Andrew Balducci

Andrew Balducci was born in 1925 in Corato, Italy. He came to America at the age of 14 and started working at his Uncle Frank’s small produce store. During WWII, Andy enlisted in the US Navy, participating in the invasion of Normandy and earning a Purple Heart.

In 1946, Frank and Louis Balducci, Andy’s father, purchased a fruit stand in the heart of Greenwich Village, and Balducci’s was born. The store was open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and a family member was always present. It was a simple, rustic, open-air fruit stand with a bathtub in the back for washing produce. In 1972, they were forced to leave the location they had occupied for 26 years. Andy negotiated a new spot on 9th Street and expanded the business to include specialty foods like salumi and charcuterie, fresh cheeses, cooked foods, breads, pastries and gourmet groceries.

The timing couldn’t have been better. Andy was one of the first direct importers of Prosciutto di Parma, is credited with introducing Broccoli Rabe to California farmers, having mozzarella made fresh, and enlisting the services of artisan bread bakers. He continually expanded, adding Cheese, Pastry, Seafood and a Butcher shop.

In 1978, Nina Balducci launched the first mail order catalog. By 1984, that little pamphlet grew into the 70+ page, full color magazine featuring entrees like Stuffed Veal Roast and Chicken Scarpariello. Balducci’s catalog became the window through which people throughout the country learned about the famous Greenwich Village store and about specialty foods in general.