By: Andrew Silverstein

If you consider yourself even the mildest of a food-lover in the St. Petersburg area, you owe it to yourself to check out Mazzaro's Italian Market.  Don't be fooled by the name, though, they offer much more than you might think.

A veritable grocery store focused on Italian-inspired items, Mazzaro's is a mecca for beer, wine, deli meats, sandwiches, pre-cooked meals, gelato, and so much more.  The only way to really see the size and scope of goods served at Mazzaro's is to visit their location in St. Pete.

Mazzaro's is known far and wide for their expansive deli serving up HUGE sandwiches with fresh wood-fired bread, an assortment of meats and cheeses, antipastas, salads, and more.  Most of the sandwiches hover around the $5 mark and are MUCH more fresh, large, and delicious than any 5-dollar footlong you'll find anywhere else.  The ham and capicola is a popular choice and comes loaded with meat, provolone, Italian slaw, onions, roasted peppers, tomatoes and romaine lettuce.

If you've got a sweet tooth, Mazzaro's bakery will likely have you gaping in awe.  If you can compose and collect yourself, there's a wide assortment of fresh bread, baked pastries, and fresh-made gelato ready for the purchasing.  Their breads include Italian, Semolina, Tuscan, Ciabatta, Pugliese, Focaccia, and Rosemary while the baked good and pastry selection offers a variety of sweets like tiramisu, Italian rum cake, black and white cookies, canolis, and much more.

Looking for some meat to grill up?  Mazarro's has you covered there too.  Their old-fashioned butcher shop will cut a variety of meats including beef, pork, lamb, and poultry any way you like.  They offer many locally-caught seafood items as well.

If you love good, quality food with the utmost freshness and taste in mind, you owe it to yourself to check out Mazzaro's Italian Market in St. Petersburg.