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Another Bensonhurst fixture is saying goodbye. After decades in the neighborhood, Bari Pork Store, 6319 18th Ave., will be closing for good June 30. They are known as “King of the Sausage” and “The last real Salumeria on 18th Avenue,” with its meats and cookies, heroes and other Italian delicacies. Co-owners Tony Turrigiano and George Firrantello m...

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Bari Pork Store, a staple of Brooklyn's Bensonhurst neighborhood since 1969, has been a beloved destination for food and goods straight from Italy. But now, the specialty store is closing for good, after its aging storefront weathered so many storms. "Twenty-eight years I've been coming here. This is like a family," said customer Peter Melendez. It...

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After nearly 60 years, a Bensonhurst staple is saying goodbye. SAS Italian Records, 7113 18th Ave., will be permanently closing its doors.  The news was announced by Antonio Graziano, a friend of the owners, who posted it on the popular Facebook group Dyker Heights, Bay Ridge and Bensonhurst, Brooklyn on their behalf. “We regret to announce that It...

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Perhaps the most important of the things we struggle to understand here in Italy, regarding the needs and struggles of the Italian American community, is the constant fight against stereotypes and cancel culture that has affected and still affects our brothers and sisters of Italian American nationality. However, this is a fundamental issue, one th...

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Brooklyn's Columbus Day Parade marched its way through Bensonhurst on Saturday. The annual event has been a tradition for more than 40 years. Italian flags were waved proudly, both from behind barricades and out of sports cars. Hundreds marched up 18th Avenue, or Cristoforo Colombo Boulevard, to Il Centro Community Center, the city's first Italian-...

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The beloved Feast of Santa Rosalia, named after the Patron Saint of Palermo, is back in Bensonhurst for its 50th anniversary from Aug. 15-25. The celebration — also known as the 18th Avenue Festival — began in Italy over four centuries ago, and emphasizes the joy of Italian-American culture through the stunning array of food, carnival rides and gam...

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There is no shortage of old school and new Italian restaurants throughout New York City, from Manhattan’s Little Italy to Carroll Gardens in Brooklyn. But an often overlooked neighborhood with a rich Italian history is Bensonhurst in southern Brooklyn. My friend Frank Pinello, chef and owner of Best Pizza, grew up in Bensonhurst. His grandparents a...

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A 50-year-old Italian restaurant in Bensonhurst is looking to rebuild after a two-alarm fire tore through its kitchen last weekend, shuttering the eatery for the foreseeable future. The blaze broke out just before 6 p.m. on April 6 inside Ortobello Restaurant, near the corner of 64th Street and Bay Parkway. Owner Andrea Cerasuoli told Brooklyn Pape...

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Jack Spatola said that he first got the idea to offer free legal services to the Italian-American community when speaking with a rabbi in 1983. Nearly 40 years later, Spatola is finally getting to realize that dream. Spatola is the president of the Federation of Italian-American Organizations, which operates Il Centro, an Italian-American cultural...

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This month, Bensonhurst will once again host one of Brooklyn’s most storied traditions. The annual Feast of Santa Rosalia begins Thursday, Aug. 18 on 18th Avenue – aka Cristoforo Colombo Boulevard – from 68th to 75th streets. It will conclude on Sunday, Aug. 28. As usual, the 10-day event, sponsored by the Federation of Italian American Organizatio...

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