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We are food importers. We import real ingredients from Italy to the USA. We are based in the Bronx and we sell our food all over the United States and Canada.
We founded Gustiamo in 1999 as an online retailer with the mission to improve the quality of Italian food in the States. Since then, we have been independently importing the best and most authentic food from Italian farmers and food makers, wonderful people dedicated to their land and traditions. In addition to our online store, we also have a robust wholesale program.
We are a disruptive company, fiercely dedicated to transparency and paying the right price for food. Our work advocating for real San Marzano Tomatoes has been recognized in the NYTimes and we, one restaurant at a time, are giving chefs the opportunity to use real Italian extra virgin olive oil in their kitchens.
Our Gusti Customers, chef and non-chefs alike, are curious and adventurous; they source ingredients and products with great care and pay close attention to craftsmanship, legitimacy, and above all superior quality + taste.
Frances
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
Capers. I use them in all my salads and sauces. I also love how they smell. They are so strong, a natural pick me up!
Do you have a current food obsession?
Taking piennolo tomatoes, sauteing them, and serving them over a short pasta dish like casarecce. So so fresh and flavorful.
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
Sicily!
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
When we have our open warehouse sales in the Bronx. Our customers are so excited to stock up on ingredients, It’s so much fun to talk to them.
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
Less is more. It is not about heavy. So much of Italian food in the USA is full of heavy low-quality melty cheese. No. That is not Italian food.
Beatrice
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
Colatura. I put colatura on so many things. All my vegetables. Pasta con la colatura is one of my go-to dishes. Potatoes with colatura and parsley… sono fantastiche.
Do you have a current food obsession?
Frying in EVOO. To quote Mark Bittman, “this whole notion that olive oil is inappropriate for frying is nonsense.”
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
Salento. Right now we are tasting lots of great Pugliese EVOO.
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
Organizing cases in the warehouse. If my team would let me, I would do that all day long.
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
I wish everyone understood the link between cheap inauthentic Italian ingredients and the trivialization and ultimately the disappearance of good Italian farmers and food makers. This is SO MUCH part of the local movement, even if the food is made far away.
Danielle
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
Estratto di Pomodoro. I use our Pianogrillo tomato concentrate in everything. I dissolve it in wine first usually, which I learned from Fabrizia Lanza.
Do you have a current food obsession?
Lievito madre. Mother yeast aka sourdough starter.
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
I’d go back to Calabria. I have never been to Tropea!
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
Talking to customers on the phone who call to tell us our food is too expensive.
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
That the Italian diet, and Mediterranean diet as a whole, means high quality ingredients. When you cook with really, I mean TRULY, good ingredients you have (1) way more delicious food, (2) so much more nutritionally rich food, (3) you are supporting traditional farming and food making and not a piece of crap industrial/corporate food system.
Jacqueline
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
I love the Piennolo Tomatoes. When you first eat them, right out of the jar, they are bitter. But when you cook them, just for a few minutes, their sweetness comes out. I love insalata di fagiolini e pomodori, green beans are my favorite. Piennolo tomatoes are perfect!
Do you have a current food obsession?
I live for good bread. It’s funny, on my first day working with Gustiamo, we all went to a Grow NYC community bread tasting, that’s how I knew I had found the right place to work. When it comes to breadmaking, I am a total novice; I just made my first sourdough loaf the other day. I used Filippo Drago’s flour (70% Maiorca + 30% Castelvetrano flour), it didn’t come out half bad. My secret dream is to become a mad bread-scientist. I’m obsessed with the idea of bread made in your house, no preservatives, you know that it is clean.
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
I am dying to see the ruins in Paestum. Ancient Greek history fascinates me. Plus, I want to go visit Maida Farm!
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
Reading the menus of the awesome restaurants that use Gustiamo products! I consider eating pizza to be one of my most serious hobbies. I currently have a crush on Anthony Mangieri’s Concetta Pizza which has San Marzano, piennolo, and corbarino. I need to get to Una Pizza Napoletana soon!
