That's Amore!

That’s Amore!
Jeanette Settembre

The Dean Martin lyrics, “When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie!” resounded from deep within the hearts of the jovial senior citizens of the Italian-American Club as they paraded the streets in their marching band best. At that moment it was evident that a brief torrential down pour would not put a damper on the opening day of the 84th annual Feast of San Gennaro.

Aside from the street vendors selling the typical sausage and peppers bordering a medley of carnival games, most people who have yet to attend the feast may not know just how cultural the event is.

This feast has featured something a bit different this year. The street vendors and restaurant owners had the ambition to bring a little piece of each region from the hills of Italy all the way down to Mulberry Street.

The Grand Italian Food Center exemplified the meaning of cultural variety. This eatery, located on Grand Street, takes pride in their execution of munch-worthy mouthfuls. Their menu includes speciality sandwiches as simple as the “Little Italy Special” which includes prosciutto, mozzarella and sun dried tomatoes, to the Mount Etna special (cracked pepper turkey, fontina cheese, pesto sauce and tomatoes). Each sandwich coincides with a region of Italy. Some of the most ornate specials include the Roman (genoa salami, ham, roasted peppers and fresh mozzarella), the Capri (Grilled zucchini, eggplant, and imported provolone cheese) and the Calabria (Soppresata (dried sausage), provolone cheese and roasted peppers).

The sandwiches are prepared so artistically that it is like taking a bite of a visual masterpiece. Each speciality sandwich contains specific meats: for example you would not find sweet cappicola from the Palermo special inside the Calabria one. The specialties represent a distinct bite of Italian culture ranging from the northern and middle parts of Italy, the bottom of the boot, and all the way down to the island of Sicily. Some other featured regions include Milano, Florence, Napoli, Torino, and Venice. Although you simply cannot put a price on quality, these edible marvels are all under $10!

More silver ware worthy dishes served at the sit down restaurants also ranged regionally. Gnocchi (delicious potato dumpling pasta), is commonly served in Northern regions of Italy like Trentino-Alto Adige. This region shares culinary traditions from both the Italian and German sides of the border and specializes in canderli, gnocchi served with a rich broth. A more southern delicacy you may stumble upon could be veal sorrentino which originated in Sorrento, a city in Naples. This dish contains veal sautéed in white wine with egg plant, fresh mozzarella and prosciutto.


Sophomore Marita Keane attended the feast on September 18th for the very first time. “I was surprised by all of the traditional food being served. I had capellini primavera, something I have never heard of before, but found delicious! My friends loved the shrimp scampi and fried calamari. For desert we did give into the less cultured fried oreo, but we made sure to get an authentic homemade cannoli as well! I was also very impressed by the [Most Precious Blood Church] with the shrine of San Gennaro where we were able to say prayers and make donations. It was an awesome experience.”



Director of the Study Abroad Program and Professor of French and Italian, Nevart Wanger, takes pride in fine Italian culture. She explained how historic the event is. “Each Italian city has its own patron Saint. This feast celebrates the patron saint of Naples. There was a lot of immigration from the South of Italy to the United States, so it is great to see a celebration and preservation of culture. It is not just solely about the food aspect, but also the procession and salute to San Gennaro. The pride in the atmosphere of the feast creates the feeling that you are actually walking the streets of Naples.”


Proud Italian-American Sophomore Julia Donavan went to the feast to take a break from her pressing class schedule to enjoy the afternoon. "It was a swell time, the music of 'The Godfather' accompanied by a classic Italian meal of red wine and a slice of pizza really created an atmosphere only comparable to the actual rolling hills of the place I call home...Italy."

Between the medley of cultural dishes, the decadent smell of confectionary sugar, and the cheerful spirits dancing by, the world, for a moment, may just seem to shine (even though it could be from perhaps too much wine) but nevertheless, is Amore.