Anthony Pedonesi and partner Gerardo Garcia have created an exceptional farm-to-charcuterie business that’s earning the attention of Central Texans. Dripping Springs-based, The Salumeria, offers hand-crafted salami and cured whole meats using family recipes, and techniques that have been refined for generations.
As it turns out, Pedonesi, the co-founder of The Salumeria, has a long family history of curing meats dating back to his great grandfather who immigrated from Italy to Ohio in 1904.
“My great-grandfather made cured meats and traded with his community, all of which were mostly Italian immigrants who had a trade of their own that brought the community together,” says Pedonesi.
His great grandfather taught his curing techniques to his grandfather, who continued passing it on to his father who Anthony eventually learned from as well.
Gerardo Garcia grew up in south Texas, where he had family gatherings to butcher and enjoy whole goat cookouts. Garcia met Pedonensi while on a professional remodeling contract job. Eventually, the two realized they had a lot in common and their personal friendship grew into a professional relationship where they united their mutual skills and background to create Salumeria.
The heart of their thriving charcuterie business includes a pasture-raised hog farm, where they’ve partnered with a rancher to learn about animal husbandry and proper nutrition to produce the best possible pork product in Central Texas. This strategy, combined with their skill of curing meat at their brand new Dripping Springs facility, has become a thriving charcuterie business.
The Salumeria offers more than 20 different varieties of salumi that can change depending on seasonal rotation. A majority of their meats are made from the pork they raise on their farm, but they’ll also cure other meats made from boar, venison and duck. When curing meats, they make pancetta, soppressata, homestyle salami, Proscuitto, and much more, including mixing varieties of peppers to produce spicy cuts like The Reaper and Calabrian Bomba. All meats are kept in a 55-degree, climate-controlled room and refrigeration system set up in their tasting room, that welcomes guests for classes previews.
Customers can find The Salumeria’s cured meats at local businesses like Antonelli’s Cheese Shop, and can also order via a monthly box subscription for delivery each month.
Salumeria’s meats are vastly superior to cuts you’ll find in most grocery stores or your local Costco. Notably, you’ll even find capicola, which is whole muscle pork made from the neck and shoulders, dry-cured for several months and cut to extremely thin slices. At $99.98 per pound, It’s among the most profoundly marbled and flavorable cuts that simply melt in your mouth.
“The capicola probably isn’t the type of meat you’ll find a sandwich anywhere, but I envy anyone that’s got deep enough pockets to make one,” says Pedonesi. In fact, he mentioned a customer who’s a monthly regular that typically buys a pound of capicola as a treat to himself. “One day his son found the meat in the fridge and made a sandwich out of nearly the entire thing, and his son told him it was the best sandwich he ever tasted.” It probably ended up being the most expensive sandwich he ever tasted as well.
For more on The Salumeria and to order their products, or to set up a tasting, visit thesalumeria.com.