For a long time, I didn’t quite comprehend the widespread affinity for red sauce Italian American food. I wasn’t the mom who made lasagna or spaghetti and meatballs, perhaps because the best versions require the mixing of milk and meat, which isn’t allowable in our kosher home. Eggplant parmesan was an option, but my kids weren’t fans. When we dined out as a family, we were much more likely to eat at an Asian restaurant, rather than go out for pizza or Italian food.

While it sounds ridiculous for someone to find eating wildly popular dishes like fettuccini alfredo and chicken parmigiana as going outside one’s comfort zone, it’s pretty much how I feel as my first visit to Caruso’s Grocery approaches.