NEWS FROM : NEW ENGLAND  

Guilford’s Nick Fradiani recently announced his promotion from alternate to lead in Broadway’s “A Beautiful Noise.” Last year the “American Idol” winner made his Broadway debut playing an alternate for the younger version of Neil Diamond in the musical based on Diamond’s life and career. As an alternate for the character of "Neil - Then," he perfor...

Mayor Domenic J. Sarno and Deputy Director of Veterans Services Joe Decaro attended a special Italian-American Veterans Ceremony hosted by the Sons and Daughters of Italy on Saturday, November 4th in the South End neighborhood of Springfield. Mayor Sarno states, “As we approach Veterans Day, I was honored to attend our annual Italian-American Veter...

As artificial intelligence and other digital advancements continue to transform Yale’s classrooms, university thinkers are beginning to explore how these technologies will shape society at large. Yale’s new Digital Ethics Center, founded this year by Italian philosopher Luciano Floridi, seeks to research the societal impact of modern digital innova...

A father-daughter duo have recently opened what they say is a first-of-its kind gourmet grab-and-go restaurant. The restaurant, called 123 Pronto Gourmet Prepared Meals To Go & Catering, serves packaged, freshly made Italian cuisine that customers can pick up on their way home and pop in the oven, according to co-owner Claudia Tecla. “Everything i...

The Center for Italian Culture at Fitchburg State University will present two film screenings by award-winning directors Martin Scorsese and Spike Lee in November as part of its year-long exploration of the Italian immigrant experience. The series, titled “Nuovo Mondo: A Century of Migrations from and to Italy”, will present a screening of acclaime...

If you read through websites that reminisce about long-closed restaurants in the Greater Boston area and elsewhere in New England, you’ll inevitably see references to a certain type of dining spot that continues to disappear from the local landscape: the multi-room family-friendly restaurants that were often seen as destination spots. Some well-kno...

Favio's Trattoria, Center Street's latest culinary venture which opened on Sunday, has brought another taste of Italy to the neighborhood, offering a variety of traditional Italian cuisine for customers.  The eatery at 80 Center St. is Favio Pillacela’s fourth restaurant. He runs the business with his brother and cousin. The three also run Serafino...

Evviva Trattoria®, a Massachusetts-based restaurant brand featuring locally-sourced modern Italian cuisine, opened its first location outside of Massachusetts in Rochester, New Hampshire at 155 Marketplace Blvd. Led by award-winning Chef Anthony DePalma, director of operations for Evviva Trattoria, guests enjoy Italian-inspired, locally made cuisin...

Growing up in an Italian-American household, Robert Montano, chef-owner of Montano's Restaurant in North Truro (MA), has always known the deep connections between family and food. "Both my grandmothers and my mom were always cooking," said Montano, whose earliest memories center around the kitchen, especially the preparation of made-from-scratch pa...

October, Italian Heritage Month in Massachusetts, is celebrated in different ways by different people. Many in Franklin have immigrant connections dating back to the early 20th and both remember and celebrate moments of survival and some of triumph. Paul DeBaggis, for instance, a former Selectman, recalls the time in the 1970s when the once-powerle...

The Wooster Square neighborhood, as it came to be identified as an enclave for Italian immigrants, found those of other ethnic origins leaving, and the original Yankee industrialists abandoned their stately homes in favor of other neighborhoods that were more protected against foreign intrusion. The diaspora-like  influx of the primarily southern I...

There's an apparent population on SouthCoast who share an unusual holiday custom."I can't believe how many people have lasagna for Thanksgiving," said Jean Riccardi, who runs Riccardi's Italian Restaurant and Buffet Catering alongside her husband, founder/owner Michael Riccardi. "It's so non-traditional but on Thanksgiving Eve we are always so busy...