My family is originally from Paestum, Cilento, and, like many southern Italians, moved up to Rome for better work opportunities. I was born in Rome and am the oldest of three boys. We came to the United States when I was about 4 years old. South Philadelphia was our first stop and with all the native Italians living there at the time, I honestly fe...
READ MOREThere was a lot of “mangia, mangia” on the afternoon of June 4 in Rose Tree Park when the 13th annual Italian American Heritage Festival attracted thousands of guests hoping to get a taste of all things Italian. Under beautiful sunny skies and with Italian spices wafting through the air, dozens of food vendors served pasta, meatballs, pizza and oth...
READ MORELast time I walked into 204 N. Hanover St., the walls were a vibrant pink color suitable for a doughnut shop and precious few other businesses. Once Crazy Glazed left the space for a new B Street location and Nonna Ilva came to town, I wondered how the authentic Italian restaurant would make the little street-side shop its own. On Thursday, I found...
READ MOREFather Bernardo Pistone loved the people of Saint Francis Xavier Gettysburg when he served as the parish’s pastor. Almost a decade has passed since the Italian native moved from here, but several of his former parishioners traveled to Lancaster on Sunday, June 11 to return the love. Saint Mary’s Catholic Church, where Pistone now resides, held a Go...
READ MOREMarc Vetri, the acclaimed Philadelphia chef behind the Vetri Family Restaurant Group, this week debuted Pizzeria Salvy. Vetri devoted the restaurant, in the Comcast Technology Center in central Philadelphia, to the theme of his father, even modeling their logo off of his dad Sal’s signature glasses. And just in time for Father’s Day! The new concep...
READ MOREEven though we at the Italian American Podcast spend A LOT of time together, every once in a while, our adventures around Italian American life take us to distinct destinations. Like any group of best buds, we look forward to reuniting and catching up, so this time, we thought we would share that conversation with you! In this week’s episode, John,...
READ MOREThe Wilkes-Barre Chapter of UNICO held its annual players’ dinner Wednesday night, honoring Lackawanna College head football coach Mark Duda. The dinner was held at Fox Hill Country Club in Exeter. The 72nd annual UNICO All-Star Classic football game will be played Saturday at Wyoming Area’s stadium in West Pittston. Kickoff is 7 p.m. Miss UNICO an...
READ MORENIAF proudly hosted its third annual Philadelphia Testimonial Dinner on Monday, May 22, 2023, at the Union League of Philadelphia to honor the Head Coach of the Philadelphia Eagles, Nick Sirianni and the Chief Security Officer and Senior Advisor to the General Manager of the Eagles, Dom DiSandro. The event recognized the significant contributions o...
READ MOREPhilly foodies will get a taste of great things to come with the opening of “Martorano’s Sicilian Slice” at Rivers Casino Philadelphia. The new pizza shop by celebrity cook and South Philly native Steve Martorano and his wife, Marsha Daley-Martorano, officially opens Wednesday, May 31, at 3 p.m. Complimentary samples of Sicilian Slice pizza will be...
READ MOREIf you've ever watched The Godfather, or other movies or shows like it, you might have noticed that popular culture has a definite take on Italian immigrants: barrel-chested men with gargantuan bellies; rotund grandmothers carrying overflowing pots of pasta; and chain-smoking, hard-drinking people for whom a party is not complete without thick slab...
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