilleriasanroman.net
Plates and tools
Felt & Fat
You’ll find yourself eating off of Felt & Fat’s custom ceramic dishes at several Philly restaurants, from Fork to Emmett to Provenance. The plates are all handmade in its Kensington facility. “Over several design sessions, Nich Bazik came in and described how he envisioned service working in his new space, and from those conversations we came up with a standard bowl and plate to be used throughout the meal along with an array of small, sculptural dishes to hold the highly composed bites that would be given to diners,” Felt & Fat founder Nate Mell said. “The final product utilized hand-thrown wares, shapes made from 3D prints and a variety of customized glazes.” If that sounds too out there, fret not, there are many other options available for ordinary buyers. Their popular mugs, plates, and bowls come in an enormous selection of glazes. Limited colors sell out frequently but, thankfully, everything looks good mixed and matched.
📍 3750 M St., Philadelphia 19124 🌐 feltandfat.com
Pellegrino Cutlery
Some of Philadelphia’s chefs’ most coveted knives are forged nearby in Bucks County by knifemaker Steve Pellegrino, who recently opened a storefront in Doylestown. Pellegrino’s client roster includes Michael Solomonov of Zahav, Jesse Ito of Royal Omakase, and Dominic Piperno of Hearthside. Pellegrino makes functional works of art and he produces French, Italian, and Japanese-style knives for both restaurant and home chefs. By appointment only.
📍 4095 Ferry Rd., Suites 9 and 10, Doylestown 18902 🌐 pellegrinocutlery.com
Philly AIDS Thrift
The nonprofit store has deep restaurant connections, given that it was founded by Christina Kallas-Saritsoglou, wife of chef Bobby Saritsoglou and namesake of their restaurant, Stina. “We don’t mind having one of one dishes, which I’ve gotten at the AIDS Thrift,” Roxanne’s Alex Holt said when asked about how she was supplying her newly reopened restaurant. Nearly all of the flatware, plates, and wine glasses at Musi, the former BYOB run by my husband, chef Ari Miller, were sourced from the AIDS Thrift, which gave their tasting menus an eclectic, grandma vibe.
📍 710 S. 5th St., Philadelphia 19147 🌐 phillyaidsthrift.com
Wood Street Pizza
You may wonder why a pizza shop is on this list. It’s not because of their pizza — which is good — but Wood Street happens to be a knife shop, selling a rotating variety of high-end Japanese knives. There’s a dearth of knife shops in Philadelphia (though C.M Neff: Cook Sup. Co. also carries some knives), especially since Previn closed. That’s what prompted owner Dean Kitagawa to devote part of his pizza shop’s footprint to Japanese knives. “The current crop of knives are from the city of Sanjo, which manufactures 80% of the knives used in Japan. One of these producers has never exported outside of Japan, so they’re excited to reach a new market,” Kitagawa said. “It’s nice to be able to hold a knife before you buy it, and we’re the only place you can do that.” The knives Kitagawa imports are found in the kitchens of Kalaya, My Loup, and the Philadelphia Club, along with home kitchens and kits of many other restaurant industry folks.
📍 325 N. 12th St., Philadelphia 19107 🌐 woodstreetphilly.com