A piece of Italy in Paris

Once upon a time… Cisternino? 

Originally, Cisternino was an Italian cooperative that opened in the same village where we’re from—between Lazio and Campania, where they make mozzarella with buffalo milk. They then opened this shop in France in 1998. Today, there are only four left in Paris! However, the original cooperative and others in Italy have all closed. The former manager, who worked in Italy and here, sold the business to the employees who worked for him. So it’s still the same cooperative—meaning the products all come from Italy and ship from the same place. But we’re the ones running it now! 

What does “cooperative” mean?

The idea is to maintain a direct connection with Italian producers to offer more affordable prices. All suppliers use the same logistics platform in Italy, which is still coordinated by the former owner of Cisternino, who continues to organize deliveries to this day. Thanks to this, we can keep prices lower than at many other Italian grocery stores in Paris, while still offering high-quality products.

We try to prioritize more artisanal, less industrial products. Of course, we also carry a few well-known major brands, but we’re always looking to feature more small Italian companies and producers who still operate on a human scale. For example, Camerino pasta: just by its bright yellow color, you can tell it’s different from the Rummo or Barilla brands you find in supermarkets. For coffee, too, we prefer to work with small Italian roasters, particularly one in Genoa. The cured meats are also excellent; they come from Imola, in the Bologna region—they’re real experts at that over there. And for cheeses, it’s the same—we get our products from small farms.

What’s the star product at the shop for Italians in Paris?

Buffalo mozzarella, of course. And Parisians come in droves to buy burrata, which is very popular here. It’s pretty funny, actually, but there really is a dichotomy between the two countries: the French are crazy about burrata, but Italians are much more into mozzarella!

And what’s your personal favorite?

The sheep’s milk ricotta is really delicious. It’s a product that sells out very quickly. And personally, I also have a soft spot for sausages from Ariccia, a small town near Rome famous for its meat, sausages, and guanciale. Every time I go to Italy, I always make a point of stopping in Rome to eat amatriciana or carbonara.

When it comes to restaurants, where do you like to dine?

In the neighborhood, we really like Il Corvo, a Calabrian restaurant right next door. The dishes are excellent, very Italian in spirit, without any “French-style” adaptations. And in the same neighborhood, we also love La Smorfia, a pizzeria that makes authentic Neapolitan pizza with nice, puffy crusts. Otherwise, in Italy, we like to head toward the coast on our way back home. There’s a restaurant called Il Vicoletto in the town of Terracina. It’s very famous, and they serve truly superb food there.