Where can I find it?
Q: We recently moved to the Atlanta area and are still working on finding things that were easily available in our old home. One ingredient I can’t seem to find is ground sumac. My family loves it on a lot of different dishes. We would be grateful if you could tell us where we could find it. Thank you. — Claire W., email
A: I’m not sure where you’re located, so I’ll give you a few options to find ground sumac. A tart ingredient popular in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisines, sumac berries grow on shrubs and are then dried and ground into a crimson powder. The intensely pigmented sumac has also been used for cosmetics and tanning leather.
At Cost Plus World Market, 4733 Ashford Dunwoody Road, Dunwoody, 678-731-0014, you’ll find New York Shuk ground sumac berries for $8.99 per 2-ounce jar. Whole Foods Market, 5930 Roswell Road, Atlanta, 404-236-0810, also stocks New York Shuk sumac at $7.29. You can buy ground sumac hand-packed in plastic tubs, displayed along the alphabetized wall of dried herbs and spices at Your DeKalb Farmers Market, 3000 E. Ponce de Leon Ave., Decatur, 404-377-6400.
Q: I have an antique kilim carpet. Parts of it are damaged, but there are large areas that would make nice pillows. Where could I take my rug to have these pillows made? Thank you. — Sara Reams, email
A: Call Amiri Rug Gallery, 730 Miami Circle, Unit C, Atlanta, 404-231-0830. This father-and-son business has been selling, appraising, restoring and cleaning contemporary and antique rugs and tapestries in the Atlanta area since 1986. Ari Amiri told me that salvaging what is left of your antique rug by fashioning pillows from its fabric is an excellent way to preserve and continue enjoying your precious antique. Some owners have taken pieces of their antique rugs and had shadowboxes made, allowing the carpets a second life away from the floor and onto the walls. For more information, check out amiriruggallery.com.
Having trouble finding a particular item? Sabine Morrow will try to help you locate it. Because of the volume of mail, we cannot track down every request. Email sabinem.morrow@gmail.com (include your name, the city you live in and a daytime phone number) or call 404-526-5931 and leave a voicemail with that information.
Sabine Morrow is a freelance writer who has been digging up hard-to-find items and services for readers since 2001.
