Dreamy

One of the few things about our neighborhood that is slightly less than wonderful is a lack of little stores and restaurants in the immediate vicinity. I have access to pretty much anything I need, but it's not quite doorstep convenient. Where we used to live in Somerville, I only had to walk to the top of the street and I was on Broadway, with a bank, food stores, a barber shop, cleaners, and lots of other local businesses. (I don't miss a lot about living there, but I do miss being so close to Leone's, who make what I think is the best Italian sub I've had anywhere.)

But one thing we do have is a great Italian salumeria called Il Sogno, which means "the dream." It's essentially a father and son operation; I might have seen one other person working there, once, in three and a half years (probably a cousin). They have the basics, and then some. When we buy cold cuts or deli meat at al, which isn't too often, we buy from here. They roast their own turkey and offer it in three varieties: regular, smoked, or honey.

They have all the typical Italian grocery items like pasta and olive oil, cookies and candy. But what I really love about the place is the prepared food. They make excellent panini, salads, and pasta dishes. An order of ziti, broccoli, and chicken and a salad makes a fine dinner for the two of us, with leftovers. Best of all, they make arancini. These are balls of arborio rice and cheese that are breaded and fried; they typically have sausage or spinach inside, and they are crazy delicious.

(I had one a month or so ago from Modern Pastry in Medford Square; it was the size of a softball, which is too big, and all the cheese was in a glob in the middle, instead of blended throughout. I'll stick to the baked goodies from them.)

Arancini are time-consuming to make, so you don't find them in that many places. Growing up, my grandmother made them maybe once or twice a year on holidays, Christmas Eve or Easter. I mentioned this to the owner once; he said that in the part of Italy he came from, they make arancini all the time, so it feels natural for him to make them daily.

My only wish is that Il Sogno would stay open past 7 PM, even if only on Fridays. The early closing time makes placing a spontaneous order for ziti, broccoli, and chicken difficult, but that's how it goes with small neighborhood businesses. We're still fortunate to have them nearby.