Cocoanuts About Good Taste

The North End is known for its little shops that carry an abundance of food, wine, fruits, vegetables, olive oils and coffee.

Each one of the shops sells more than you can imagine, judging from outside. Often, you sense the interior of any given shop is quite small.

But walk through the door and you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

Boston Cocoanuts is a perfect example. Tucked away on this quiet street, there’s warmth and liveliness inside.

“We feel like this store is a good fit for the North End and, in particular, this street,” said Tara Shea who co-owns Boston Cocoanuts with Jennifer Reuss. “We’ve dubbed it ‘Foodie Row’ because of all the Italian specialty shops.”

Their shop, located at 28 Parmenter Street, is certainly surrounded by other businesses that sell meat, fruits and vegetables – just to name a few gastronomic pleasures.

“The reason we came to the concept of the shop is that we’re both foodies,” said Jennifer. “We’ve seen a shift in entertaining and wanted to encourage people to take a light-hearted moment in their day.”

The display shelves and counter definitely encourage whimsical shopping.

Jennifer and Tara sell artisan chocolates, gourmet mixed nuts, gift baskets and specialty snacks as well as an assortment of small, colorful pastries.

Jennifer and Tara opened the shop on July 1, 2012.

“We saw a need in the North End for artisan chocolates and gourmet nut mixes,” Jennifer said. “Things grew from there.”

She and Tara are meticulous with how they supply the shop.

“We love to work with artisans because they are passionate about their craft and are careful about the quality of their ingredients,” Jennifer said.

Boston Cocoanuts is open Tuesday through Thursday from 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.

The owners have been friends since childhood.

“We’re best friends,” Jennifer said. “We’ve known each other since we were 11 years old.”

She lives in Andover and Tara resides in the North End.

But they see each other every day that the shop is open and have a long history.

“We went to junior high school together in Fitchburg,” Jennifer said.

For additional information, call 857-263-7768 or visit the website at www.cocoanutsboston.com

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