Much-needed grocery store opens in Little Italy
Residents of Little Italy will soon have a new spot to get their groceries, have a bite to eat, and even enjoy a glass of wine while they browse the aisles.
Tony Zacconi of Sala San Marco on Preston Street has turned one of his banquet halls into a place that will serve his community, in more ways than one. Pivoting from hosting events, which couldn’t happen due to COVID, to giving the area a much-needed grocery store he calls Mercato Zacconi.
"I had to pivot, this is what I came up with," says Zacconi. "What Preston Street was missing was a grocery store. A really good, really fresh produce, grocery store."
Residents will be able to enjoy everything from fresh wood-oven pizza, to things normally sold only in Italy.
"It's all specialties Italian stuff," says Zacconi. "High-end produce. High-end fish. Very fresh, locally sourced meats and butchery."
Preston Street has sometimes been described as a food desert. Lindsay Childerhose is the executive director of the local B.I.A. and says she’s happy to see that there’s finally a place to pick up groceries nearby.
Mercato Zacconi grocery store opens Friday at Sala Sans Marco on Preston Street. (Dave Charbonneau/CTV News Ottawa)
"Mercato Zacconi is just going to bring a totally new experience to Preston Street and to Ottawa," says Childerhose. "You know, throughout the pandemic we’ve watched as our small businesses pivot and adapt to the changing times. And Mercato Zacconi is just a shining example of the resiliency of small business."
The area is also surrounded by massive new condo developments, housing thousands of new residents like John Byway who moved to Little Italy in February 2020. He says locals will need a convenient way to get their food, and now they have it.
"With the addition of the new business here, it’s going to have a major impact on people's shopping habits and the need to not have to travel at a distance for groceries," says Byway.
And this isn’t your regular Italian market. With specialty coffee, beer and wine all available for customers, it’s a shopping experience like no other.
Mercato Zacconi grocery store opens Friday at Sala Sans Marco on Preston Street. (Dave Charbonneau/CTV News Ottawa)
"You can sit down, eat, enjoy their company, meet up with some friends," says Zacconi. "And have a glass of wine while you’re doing your shopping."
Mercato Zacconi will open its doors this Friday at 9 a.m. and run seven days a week.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
DEVELOPING Person on fire outside Trump's hush money trial rushed away on a stretcher
A person who was on fire in a park outside the New York courthouse where Donald Trump’s hush money trial is taking place has been rushed away on a stretcher.
Mandisa, Grammy award-winning 'American Idol' alum, dead at 47
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.
She set out to find a husband in a year. Then she matched with a guy on a dating app on the other side of the world
Scottish comedian Samantha Hannah was working on a comedy show about finding a husband when Toby Hunter came into her life. What happened next surprised them both.
'It could be catastrophic': Woman says natural supplement contained hidden painkiller drug
A Manitoba woman thought she found a miracle natural supplement, but said a hidden ingredient wreaked havoc on her health.
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
Vicious attack on a dog ends with charges for northern Ont. suspect
Police in Sault Ste. Marie charged a 22-year-old man with animal cruelty following an attack on a dog Thursday morning.
The Body Shop Canada explores sale as demand outpaces inventory: court filing
The Body Shop Canada is exploring a sale as it struggles to get its hands on enough inventory to keep up with "robust" sales after announcing it would file for creditor protection and close 33 stores.
Tropical fish stolen from Beachburg, Ont. restaurant found and returned
Ontario Provincial Police have landed a suspect following a fishy theft in Beachburg, Ont.
U.S. FAA launches investigation into unauthorized personnel in cockpit of Colorado Rockies flight to Toronto
The U.S.’s Federal Aviation Administration is investigating a video that appears to show unauthorized personnel in the cockpit of a charted Colorado Rockies flight to Toronto.