T&F Pork Store celebrates 40 years in Valley Stream

Forty years ago, Tommaso Carlino, a Sicilian immigrant, opened T&F Pork Store on Rockaway Avenue. His son, Joseph, runs things now. It wasn’t what Tommaso had planned, but it’s where Joseph is happy.

“He didn’t want me to do this, actually,” Joseph, 36, said of his father, who died in January 2015. “He wanted me to go to school and do the whole thing. I tried it but I didn’t like it. I wanted to do this.”

Tommaso first worked at a deli in Franklin Square by the same name (his first name was the T) which still exists but is unaffiliated. He retired in 2005 but resisted letting go of the business that had allowed him to raise his family.

“He didn’t go anywhere; he didn’t travel,” Joseph said. “It was either here or home, and that’s it — and he didn’t want to stay home. He liked interacting with the customers, and the customers loved him.”

Customers frequently come into the store and chat with Joseph about his father and share memories from the business’ four decades in Valley Stream. The most popular items on its menu are the fresh mozzarella and assorted Italian sausages, Joseph said.

On July 28, Village Trustee John Tufarelli, State Senate candidate Chris McGrath and Hempstead Town Supervisor Anthony Santino presented him with a citation acknowledging the business’ longevity in Valley Stream.

Joseph said the clientele has changed through the years, but he occasionally sees people discovering the store for the first time. He said he finds the work meaningful, because he’s continuing his father’s legacy.

“It was just in my blood,” he said.