Santa Lucia Festival queen dynasty: Grandma, granddaughter share title 100 years apart
Omaha’s newest Santa Lucia Festival queen may be new to wearing the crown, but her family has a long history with the title dating back to the first queen nearly 100 years ago. Alli Venditte received her flowers at this year’s Santa Lucia Festival, becoming the 100th queen. “It was my dream come true,” Venditte said. The Gross Catholic High School...
How a traveling Leonardo da Vinci inventions exhibit could find a permanent home in Pueblo
Recreations of Leonardo da Vinci's most innovative machines are stored 15 miles from Pueblo. Robotic drummers, flying machines, catapults, 15th-century cars and other creations stored at PuebloPlex have toured the country in traveling exhibitions but Pueblo community leaders are working to establish a permanent space for the machines and other exhi...
Restoration project preserves a bit of Omaha’s Little Italy, coincides with milestone events
In the heart of Little Italy, an old brick retail shop opened by one of Nebraska’s early Italian immigrant couples nearly a century ago is being resurrected. It won’t be the Caniglia Dry Goods of yesteryear. But the small structure will have definite ties to the cobbler and his wife whose family sold shoes and clothing there for more than 50 years....
Word On The Street Is That Piccola Cucina Ox Pasture Serves The Best Pasta In Montana
When you think of Montana, you might not immediately picture scrumptiously authentic Italian cuisine, right? But word on the street is that there is a pasta place in Red Lodge, Montana that absolutely deserves to be on your radar. Cooking authentic Sicilian food with simple, fresh ingredients, Piccola Cucina Ox Pasture offers true world-class Itali...
Oelwein Italian Heritage celebration to be held Aug. 10
Oelwein’s Italian Heritage festival will be returning on Saturday, Aug. 10, to continue the tradition that was started several decades ago in Iowa. Dominic “Squint” Pirillo began the celebration with others back in 1973 to honor their heritage and history of the area. This year will be the 51st anniversary of the festival and has lots in store, sta...
St Louis Italian Summer Festival - Ferragosto 2024
On Saturday, August 10, 2024, the Italian Community of St Louis is excited to host the 7TH ANNUAL FERRAGOSTO from 5pm to 11PM. TICKETS: $10 PER ADULT. Children 12 and under are FREE. Besides music and entertainment, Italian wines, and beer will be provided as well as traditional pastas and meats made by Chef Alessandro Valentino. Our DJ has a wonde...
Stop By Pulcinella For The Best Pizza In Fort Collins And Northern Colorado
Pulcinella is a pizza restaurant and bar located throughout the Front Range of Colorado including Fort Collins that offers a broad menu full of delicious Italian-style food and beverages served by friendly, welcoming staff. This pizzeria offers dine-in, outdoor seating, in-store pickup, takeout, and delivery via DoorDash and GrubHub. This restauran...
Sicilian food truck Bedda Matri finds permanent home in Rountree (MO)
The owners of Bedda Matri, a food truck featuring Sicilian street food, have parked a brand new trailer permanently in the heart of Springfield’s Rountree neighborhood. The move marks a business shift — and a significant investment — for the relatively new food truck owners, Alessandro De Luca and Jennifer Morris. They also run Italian Kitchen, a S...
Omaha’s Santa Lucia Festival to include shoe drive for children in need
The Santa Lucia Festival is celebrating 100 years in Omaha this year. The cultural event that highlights Italian-American history and heritage begins Aug. 1. This year, the festival committee is leading an effort to gather 500 new pairs of athletic shoes for children whose families might not be able to afford such an expense. Boxes of new sneakers...
“I Feel Like My Grandma Just Made Me Dinner!:” Sons & Daughters of Italy’s Pasta Suppers
Spaghetti and Meatballs. Mostaccioli and Meatballs. Pasta with Italian Sausage. Consider it a veritable plethora of pasta—all yours to enjoy by the heaping forkful at the Sons & Daughters of Italy Lodge. Located on S 10th Street, the community dinners served at this old-fashioned food hall pay homage to Omahans with Italian heritage. But you don’t...
Opera review: ‘Suor Angelica’ moves beautifully through Basilica of Saint Mary setting
“Suor Angelica” produced by Out of The Box Opera and the Basilica of Saint Mary, 2 p.m. Saturday. The Basilica of Saint Mary, 88 N 17th St., Minneapolis, MN. Tickets: $101. With “Suor Angelica,” Out of the Box Opera guides its audience through three different spaces within the Basilica of Saint Mary. It’s a credit to artistic director David Lefkowi...
Italian American Baseball Stars Honored in Italy
What do Yogi Berra, Joe Garagiola, Frank Crespi and Jim Pisoni have in common? The four baseball legends have been immortalized on a mural in Cuggiono, Italy! All four were born during the period 1918 to 1929 on “The Hill”, the Italian American neighborhood of St. Louis, Missouri, to parents who had emigrated from western Lombardy. During the late...