Cheese On Horseback

Today we were in Krebs, Oklahoma.  Apparently, it's known as "Oklahoma's Little Italy".  Krebs. Who knew?

It's located about 40 miles south of Checotah, Oklahoma ("where 69 meets 40", the hometown of Carrie Underwood!), in the land of no cellphone signal.  

While doing a little research on interesting attractions in the area - which is not much, unless you consider a maximum security penitentiary an "interesting attraction" - I came across information on Lovera's Italian Grocery.  Housed in a 1910 sandstone building, Lovera's has been around since 1945.

When we pulled up, we were greeted by one of the employees who happened to be out front.  Very welcoming. I loved the look of the building and was looking forward to going inside.

It was like stepping into a store on Arthur Avenue in the Bronx.  In Oklahoma.  Shocking. The place smelled delicious and they had everything.  

We came for the cheese.  It's the one thing mentioned in everything I read about the store.  They had regular cheeses (feta, cheddar, brie, bleu, muenster, goat) and Italian cheeses (ricotta, mozzarella, grana padano, pecorina romano, parmigiano reggiano), but we were there for the Caciocavallo, their specialty.

We tasted all of the choices they had available, but wound up buying the aged Caciocavallo (which they call Caciocavera).  

We also bought Sicilian Sausage, mostly because I liked the ingredients - pork, beef, salt, spices, fennel, romano cheese, wine, sugar.  I can't wait to try it.

The store had a really great selection for its size.  Lots of different boxed pastas, even more in the frozen section (gnocchi, ravioli, manicotti, etc.), polenta, and on the rack behind this one, a vast collection of oils and vinegars.

Here you'll see an insane collection of marinated vegetables, olives, pasta sauces, roasted red peppers, sun dried tomatoes, etc.

I was pleasantly surprised coming across this store.  In addition to this store, the town is known for their three popular Italian restaurants - Isle of Capri, Pete's Place, and Roseanna's.  We'll have to try those next time we're here.

In the meantime, if you happen to be stuck south of Tulsa, you'll know where to get provisions.  It's worth the trip. 



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2014: A Life That's Good
2013: The Big Weekend Event
2012: Bringing The Sea To The Sleeper Bunk
2011: The Lonely Road
2010: Boys’ Town, Old Digs And A Non-Working Number
2009: She Needs To Wear A Bell
2008: Budding
2007: I Hate When He Does That
2006: The Toes Of Summer Are Peeking Out
2005: Sorry, no post on this day. The blog didn’t start until May 2005!