(As I write this, I’m eating a delicious beef stick from Morelli’s. I’m not sure I can ever have Jack Links Beef Jerky again.)
A few weeks ago, I wrote about a Mexican market that had a restaurant inside. This is almost the exact opposite: an Italian market without a restaurant, but with a lot of alcohol.
Morelli’s opened in 1915, when you could sell food and alcohol without a fancy license. As their business continued, their business model turned more to alcohol, both imported and domestic. Since their business was so old, they were grandfathered into the new rules. Businesses now can’t sell alcohol and food in the same store (which is why Cub Foods here has a separate store-front for wine and spirits). As long as Morelli’s keeps selling food and alcohol, they can keep their unique business.
Inside, you are immediately aware of the meats. Like a bakery smells of fresh bread and a candy store smells of candy, this place smells like meat. There are sliced meats, big steaks, bulk ground beef (cheaper than the big grocery store, BTW), and tasty beef sticks (as I mentioned I am eating). Oh, and bacon. Breakfast is going to be good.
Besides the fresh meat counter, there’s not much other food. Various noodles, olive oil, and other Italian staples are available. There’s some Morelli’s brand spaghetti sauce, which I’m sure will be tasty as well. But then there’s the alcohol.
Morelli’s bills itself as “Discount Liquor”, and they aren’t kidding. There’s standard brands at good prices, but there’s also large boxes of $2 wine. It’s not quite the Costco of alcohol, but this is not the kind of place that would have wine tastings.
Overall, it’s not a place worth road-tripping to (unlike the various craft soda shops outside the Twin Cities), but if you live near Payne and Tedesco, I recommend getting some discount tasty meat or take-and-bake pizza.
That's Pretty NEET 