This many-faceted market, which opened the Spring Valley Shopping Center in 1939, feels like a step back in time to the days before Whole Foods and Harris Teeter. The small space boasts a sandwich counter, a bakery, chickens cooking on the rotisserie, and shelves crammed with gourmet groceries; the slightly larger Wagshal’s Market—with fresh fish, meat, and produce—is a few doors down.
Freezer cases are stocked with frozen meals ($5.99 for single servings up to $19 for multiple) made by Wagshal’s catering arm—we like the lasagna, chicken curry, veal paprikash, and moussaka. Entrées come in oven-safe pans and serve two to three. No time to defrost? Ready-to-heat refrigerated versions of some of the meals are also offered.
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Ann Limpert joined Washingtonian in late 2003. She was previously an editorial assistant at Entertainment Weekly and a cook in New York restaurant kitchens, and she is a graduate of the Institute of Culinary Education. She lives in Petworth.
