Haute and Spicy

by Kristin McKeon Nieto   
Posted February 5, 2008

Gourmands are relishing a new Montclair shop called Spice It Up! (229 Glenridge Avenue, 973-744-3344), which sells more than 250 spices from traditional to exotic. “My favorite is an Ethiopian spice called Berber,” says Larry Bussin, who owns the shop with his wife, Izabella. “I tell people to take a whiff, and they all buy it. Serve it with oil and bread. Sprinkle it on fish, salad, chicken—anything.” The Bussins can provide recipes for most of their pungent inventory, which ranges from vanilla beans from Tahiti to cinnamon from Saigon to saffron from Kashmir. Most of the spices cost $2 to $4 an ounce, and you can purchase as little as a half-ounce.

Reviewed: September,2005