Our single biggest supplier is H.P.Hood and all of their milk and cream, butter and eggs is delivered by Rosev of Chelsea, Ma. Rosev has been supplying Toscanini’s with key ingredients and advice since we opened in 1981. At that time their business was located beneath a grocery store in Hay Square, Charlestown. Rosev drivers are as reliable as the Post Office. They deliver in all weather, and every kind of situation.

We also get food ingredients and paper products from Perkins. Bill Lanegran is our sales rep., and he too has sold us things and given advice since we opened in 1981.

Mark Mooradian owns MEM Tea in Somerville, Ma. We first bought coffee from Mark. Mark moved into tea and provides us with a changing array of teas that we serve to customers and use to make ice cream. Mark’s knowledge of the food business is rivaled by his knowledge of Asia Minor and the Harvard psych department.

Most of our coffee is purchased by George Howell. Howell is a giant in the coffee business. Years ago he founded Coffee Connection. He has been involved for years in evangelical efforts to improve the quality of coffee and improve the lives of people who produce coffee.

Dancing Goats is the name of our dark roast coffee. We purchase it from Batdorf & Bronson in Olympia, Wa. The coffee is famous and the name is derived from the common “discovery myth” that coffee was discovered by a goatherd in Yemen who watched his animals get active after nibbling on the red cherries of the coffee plant. Honestly.

The store was designed by Sandra Fairbank, who has designed many other restaurants. All of the physical changes we have made over the years have been performed by the might men of Community Builders Cooperative of Somerville, Ma. Emilio Puopolo’s son Lou and his grandson Steve have installed and maintained all our plumbing. If you have electrical work that needs to be done you should do what we do and call Fairchild/Sanchez of Cambridge.

If the espresso machine gets the shakes we call Bay State Espresso. For refrigeration we use Lennox-Martel.