If you’ve spent any time shopping for meat and cheese on South 9th Street in Philadelphia, you’ve heard the word. It entered the national consciousness a couple of decades ago, as Tony Soprano and family ate their way through the popular TV show. Others remember it from “The Office,” in an infamous episode where Michael tries to order it for a client he’s convinced is a mobster.
For Italian-Americans in the Philadelphia region, where it’s been part of the vernacular for centuries, “gabagool” is just what you call that essential part of a salumi tray, or a classic hoagie. To a trio of brewers in South Jersey, the dialect for “capicola” is the perfect name for a beer.
