Ciccio Reopens in Napa Valley Under Meadowood Chef
After opening in Yountville in 2012, Ciccio became a favorite among Napa Valley locals and visitors as a convivial gathering place for comforting Italian food and great Negronis. But, like many other restaurants, the beloved spot struggled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and eventually shuttered in 2022. It sat empty for nearly 18 months before chef C...
Why Florence is Florence: Money and the Medici
If you know where a city is, you know why it exists. If you know why a city exists, you can imagine who wanted to live there. And if you understand what kind of people lived in that city, you will find a straight line to how it looks, how it was decorated, what was valued. Florence is in a spot that provides protection, via robust hills and river...
Kentucky by Heart: Kentucky was home to 15 camps during WWII holding 10,000 prisoners of war
In last week’s column, I wrote about the significance of Camp Nelson, located in Jessamine County, and its intriguing involvement in the American Civil War. Doing further research about Kentucky in its times of war, I discovered proceedings in the state during World War II for which I was unaware. Kentucky directed fifteen prisoner-of-war camps, ho...
Lambrusco Is The Prosecco Alternative You Should Be Sipping In A Summer Spritz
When things start heating up, there's no better cocktail to cool you down than a spritz. The spritz saw its beginnings in the 1800s when the Austro-Hungarian Empire still controlled northern Italy. Rumor has it that the German soldiers couldn't hang with the Italians– finding their wine too strong. In an effort to dilute the alcohol, they added a "...
A tour of Little Italy in the Bronx
It’s 10 a.m. on a Wednesday morning and I’m on the line at Mike’s Deli – one of the best-known food stores and cafés in the Arthur Avenue Retail Market in Belmont, the area known as “the Little Italy of the Bronx” – deciding between an order of rice balls or eggplant rollatini to go with my dinner later that evening. The deli’s founder, the much-lo...
Fruit and vegetables of the month of July: the produce to buy
The garden in July is mouthwatering even for those who do not particularly love vegetables: peppers, courgettes but above all aubergines (we know, the first recipe that pops in our mind is always the same: parmigiana). All fresh, versatile, very tasty produce, which work in the most varied recipes. There are tomatoes - lots of tomatoes - with their...
Tatti Art Conservation is giving Philadelphia public art a fresh look
The Tatti family's involvement in the arts dates back to the early 1900s. But it wasn't until the 1980s when Zach Tatti's father and grandfather established a conservation practice. "Our studio is based in Manhattan and my brother and I were born in the city and lived in our quote-unquote gallery space of the art studio," said Tatti. "So, we starte...
Discovery of the Italian ship Amerigo Vespucci, one of the world's largest school sailing ships
We took advantage of her stopover in Marseille to discover the Amerigo Vespucci, Marina Militare's famous training ship. Despite more than 90 years of sailing around the world, the Amerigo Vespucci is still going strong and will once again cross the seas of the globe. The Amerigo Vespucci, Marina Militare's training ship and ambassador of Italian c...
New Italian steakhouse opens in north Colorado Springs
Cansano Italian Steakhouse, 1895 Democracy Point, has opened serving flavors and dishes from the Abruzzo region in central Italy. Cansano is part of FO4R North restaurant and bar complex by Five Times Hospitality Group. It’s the second of four of the highly anticipated eateries to open. Any dish on the menu is sure to please. A delicious way to sta...
Excavations for Magazzino Italian Art’s expansion allowed the centre to finally create a rare Michelangelo Pistoletto Land Art piece
Magazzino Italian Art, the museum and research centre in Cold Spring, New York, has opened Welcome to New York!, a survey show by Michelangelo Pistoletto to celebrate the artist’s 90th birthday. In addition, the museum unveiled a permanent land piece, Terzo paradiso, that has come to fruition after 20 years of patiently waiting for circumstances th...
Italy’s Golden Summer Harvest (Part 1)
I have many wonderful memories of my childhood, including my great interest in the many stages of our wheat crop near our home in South Calabria in the Province of Cosenza. I was always beside my nonno when he was busy plowing the soil by hand, getting ready to plant the “winter wheat.” He always bought the best disease-free wheat seeds to ensure a...
JCCIA honors veteran community leader Gargano
The Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans honored Vito Gargano at their general meeting on June 27. Gargano, 95, is the former president of the Italian American Federal Club, an organization comprising hundreds of federal employees of the United States Postal Service. Gargano’s career spans more than 40 years in the USPS. He started as a clerk...