Good Food as a Family Passion: Retail in Focus

Whether fresh pasta, sweet tomatoes, sausage, ham, cheese, or wine — anyone who loves Italian food can indulge in a lavish selection and shop to their heart's content. On 1,000 square meters, Italfood on Heilbronn’s Salzstraße offers everything Italians love to eat — and in the quality they are accustomed to from their home country.

“Many people still think we’re just a wholesaler,” says Massimiliano Montella, managing director of Italfood, with regret. For ten years now, however, the family business has also had a spacious retail hall for private customers. “We want to bring our products closer to people who cook Italian at home,” says Montella. The 50-year-old helped build the company 29 years ago, when there was only wholesale. Today, he and seven family members — from cousins to sisters-in-law — supply all Italian food enthusiasts, from restaurateurs to homemakers.

Wine and pasta are the main focus at Italfood. Over 600 different wines from all over Italy line the shelves, with regular tastings offered on Saturdays. Countless pasta varieties are available at Italfood — delivered exclusively directly from Italy. “There’s a specific pasta for every sauce,” explains Massimiliano Montella. For Amatriciana — a sauce made of tomatoes, pancetta, and vinegar — bucatini (spaghetti with a hole) is ideal. And a carbonara tastes best with spaghetti. But it’s not just about variety. “Real Italian pasta always stays al dente and swells properly in water. So 500 grams can easily serve five people,” emphasizes Montella. At the large fresh counter in the store, daily changing fresh pasta varieties tempt customers — from salmon-filled tortellini to gorgonzola-nut ravioli, along with wonderful salami varieties, Pecorino from Tuscany, Sardinia, Calabria, Sicily, and of course Parma ham and Parmesan cheese. From Thursdays, fresh fish and seafood are available. Fresh bread is also on offer. According to the managing director, one principle applies to all products: “I only sell what I would enjoy eating myself.” Specialties like capers or olives can naturally be offered at affordable prices. After all, they are purchased in large quantities here.

But wholesale and retail are not the only parts of the Montella family’s portfolio. Catering, party service, and an online shop with wine and delicacies are also part of the offering. In addition to coffee, olive oil, Aceto Balsamico, dried porcini mushrooms, pasta sauces, and various household items from moka pots to pasta plates, gift baskets are available. And expert cooking tips come free of charge. After all, a restaurateur and a chef are part of the family team. Massimiliano Montella has a tip about olive oil: “Just try the oil with a small spoon. After swallowing, good oils leave no greasy film in the mouth.”

Source: Heilbronner Stimme - An interview by Stefanie Günzler

We source our wines directly from Italian wineries or through trade agencies that represent some of the smaller winemakers or winegrowers’ cooperatives here in Germany. At our regular local tastings, we present wines from various regions of Italy with the opportunity to sample them.

Upon request, we are happy to put together a selection of different wines for you or advise you on the diversity of grape varieties in Italy’s various growing regions.

In wholesale, we supply restaurants, hotels, and wine merchants. Therefore, it may happen that the vintages listed in stock sell out relatively quickly. In such cases, we usually inform you before delivery and ask for your consent to ship the following vintage.

Larger order quantities are generally available upon request. For retailers, we provide a resale price list of the current assortment upon request. Further information and a registration form for retailers can be found in the menu item “Retailer Info” below.

To the website of ital-food.de