How it started…

Talya Pessolano grew up in Springfield, MA where she spent the majority of her time with her family in the kitchen. Her love for cooking grew when she started working at Frigo Foods in downtown Springfield when she was 14 years old. Talya started out behind the deli counter, where she learned to make sandwiches, helped customers with their catering orders, and stock the shelves with imported groceries. She continued to work at the downtown store throughout her highschool and college career.

When Talya turned 19, she became the youngest general manager and quickly took on the challenge of being the catering events coordinator while still in school. She focused a lot of her energy on the displays throughout the store, specifically the cheese case where she gained the expertise of pairing gourmet cheeses with cured meats and fine wines. Before relocating to Boston after graduation, the Frigo family gave Talya a unique parting gift which has remained on their sandwich menu over the last decade, “Talya’s Dirty Italian”. The sandwich has become a customer favorite and kick started an inside joke with friends that led to the name of her small business.

Over the years, Talya switched careers to software sales but still managed to take her vacation time during the busy holiday season helping the Frigo family. Her passion has always been behind the counter helping customers and crafting up different style charcuterie boards with the hopes of one day opening her own store. Today, with the help of the Frigo family, that dream has become a reality. We are excited to open our first location in South Boston featuring recipes from the Pessolano and Frigo families.