From Marengo to Rome: Giacomo Puccini's "Tosca" in a Historical Perspective
Have you been to Marengo, Iowa lately? A town of 2,500 situated just north of Highway 80, featuring a National Register of Historic Places listed courthouse, a Carnegie library, and a venerable cemetery with a Civil War memorial, it is intricately connected to French history, just like Iowa City, which developed out of a settlement named Napoleon....
Little Italy Midwest launches with free membership
Little Italy Foundation launches Little Italy Midwest and offers free memberships for all Italian Americans living in the Midwest. The Little Italy Foundation was founded in 2021 by founder Jennifer Caito-Ellingson for the purpose of saving the Little Italy enclave in the Des Moines Iowa area. However, in her leadership with other Italian American...
Porchetta House Takes the Italian Pork Sandwich for a Global Spin
Porchetta might translate from Italian to “little pig,” but the traditional dish—skin-on pork belly wrapped around a boneless loin and slow-roasted for hours—requires big effort. “You cook it on a spit, and then [to get the skin crispy], you ladle super-hot oil over it,” says AJ Paloni, chef-owner of the 10-month-old Porchetta House, a lunch-to-lat...
Panino’s: A dream come true for customers and owners
When it comes to a classic in Colorado Springs, grandma’s secret dough recipe has left its mark on a whole lot of people. At P74: The Downtown Panino’s there is family tradition both in the menu and in the owners. Christina Frasca took over the business from her father Mike Frasca in 2017. By her side is her husband Bobby Lashwood who learned the s...
Craving Italian food in St. Paul? Café Astoria debuts after-hours menu
As evening falls outside Café Astoria in St. Paul, a dozen or so tables are set with linens and vintage Chinaware underneath dimmed lighting. Three nights a week, the locally-owned coffee shop and crêperie moonlights as an intimate, full-service Italian restaurant. For Chef John Occhiato, who owns Café Astoria alongside his life-and-business partne...
Award-winning limoncello company in Ames thrives with Italian family recipe
An Iowa State chemistry professor who grew up in Italy has turned a family recipe for limoncello into an award-winning business. Sara Pistolesi is co-founder of IA-Native Spirits, which produces Lemoncello 50010 based on her grandmother Maria Pia Murzi’s recipe. That recipe was passed down to her mom, Tiziana Bernotti, and then to Sara herself. “I...
Bottega Veneta arrives in Aspen
Luxury Italian fashion house Bottega Veneta has landed in Aspen with the Dec. 8 opening of its boutique at 428 E. Hyman Ave. The design of the store embraces Aspen’s Rocky Mountain surroundings with ceiling beams in Aspen wood veneer, a neutral color scheme of white, cream, grey, and beige, Aspen tree-inspired clothing racks, and soft seating areas...
Newly discovered art in Cathedral of St. Paul connect Capecchi family across centuries
The Cathedral of St. Paul recently discovered some of the treasured history behind its artwork. It starts with a teenage sculptor from Italy who traveled to the capital city in the early 1900s. His grandsons are now sharing untold stories about an artist remembered as the cathedral's Michelangelo. The Capecchi cousins — Jerry and brothers Mark and...
Legendary Omaha baseball coach John Stella honored for devotion and love for the game
Not often will the church organist play “Take Me Out to the Ballgame.” But it was fitting Saturday, when a light snow fell as the baseball community said goodbye to its friend John Stella. The 88-year-old died Dec. 1 of complications from leukemia. Known for his devotion to the sport at Omaha South and the American Legion, Stella's funeral at St. F...
Denver officials say Christopher Columbus statue won’t go back up
Denver city officials said Monday they would not put back up a statue of Christopher Columbus that was torn down by protesters in the wake of George Floyd’s murder in 2020. The fate of the monument – and another of frontiersman Kit Carson that the city pro-actively removed after the Columbus monument was toppled – had been in limbo for years. “The...
An 'Omaha baseball icon': Remembering the life of Omaha South coaching legend John Stella
If there was a mayor of South Omaha, John Stella was it. The friendly guy with the bushy mustache who seemingly knew everyone died Friday of complications from leukemia. He was 88. Stella’s long life revolved around the sport of baseball, a love affair that lasted almost nine decades. He was most devoted to the sport through the American Legion, a...
Via Sofia's hosting winter food drive
Cedar Rapids Italian restaurant, Via Sofia's, announced Wednesday that it will be hosting a food drive this holiday season. The community can drop off non-perishable food items like canned goods, pasta, rice, and cereal to one of Via Sofia's two locations at 1125 1st Ave SE or 5411 Center Point Road NE. All donations received from December 6 to De...