Dual Specialty Store

Abdul Patwary who is hailing from Bangladesh, founded Dual Specialty Store 30 years ago in the East Village.
The store is going strong and he is in the process of opening a second store in Williamsburg.
One can find anything food and health related here: from spices to herbal teas to henna, perfume oil and tooth paste; fresh southeast Asian ingredients such as turmeric and green chiles; beer from all over the world too, lets keep it real. Expert advise is available for free.
Abdul carefully curates and mixes his spices and teas. When I asked him if he has anything special or precious in the store, 2 things were on top of his head: the simple and widely available dandelion that is good for too many ailments to be listed here, as well as Saffron. Saffron is not just good for cooking but can also mitigate depression.
The clientele is composed of chefs and regular people who like to cook and be healthy. Abdul says he loves them all. In the end he shared his super healthy breakfast recipe with me that seems a bit labor intense. But lets hope Abdul will offer a store mix soon.

Side note: while I was doing my shoot, Damon Versaggi and a colleague of scrappy meals were
in the store, offering Abdul some edible flowers they had just harvested. These chefs are working on reducing food waste by using peoples leftovers. Very cool endeavor.

Dual Specialty Shop
91 1st Ave, New York, NY 10003
dualspices.com