The brand-new Caravan Market in Saratoga hints at the romance of the desert with a pale yellow and blue awning hoisted in front to shade rough tables and chairs made of pallet wood.
Inside, customers may shop for hard-to-find gourmet items from East India and Europe, or dine on deli sandwiches like the vegetarian patty on English bread, a Middle Eastern cutlet on b'at bread or Brie with lettuce dipped in balsamic vinaigrette. For those preferring tastes closer to home, there are traditional ham, turkey and pastrami.
Wood shelves lightly stained to show the grain hold a wide range of specialty items such as pasta, basmati rice, kabob skewers, tea biscuits and English marmalade.
"It's a unique place, not a regular market," says owner Kate Kamkar who, with husband Orang, bought the former Big Basin Floral Shop across from Saratoga Village last October. They threw themselves into creating "an exotic feel" in the lofty, 3,000-square-foot space, faux painting the walls in royal red and gold traversed by Grecian figures carrying musical instruments and urns. Six weeks ago, they opened their doors.
Kate, 28, and Orang, 35, met while both were studying at a Saratoga beauty school. They married 10 years ago, subsequently buying their own salon--Rapunzel of Saratoga--which they still own. Kate had grown up in town, the third of Peter and Jillian Ring's four daughters. A graduate of St. Andrews School and Saratoga High School, she was influenced by her parents' extensive travels and English roots.
Orang was born in Tehran, Iran, traveling to Denmark in 1978 for college while running his own cheese importing business. He settled in the Bay Area in 1986. Described by Kate as "very creative people" and knowing that hairdressing was not to be their life's work, the Kamkars decided after lengthy research to turn a passion for food into something very different for the area.
"There are many hole-in-the-wall places where you can find ethnic food, but they are not promoted except by word-of-mouth among ethnic locals," explains Kate. "We are presenting ours in a different way--as international gourmet food."
Caravan Market offers specialty items from France, Italy, East India, England and Croatia. Beers are imported from locales such as Germany, Belgium and Israel, with wines from France, South Africa and Chile. The food selection rotates. Now there are potato and chicken salads, an Italian sandwich of fresh mozzarella balls on herb slab bread. Other peasant-style breads are delivered fresh daily by Acme Bread of Redwood City.
The Kamkars plan a grand opening with food and wine tasting for March 20, which begins the Persian New Year.
Caravan Market, 14445 Big Basin Way, Saratoga. Open Mon.-Thurs. 10 a.m.-8 p.m., Fri.-Sat. 10 a.m.-9 p.m., Sun. 10 a.m.-6 p.m. 741-2221.
Saratoga, California Since 1975