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
I wish people were more informed about where their Italian ingredients come from and how they are actually made. I was shocked to learn about the dark truth behind truffle oil and truffle products in general. I had no idea. So many people are duped by hype and good marketing and don’t realize the food itself is sketchy.
Martina
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
Flour. I use Filippo Drago’s flours for everything, from my go-to breakfast muffins to fresh pasta. I am always reaching for his flours in my pantry.
Do you have a current food obsession?
The Gusti Lunch! Seriously, Gusti lunches are famous. If you get an invitation to a Gusti lunch you know that we like you ;) I am the unofficial Gusti Lunch Director. Every day, I take everyone’s random assortment of leftovers and turn them into a feast for the whole team. My goal is to never have any food waste. I *will* make you finish your plate.
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
I’ve been to many of the small islands around Sicily but never the main island! I am dying to get to Palermo.
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
I love hanging out with people that come to visit us. Getting a tour of the Gusti Warehouse is fun and special. There is nothing else like it in NY, or in the whole USA for that matter!
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
Please. PLEASE. Less garlic. Did you know that when most Italians use garlic they use just one clove? They don’t even chop it. They cook with it whole and they throw it away before the dish finishes cooking. All you need is a kiss of garlic. Garlicky is not a flavor in Italy. Except for spaghetti aglio e olio, maybe that is one exception in ALL of Italian cooking.
Sara
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
I use our Cetara anchovies as a base for EVERYTHING.
Do you have a current food obsession?
Homemade gelato. I am planning for some many Gusti flavors this summer. Hazelnut gelato, EVOO + sea salt gelato, I even want to try out saffron gelato!
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
Sardegna. I have never been PLUS I want to see our communist beekeeper, Luigi, in action. Meeting his bees is high on my bucket list.
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
Talking to our producers, for sure. Even if I am just calling them to check in on something small, they always provide me with interesting updates and share their stories. I love their stories.
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
I wish everyone knew that “Italian food” is the result of centuries of cultures mixing. It is good because it is diverse. Every Italian region has its own history and therefore its own culinary traditions.
Franco
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
Our black olives from Puglia are my go-to snack.
Do you have a current food obsession?
I know it sounds simple, but I am into salad right now. Salad with good EVOO. I was raised on good EVOO. If you weren’t, you should know that using good-quality EVOO is life changing.
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
Salento! I have always wanted to check out the beaches there and of course eat all the food.
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
Making the coffee! Everyone at Gustiamo knows that I make the best coffee, I am a pro at using our Moka coffee maker.
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
Spaghetti with meatballs, penne alla vodka, chicken Marsala, fettuccine Alfredo… NONE OF THIS IS ITALIAN.
Ian
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
Definitely pasta. Tofe is my favorite shape. I love to make ragù at home. The way the ground beef fits into the shell-shaped pasta is the best.
Do you have a current food obsession?
Anything spicy. The spicier the better. Ask anyone on our team, I make a significant dent in our Maida chili pepper inventory just from adding it to my lunch!
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
Sicily, that’s where my great grandfather is from!
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
Packing our retail orders. It’s kind of like playing Tetris, but with the best Italian foods. Also, Victor Hazan himself once wrote me a letter to compliment me on my packing skills, so I guess I am pretty good at it.
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
How versatile the ingredients are. For example, I use our extra virgin olive oil for everything, even if it is not Italian.
Gloria
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
Ever since I visited Nettuno in Cetara, I use anchovy colatura at the beginning of every savory recipe that I cook. Literally, every time I make a soffritto I add Colatura. It adds depth to everything, just a spoonful or two. It has incredible flavor powers.
Do you have a current food obsession?
Making salty recipes without using actual salt. I am really into using other ingredients (which are salty but not salt itself) to reach the umami flavor I love. See above comment about colatura! Also, anchovies, cheese rind, and capers!
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
I have never been to Calabria, I really want to go to Tropea. I have read that the fish there is amazing. The Mediterranean is complex, the Mediterranean Sea has so many different personalities and microclimates. I am from Sardegna, but I am sure that Calabria will be a completely different experience. It is another kind of Mediterranean environment that I would love to see.
