• Best Spices

  Kalustyan's

  123 Lexington Avenue, at 28th Street, 212-685-3451; www.kalustyans.com

  As much as we hate to be predictable, there’s a reason why Kalustyan’s has been name-checked by every food writer in New York. The owners never stop seeking out that obscure ingredient—green almonds? sumac powder?—that’s going to be supertrendy next year. And all that foodie traffic means that the spices turn over fast, ensuring that anything you buy still has its zing.

• Best Fish

  Wild Edibles

  Grand Central Market, 42nd St. at Lexington Ave., 212-687-4255

  Pescatore

  Grand Central Market, 42nd St. at Lexington Ave., 212-557-4466

  
  

  For practical purposes, you needn’t separate the two fish markets that stand about 50 yards apart in Grand Central Market—Wild Edibles and Pescatore. Wild Edibles gets the nod for unusual items like head-on jumbo shrimp or fillets of sable; Pescatore is a bit less expensive and runs excellent daily specials. Check both before you make your dinner selection.

• Best Butcher

  Citarella

  2135 Broadway, at 75th Street; or 1313 Third Avenue, at 75th Street; 212-874-0383 www.citarella.com

  The Upper West Side Broadway mantra holds true: Fairway for produce, Zabar’s for specialties, and Citarella for the main course. First-rate beef, a gorgeous array of sausages, and dinner-party extravaganzas like crown roasts are everyday business.

• Best Cheese

  Murray's Cheese Shop

  257 Bleecker Street; 212-243-3289
  Grand Central Market; 212-922-1540

  Dairy-lovers are salivating at the prospect of Terrence Brennan’s new online Artisanal Cheese Center (www.artisanalcheese.com , launching in early May). But until a side-by-side comparison is possible, we’re sticking with the exquisitely stinky Murray’s Cheese Shop. The downtown store has it all, reliably fresh and impeccably aged; the uptown outpost has a much more limited selection, but it’ll more than adequately serve to top every cracker at your next cocktail party.

• Best Organic Vegetables

  Whole Foods Market

  250 Seventh Avenue, at 24th Street, 212-924-5969

  Fairway Market

  2127 Broadway, at 74th Street, 212-595-1888

  
  

  Every supermarket seems to make a token effort these days, stocking organic carrots and celery, but if you really want to purge your pantry of pesticides, you simply have to do your shopping at Whole Foods Market. Honorable mention: the upstairs organic department at Fairway Market, which cannot be beaten on price.

From the 2003 Best of New York issue of New York Magazine