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If you’re a cheese lover, we’ve got great news for you! A restaurant in Rosemont, Illinois serves a famous cheese wheel pasta. It’s truly better than words can describe! One of the most unique restaurants in Illinois is Carlucci's Rosemont, a Chicago-area Italian spot that serves up homestyle, homemade dishes in a beautiful location. Every dish ser...

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A longtime Sicilian bakery has opened another outpost — 5,000 miles away, on the Far Northwest Side. New Paradise Bakery, 5742 N. Milwaukee Ave., is a gelateria, bakery and deli led by owner and chef Vito Rubino, whose parents are from Palermo, Italy. After running a pizzeria in Logan Square, he formed a partnership with the New Paradise Bakery own...

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Via Sofia's Italian Kitchen, an established chain restaurant in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, expanded and opened its first eatery in Rockford. Franchisee Leslie Reinbach opened the pickup- and carryout-only restaurant in August at 109 N. Show Place Drive, across from ShowPlace 16. Reinbach said she likes the far East State Street location because of the hig...

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No fewer than four local groups will host major events in Columbus’ name this month. The Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans will spearhead a daylong celebration on Oct. 10. Festivities will begin with a 9 a.m. Mass at the Shrine of Our Lady of Pompeii in Chicago, followed by a noon parade down State Street and a 3 p.m. reception at Casa Ita...

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The Italian American Executives of Transportation have donated $6,500 from the proceeds of their 2022 fashion show to Casa Italia. The check was presented to Casa Chairman Ron Onesti by Fashion Show Committee Co-Chair Dr. Michele Monica Daly at the IAET’s July meeting. The event was also co-chaired by Theresa Cascio and Grace Galletta, with Jadon Q...

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A newly renovated Golf Mill Park in Niles was home to the return of the 122nd annual Feast of Maria SS Lauretana of Altavilla Milicia festival over Labor Day weekend with thousands in attendance. The event celebrates what the faithful see as a miracle that took place off the coast of Sicily in the year 1623. The legend says a ship with a heathen pi...

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One of four children, Frank Pisani was born in Chicago to Francesco and Lucia DeCarolis Pisani. His parents emigrated from the province of Potenza in Italy and settled in the Grand and Western neighborhood known as “The Patch.” Pisani’s father, a barber, gradually brought his brothers over from Italy. His mother, a seamstress, prepared delicious me...

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From arias to anthems, standards to stadium rock, Diva Montell takes almost any musical style and makes it her own. Blessed with a powerful soprano voice, Montell’s talents brought her to a crossroads early in her career when she had to weigh what was in her heart against the expectations of others. That journey began at birth. “Yes, I was born wit...

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When: Saturday, September 24, October 1 and October 8, 2022 from 10:30 am CT to 1:30 pm CT - Where: Italian Cultural Institute of Chicago ItalCultura, in collaboration with the Italian Cultural Institute of Chicago, presents a series of three workshops held by the Chicago theater company Laughing Stock Theatre on the origins, developments and influ...

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A classic Chicago Italian restaurant that closed two years ago due to the COVID-19 pandemic will soon return to the South Loop under new ownership. Cafe Bionda, a nearly two-decade-old favorite among neighborhood residents at 1924 South State Street, is set to reopen Thursday, September 15 with some cosmetic updates and the same Sunday red sauce th...

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