Good things come in small packages. Kittens, cupcakes, mobile phones…your neighborhood market? Enter Lady & Larder, a tiny slice of heaven located on a busy stretch of Pico Boulevard in Santa Monica. While the diminutive shop may lack the everyday essentials compared to a conventional grocery store, they more than make up for it with an impeccably curated collection of goods, from freshly baked bread and locally grown flowers, to American made cheeses, charcuterie, beer and natural wine.

The store itself may be small, but it’s BIG on personality. The house plants and fresh flowers do their part by adding a splash of liveliness to the space, but much of the charm come from the products themselves: your eyes are drawn to the colorful stacks of tinned fish on one shelf, then you find yourself distracted by the multi-hued collection of hand-dipped candles adorning the wall near the deli case creating a literal rainbow on the wall. And one cannot simply overlook the deli case, its abundance of fine meats and cheeses beckons to each customer like the sirens luring unassuming sailors to their demise. Don’t forget to ask for their not so secret “secret lunch” while at the deli case, which are lunch sandwiches made from those divine meats and cheeses. Who wouldn’t want a “Franch Girl” or “Disco Only”?

Lady & Larder is owned and operated by Boo Simms and Sarah Simms Hendrix, twin sisters who grew up in the kitchen and have deep roots in the hospitality community. Their extensive restaurant experience has cultivated a shared passion for sourcing the finest products and ingredients from American farmers, butchers, brewers and craftspeople. What started out as an online business that focused on selling custom-made cheese and charcuterie boards has evolved into a full service brick and mortar shop for all your holiday and dinner party needs with all their produce and flowers coming fresh from the farmers market. While I did say that the store doesn’t carry many of your everyday essentials, what I can guarantee is that you will find that one product that you can’t live without.