The Bay Area’s Top 10 Italian Restaurants
In March, Restaurant Critic Soleil Ho ditched the traditional restaurant review and composed a pasta horoscope in honor of the menu at Belotti, an Oakland favorite run by Italian Chef Michele and Joyce Belotti. Now she’s back to ranking restaurants. Last week, the San Francisco Chronicle published her list of the top 10 Italian restaurants in the B...
Many vets, one story
November is dedicated to the men and women of the armed services who have played a role in protecting our nation and safeguarding its future. On Memorial Day, we remember all of those service members who gave their lives for our country. On Veterans Day, we honor all those who served in any capacity. All veterans have stories about their time in se...
Autumn Traditions: The Tuscan Olive Harvest
Tuscany in Fall is hard to forget. After months spent welcoming tourists and taking well-deserved breaks on sunny seasides, attention is turned inwards. You can almost feel the pace slowing as the crowds disappear. With no one watching, the locals spend the last of the good weather traipsing through the fields and foraging deep in the forests. In...
Italian sandwiches 101: Do you know the difference between muffuletta, trapizzino and puccia?
You probably are familiar with panini sandwiches and maybe even the tramezzino. But what about the puccia, a sandwich originating from Puglia? Using bread with a golden crust, baked on a lava stone, it is garnished with cheese, tomatoes or vegetables. Italy has much more to offer than pizza and pasta in terms of culinary specialties, with a rich ar...
U.S. Promotion of Made in Italy Launched by Saks Fifth Avenue
This Fall, Saks Fifth Avenue, the American luxury retail giant headquartered in New York City with 40 different department stores across the U.S. and Canada, will begin a partnership with the Italian Trade Agency promoting Made-In-Italy style and quality in the U.S. market. This partnership will support and facilitate the export of goods produced b...
Italy, where the woods are invisible
As we know, forests grow without making any noise. Perhaps, however, we did not think they could grow so much and so quietly: since 1936, the Italian forest heritage has almost doubled in size, and about a third of the peninsula is now covered in woods. This is good news, especially in times of climate change, but at the same time, it is an enormou...
This Food Network star is taking over Italian steakhouse The Americano in north Scottsdale
Fans of Food Network star Scott Conant's modern osteria Mora Italian in Phoenix will soon have a second restaurant where they can enjoy the chef's signature brand of elevated Italian cuisine. Conant and his SC Culinary Inc. team have partnered with Scottsdale-based Creation Hospitality to take over ownership and operation of The Americano, an Ital...
A World War II hero and Purple Heart recipient still enjoying golf at 96 years -- young!
Felice John Tulli, 96, named after his paternal grandfather but known as John, was born Feb. 3, 1924 to Italian immigrant parents. He was raised in Harlem with his brothers, Ed, Hugo, Danny and his sister, Ida, now all deceased. Tulli never completed high school and as the story goes he lied about his age in order to enlist in the US Army during Wo...
How to preserve and valorize the Italian-American “resource”
This past 4th of July, the US Embassy in Rome celebrated the 244th Independence Day anniversary unusually. It didn’t only move all celebrations online — because of the pandemic and the consequent ban on gatherings — but it also decided to share them. In a short video, Robert De Niro changed perspective and looked towards Italy, greeting his “dear...
The resilience of Italian wine on the US market: +2.3% in the first 8 months of 2020
The Covid-19 pandemic has affected all kinds of consumption, including wine. But, in the U.S. market, it has not affected the level of demand. Thus, consumption outside the buying places is flying, and even more so online sales, which largely compensate for the losses recorded in bars and restaurants. Italy, in this context, is taking advantage of...
Danza Macabra: Ancient Pestilences and Contemporary Pandemics
October 28, 2020, Wednesday, 9:00 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Center for Italian Studies at Stony Brook University. A roster of historians, political scientists, literary experts, and art historians will discuss the different implications on society of the current pandemic with special attention to the Italian - US relationship. All presentations will be in Eng...
Italy Travel: 4 Of The Best Winery Farmhouse Stays In Chianti Tuscany
I am sitting facing Chianti countryside on a balmy, cricket-filled September night. Like a triptych painting in a portrait gallery a ripple of hills stretch before me, lit up by sparkling villages along its crest. The peace is resounding. My only companion is a fir tree rising up like a lollipop over my deck chair. Wafts of rosemary, lavender and t...