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
Organizing the days orders from gustiamo.com. After all the orders are picked, packed, and shipped; there is something very satisfying about closing the day’s order folders.
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
The concept of Italian food doesn’t even make sense! Italian food does not exist. But do you know what does exist? Salentino food, Friulano food, Romagnolo food, Logudorese food, Valdostano food!!
Frances
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
Capers. I use them in all my salads and sauces. I also love how they smell. They are so strong, a natural pick me up!
Do you have a current food obsession?
Taking piennolo tomatoes, sauteing them, and serving them over a short pasta dish like casarecce. So so fresh and flavorful.
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
Sicily!
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
When we have our open warehouse sales in the Bronx. Our customers are so excited to stock up on ingredients, It’s so much fun to talk to them.
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
Less is more. It is not about heavy. So much of Italian food in the USA is full of heavy low-quality melty cheese. No. That is not Italian food.
Beatrice
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
Colatura. I put colatura on so many things. All my vegetables. Pasta con la colatura is one of my go-to dishes. Potatoes with colatura and parsley… sono fantastiche.
Do you have a current food obsession?
Frying in EVOO. To quote Mark Bittman, “this whole notion that olive oil is inappropriate for frying is nonsense.”
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
Salento. Right now we are tasting lots of great Pugliese EVOO.
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
Organizing cases in the warehouse. If my team would let me, I would do that all day long.
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
I wish everyone understood the link between cheap inauthentic Italian ingredients and the trivialization and ultimately the disappearance of good Italian farmers and food makers. This is SO MUCH part of the local movement, even if the food is made far away.
Danielle
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
Estratto di Pomodoro. I use our Pianogrillo tomato concentrate in everything. I dissolve it in wine first usually, which I learned from Fabrizia Lanza.
Do you have a current food obsession?
Lievito madre. Mother yeast aka sourdough starter.
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
I’d go back to Calabria. I have never been to Tropea!
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
Talking to customers on the phone who call to tell us our food is too expensive.
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
That the Italian diet, and Mediterranean diet as a whole, means high quality ingredients. When you cook with really, I mean TRULY, good ingredients you have (1) way more delicious food, (2) so much more nutritionally rich food, (3) you are supporting traditional farming and food making and not a piece of crap industrial/corporate food system.
Jacqueline
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
I love the Piennolo Tomatoes. When you first eat them, right out of the jar, they are bitter. But when you cook them, just for a few minutes, their sweetness comes out. I love insalata di fagiolini e pomodori, green beans are my favorite. Piennolo tomatoes are perfect!
Do you have a current food obsession?
I live for good bread. It’s funny, on my first day working with Gustiamo, we all went to a Grow NYC community bread tasting, that’s how I knew I had found the right place to work. When it comes to breadmaking, I am a total novice; I just made my first sourdough loaf the other day. I used Filippo Drago’s flour (70% Maiorca + 30% Castelvetrano flour), it didn’t come out half bad. My secret dream is to become a mad bread-scientist. I’m obsessed with the idea of bread made in your house, no preservatives, you know that it is clean.
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
I am dying to see the ruins in Paestum. Ancient Greek history fascinates me. Plus, I want to go visit Maida Farm!
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
Reading the menus of the awesome restaurants that use Gustiamo products! I consider eating pizza to be one of my most serious hobbies. I currently have a crush on Anthony Mangieri’s Concetta Pizza which has San Marzano, piennolo, and corbarino. I need to get to Una Pizza Napoletana soon!
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
I wish people were more informed about where their Italian ingredients come from and how they are actually made. I was shocked to learn about the dark truth behind truffle oil and truffle products in general. I had no idea. So many people are duped by hype and good marketing and don’t realize the food itself is sketchy.
Martina
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
Flour. I use Filippo Drago’s flours for everything, from my go-to breakfast muffins to fresh pasta. I am always reaching for his flours in my pantry.
Do you have a current food obsession?
The Gusti Lunch! Seriously, Gusti lunches are famous. If you get an invitation to a Gusti lunch you know that we like you ;) I am the unofficial Gusti Lunch Director. Every day, I take everyone’s random assortment of leftovers and turn them into a feast for the whole team. My goal is to never have any food waste. I *will* make you finish your plate.
