Milano Market, a family-owned Manhattan meats emporium, has brought its renowned delicatessens to Bay Ridge — giving southern Brooklynites a taste of their fine Italian grub at Third Avenue and 78th Street.
The shop has been serving up sandwiches, soups, salads, and meats to hungry New Yorkers since 1982 in Manhattan, but after 40 years, the family food maestros now head to one of the city’s largest Italian communities, where their grub will undoubtedly be welcome by eager locals looking for the best hoagies and hot cuisines the city’s best hash slingers have to offer.
Those who commute to the distant isle of Manhattan will be familiar with Milano Market’s meats and cuisine mashups, as they’ve been a hit on Third Avenue and E. 89th Street, as well as Broadway and W. 112th Street.
Michelle Galofaro, who owns the establishment, said she and her partner Sal are both native Brooklynites, and they gushed about the opportunity to return home with their specialty grub.
“I know Bay Ridge was very excited about us coming here,” Galofaro said. “My husband and I are both from Brooklyn, we’re Brooklyn natives. So we’re very happy to be back here.”
Local pols including Councilmember Justin Brannan and State Sen. Andrew Gounardes stopped by to sample the new store, and gave an unabashed thumbs-up.
“Thrilled to welcome Milano Market to the neighborhood,” Gounardes said in a tweet. “Congratulations on the grand opening!”
Former mayor Rudy Giuliani also stopped by on opening day, expressing shock on his face at the breadth of cuisine on display, including a massive wall of cheese, as he munched on sausage-and-peppers from the counter.
“It feels like I’m in Manhattan,” said Giuliani, who was born in East Flatbush but has long lived on the Upper East Side. “My problem here is, I never know, I just get everything. Fusilli pasta, I love fusilli pasta, I love the fusilli shape and then I like the way that they make it. Breaded eggplant, you know. Lasagna. Chicken breasts are fabulous.”
