Vace Italian Deli

In need of some great sandwiches for a picnic lunch last weekend, I stopped by Vace, the surprisingly authentic, 30-year-old Italian market in Cleveland Park. Vace reminds me of the shops scattered throughout the Italian Market section of South Philly, and much like those stores – and pretty much all specialty food shops I browse – I find it impossible to walk out without a bagful of unexpected treasures in tow.

One of the best reasons to go to Vace, besides their monster subs and killer pizzas, is the homemade pastas that fill the coolers along the back wall of the store. You’ll run out of money before you run out of choices – frozen pastas include pumpkin-filled agnelloti, veal tortellini, cheese ravioli; fresh cut versions range from capellini to paparadelle. Our Italian subs, overflowing with salami, mortadella, ham and mozzarella, were great, but the fresh spinach pasta we had for dinner that night (see recipe below) was even better.