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
I’ve been to many of the small islands around Sicily but never the main island! I am dying to get to Palermo.
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
I love hanging out with people that come to visit us. Getting a tour of the Gusti Warehouse is fun and special. There is nothing else like it in NY, or in the whole USA for that matter!
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
Please. PLEASE. Less garlic. Did you know that when most Italians use garlic they use just one clove? They don’t even chop it. They cook with it whole and they throw it away before the dish finishes cooking. All you need is a kiss of garlic. Garlicky is not a flavor in Italy. Except for spaghetti aglio e olio, maybe that is one exception in ALL of Italian cooking.
Sara
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
I use our Cetara anchovies as a base for EVERYTHING.
Do you have a current food obsession?
Homemade gelato. I am planning for some many Gusti flavors this summer. Hazelnut gelato, EVOO + sea salt gelato, I even want to try out saffron gelato!
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
Sardegna. I have never been PLUS I want to see our communist beekeeper, Luigi, in action. Meeting his bees is high on my bucket list.
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
Talking to our producers, for sure. Even if I am just calling them to check in on something small, they always provide me with interesting updates and share their stories. I love their stories.
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
I wish everyone knew that “Italian food” is the result of centuries of cultures mixing. It is good because it is diverse. Every Italian region has its own history and therefore its own culinary traditions.
Franco
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
Our black olives from Puglia are my go-to snack.
Do you have a current food obsession?
I know it sounds simple, but I am into salad right now. Salad with good EVOO. I was raised on good EVOO. If you weren’t, you should know that using good-quality EVOO is life changing.
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
Salento! I have always wanted to check out the beaches there and of course eat all the food.
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
Making the coffee! Everyone at Gustiamo knows that I make the best coffee, I am a pro at using our Moka coffee maker.
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
Spaghetti with meatballs, penne alla vodka, chicken Marsala, fettuccine Alfredo… NONE OF THIS IS ITALIAN.
Ian
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
Definitely pasta. Tofe is my favorite shape. I love to make ragù at home. The way the ground beef fits into the shell-shaped pasta is the best.
Do you have a current food obsession?
Anything spicy. The spicier the better. Ask anyone on our team, I make a significant dent in our Maida chili pepper inventory just from adding it to my lunch!
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
Sicily, that’s where my great grandfather is from!
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
Packing our retail orders. It’s kind of like playing Tetris, but with the best Italian foods. Also, Victor Hazan himself once wrote me a letter to compliment me on my packing skills, so I guess I am pretty good at it.
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
How versatile the ingredients are. For example, I use our extra virgin olive oil for everything, even if it is not Italian.
Gloria
Which Gusti product do you most use at home besides EVOO?
Ever since I visited Nettuno in Cetara, I use anchovy colatura at the beginning of every savory recipe that I cook. Literally, every time I make a soffritto I add Colatura. It adds depth to everything, just a spoonful or two. It has incredible flavor powers.
Do you have a current food obsession?
Making salty recipes without using actual salt. I am really into using other ingredients (which are salty but not salt itself) to reach the umami flavor I love. See above comment about colatura! Also, anchovies, cheese rind, and capers!
Where in Italy have you never been but always wanted to go?
I have never been to Calabria, I really want to go to Tropea. I have read that the fish there is amazing. The Mediterranean is complex, the Mediterranean Sea has so many different personalities and microclimates. I am from Sardegna, but I am sure that Calabria will be a completely different experience. It is another kind of Mediterranean environment that I would love to see.
Out of all the tasks/things you do at Gustiamo, which is your favorite?
Organizing the days orders from gustiamo.com. After all the orders are picked, packed, and shipped; there is something very satisfying about closing the day’s order folders.
What is one thing you wished everyone knew about Italian food?
The concept of Italian food doesn’t even make sense! Italian food does not exist. But do you know what does exist? Salentino food, Friulano food, Romagnolo food, Logudorese food, Valdostano food!!