The word dua means many things in Albanian — want, need, love — which is exactly the sentiment owner Alexandra Lulaj hopes to embody with her store DUA Gourmet Market, located inside of the historic Arthur Avenue Market in the Bronx’s Little Italy.
DUA sells Balkan and Italian items like dried pasta, olive oils, canned fish, meats and cheeses — such as kashkaval and feta. Not only that, italso offers imported baklava and bakes donuts every Saturday, with the Nutella variety as its best seller. Lulaj and her team also do something no one else in the neighborhood is doing — they make fresh zeppoles daily.
“You only see them seasonally at fairs. It’s something everybody loves,” said Lulaj.
When DUA opened last year, it replaced Mount Carmel Gourmet Foods, which served the neighborhood for 14 years. But before closing, and in a true sense of community, Mount Carmel’s owners recommended their day-one worker Blanca to Lulaj.
“I’ve already been used to the neighborhood,” said Blanca in Spanish. “I feel good with [Alexandra]. She’s good people.”
Blanca, who did not disclose her last name, lives nearby and walks to work.
She is also able to have her daughter sit in the market and do homework as she works the counter. With many people unable to afford childcare, there’s a warm understanding between Lulaj and her employee.
Lulaj, 27, has a kind demeanor and a permanent smile. She works the market six days a week — they are closed on Sundays.
“I wouldn’t feel comfortable if I wasn’t here every day,” said Lulaj.
She graduated from Mercy College with a degree in business administration and worked on the corporate side of the White Plains YMCA. When Lulaj learned of the vacancy in the famed Arthur Avenue Market, she ran it by her uncle who is also her personal inspiration.
“He said, ‘I believe you have the personality and demeanor to do something like this.’ That I have the creativity and passion for food, and he was…
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