BELMONT WINNER--For fantastico Italian Goods, the Bronx is up (NY PRESS)

For those who mourn the death of Little Italy and its resurrection as a parody of its former self, Arthur Avenue is a place of salvation—you just have to get to the Bronx to get a taste of redemption.

The Belmont section of Arthur Avenue in the Bronx is home to some of the best specialty food shops in the city. Italian immigrants settled the area around the turn of the century, and the neighborhood hearkens back to New York’s good old days when you knew all your neighbors and bought your bread from the bakery next door.

It may seem like a long way to travel for groceries, but once you’ve tasted the bounty and checked out the prices, you’ll never go back to shopping at Citarella.

Shellfish lovers, Randazzo’s Seafood is your first stop. Sure, you can pick up a salmon filet for dinner, but the best part is the no-frills raw bar right outside the front door. For $4 suck down six Cherrystone clams shucked right in front of you and tossed onto a plastic plate for your enjoyment. The clams are fresh, large and briny and, topped with a squeeze of lemon or a dash of hot sauce, they make a fortifying snack for the rest of the journey.

Moving up the food chain, pork products galore pack the aptly named Calabria Pork Store across the street. Hanging sausages of all sizes crowd the ceiling, creating a smoky, gamey scent of drying meat that permeates every inch of the place. They specialize in homemade sopresate, hot and sweet sausages, capicollo, prosciutto and raw Italian sausage links. Try the sweet dried sausages for their perfect balance of salty and sweet and that musty flavor so particular to air-dried meats.

Further up the block, you can buy some fresh crusty bread to accompany your sausages at the Madonia Brothers Bakery. Their prosciutto bread, which is shaped like a large thin bagel, is a wonderful find: The outside crusty, the inside soft and dotted with chunks of prosciutto and a generous sprinkling of black pepper. Try to get one that's hot.

Many would call the Arthur Avenue indoor market the heart of the area but, call me a heretic, I disagree. The produce is ordinary and the shops are often empty. Mike’s Deli is a standout from the crowd, a shop that sells a wide variety of meats, cheeses, olives, sun-dried tomatoes and overstuffed sandwiches, along with other Italian specialties. Samples are generously handed out, so feel free to ask for a taste.

As I walked into Casa Della Mozzarella, the line snaked all the way back from the register to the door, but don’t be discouraged, there’s good reason—some of the best mozzarella in the city awaits. Choose between salted and unsalted, smoked or fresh; it’s all prepared on-site (they make it in the back, stretching it into long white ropes). The unsalted is a favorite with its light, pillowy texture and nice, fresh tang. Go all out and buy a large—you’ll regret it if you don’t.

I’ve saved my favorite store on Arthur Avenue for last—Borgatti’s Pasta. It’s a small shop with a tin ceiling where the clerks wear white coats and the signs are written by hand. They sell their pasta cut to order so choose a width and they’ll cut it in an old-fashioned, hand-cranked pasta cutter. It costs $1.70 per pound and it beats the hell out of De Cecco any day. Handmade ravioli and sheets of pasta for lasagna are also available.

End the shopping day with a cannoli and a cappuccino at Egidio’s Pastry. All that old-fashioned market hopping is hard work. You deserve a reward.

Randazzo’s Seafood, 2327 Arthur Ave., 718-367-4139

Calabria Pork Store, 2338 Arthur Ave., 718-367-5145

Madonia Brothers Bakery, 2348 Arthur Ave., 718-295-5573

Mike’s Deli, 2344 Arthur Ave., 718-295-5033

Casa Della Mozzarella, 604 E. 187 St., 718-364-3867

Borgatti’s Pasta, 632 E. 187 St., 718-367-3799

Egidio’s Pastry, 622 E. 187 St., 718-295-6077

All located in the Belmont section of the Bronx.