Ali’s pantry. Photo: Emma Ruby.
Tucked away in a cozy Davis Street store across from Kessler, the shelves of Ali’s Pantry are stocked with every type of pasta, olive oil, and cheese a home chef could desire.
Started by Winnetka Heights neighbor Ali Loewenstein, it’s an homage to all things Italian that he’s come to know well during his 10 years living on the peninsula. Loewenstein packs complimentary herbs in customers’ bags at checkout and bottles his signature pasta sauce. (It was so popular that he sold his 400 jars in his seven weeks.) The pricing for the cured meats and cheeses, worthy of a charcuterie board, is a very rare positive. Cause sticker shock.
“We’re pricing this as an everyday food product,” Loewenstein said. advocate. “In Italy, this is not ‘gourmet Italian food,’ it’s just food.”
Loewenstein, who moved to Winnetka Heights from Keastwood last summer, said the store is like a hyper-local Jimmy’s Food Store. The quality of the ingredients, some of which Lowenstein sources directly from Italy, is on par with what shoppers at Jimmy’s and Eataly would expect. But thanks to a small but mighty local staff, the shopping experience becomes personal.
“For me, this is all about community. It’s glamour, it’s fun, and it’s good food,” he said.
He doesn’t just want to help people buy Italian food. He wants to help them succeed.
Loewenstein plans to develop recipe cards that shoppers who don’t know what they want for dinner can view. The recipe ingredients will be sold in his store, and he is happy to share cooking tips and tricks he has learned from his cooking.
And he had plenty of chances to pick up a trick or two. By Lowenstein’s own account, he cooked with a Michelin-starred chef, fed the Italian prime minister, hosted a dinner party in Dublin, and introduced fajitas to the Romans.
Most recently, I taught a pasta making class at Turner House.
Forty-eight people attended the class, where they sampled five courses while drinking wine, and Loewenstein taught them how to make five pasta shapes. This class was only available to members of the Oak Cliff Art Association, but he now plans to open the class to the entire neighborhood.
Photo: Emma Ruby.
“The number of people renewing their memberships or becoming new class members was incredible,” said Travis Lee Moore, director of the association. “It sold out in a few days. We plan to do more.”
Keastwood resident Angela Johnson signed up for OCSFA membership in the class after visiting Ali’s Pantry.
“I thought it was a really cute store. I love supporting small businesses,” she said.
Now settled in Oak Cliff, Loewenstein is “recreating” her own pantry and encouraging her neighbors to take part in food adventures.
“If you buy risotto, we’ll give you a free shallot, because you need shallots to make risotto,” Loewenstein said. “People are coming in and discovering ingredients they’ve never heard of.”
Ari’s Pantry is open daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Loewenstein plans to add wine to the store’s offerings, if permitted, and eventually hopes to offer cake by the slice and other snacks that customers can dine in.