2017 Santa Lucia Festival, a celebration of Omaha’s Italian culture, is ‘like a family reunion’
As Pat Venditte looked on from the shade, his bocce team, the Venditte Girls, gave the team from Sons of Italy a run for their money. A flick of the wrist, a gentle toss and then the slow roll of a ball down a carpeted court on Omaha’s riverfront. First a Venditte Girl, then a Son of Italy and back and forth, in the game that is a mix of croquet...
Remembering Vic as a true Iron Ranger
"Dear Vic," I had typed in a letter dated January 15, 2016. "It was nice to visit with you on the phone today, on this frigid, bone-chilling day ... I can't believe the postal service couldn't deliver the card to you because of 'insufficient address'! Buffetta is a Mountain Iron name if I ever heard one... And I still love the story about you tell...
Italian organist to play at Iowa Falls church
Italian Organist Renato Negri will play in the United States for the first time during the opening concert of the 2017 Iowa Falls Summer Organ Recital Series on Sunday. The concert will begin at 4 p.m. at St. Matthew’s By-the Bridge Episcopal Church, located on the corner of Oak and Railroad Streets. Negri is organist at Church of San Francesco da...
There's a pizza cheese empire, and you've probably never heard of it
Leprino Foods is a company you've almost certainly never heard of, but whose product you've almost certainly consumed. It makes a billion pounds of cheese each year and controls as much as 85 percent of the pizza cheese market as a supplier to Pizza Hut, Domino’s and Papa John’s. Chloe Sorvino of Forbes magazine’s billionaires team visited the Lepr...
Pizza, cannolis, more at Italian Street Festival
The smell of homemade pizza, cannolis and cheesecake will waft through the southeast side of downtown Friday and Saturday. Holy Rosary Catholic Church, 520 Stevens St., is hosting its annual Italian Street Festival. It’s billed as Indianapolis’ most-attended church festival. This year’s event runs from 5-11 p.m. Friday and Saturday and including mu...
ROC rocks Italian food and drink
Some of Louisville’s favorite restaurants have their roots in other cities. Consider Selena’s, for instance, which came up from Tampa almost a decade ago. Or Jeff Ruby’s, which added Louisville to its Cincinnati eateries. Or even Vincenzo’s, with its roots in St. Louis. Now, let’s put our hands together for ROC, an elegant eatery that owners Rocco...
Weather heating up as Santa Lucia Festival gets underway
Thursday night marks the start of the 93rd Santa Lucia Festival in Omaha, a four-day celebration. For festival-goers, the heat and humidity will be a concern this weekend as temperatures are expected to climb well into the 90s with heat indicies around the triple digits. Thursday morning, organizers were out finishing set up at the Lewis and Clark...
Master Gardener's Big Italian Tomato Goes National
A national tomato growers supply company honors a Missouri Advanced Master Gardener this spring by selling tomato seeds she saved for decades. On the cover of its 2017 catalog, the Tomato Growers Supply Co. features “Mrs. Maxwell’s Big Italian,” an heirloom beefsteak tomato prized for its flavor. The dark pink tomato is the result of seed-saving by...
Italian food truck destroyed by flood last year is back in business
Last August, Luciano Mottola’s food truck – a companion business to his popular Italian restaurant in Mulvane – was catering an event. It started to rain hard, and then, it started to flood. His food truck – and much of Mulvane – was quickly submerged. “We’ll be out of action for a while,” said a Facebook post from Aug. 20 that featured pictures of...
Italian Food Inspired by Tuscany at Brio Tuscan Grille
The minute you step into Brio Tuscan Grille, it’s like you’re transported to Tuscany. My favorite restaurants are those that have that five star vacation ambience. This is one such restaurant with its palatial high ceiling framed by tall rounded pillars with crown molding connected to the warm colored Tuscan textured painted beams that match the...
Dining Review: Mollica's Italian Market and Deli serves it up molto bene
Red and white checkered tablecloths go together with Italian restaurants like spaghetti and meatballs. It might be a cliché, but that's quickly overlooked at Mollica's Italian Market and Deli because so much more is offered. It's a delicatessen where sandwiches are assembled fresh to order; it's a restaurant where the Italian sausage is prepared fr...
Sinatra: 100 Years and Beyond
When: Sunday, June 18, 2017 3:00 - Where: Powell Hall, 718 N Grand Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63103 Sinatra: 100 Years and Beyond is a celebration of the life and music of the twentieth century’s most remarkable singers of the Great American Songbook – a star of radio, television, movies and countless live performances throughout the world. Join the STL S...