San Gennaro returns to Little Italy for its 78th year

The Feast of San Gennaro, the patron saint of Naples, returns to Little Italy for its 78^th year, beginning Thursday, September 15, and continuing through Sunday, September 25. The 11-day festival promises to once again fill the streets of this downtown neighborhood with parades, entertainment, and an anticipated crowd of one million people. And then, of course, there's the food.

"The 2005 Feast of San Gennaro will be bringing the world to Little Italy, and Little Italy to the world," said Frank Macchiarola, President of Figli di San Gennaro (Children of San Gennaro), a nonprofit community organization that has produced and operated the feast since 1996 and distributes resulting revenue to children, parochial schools, the elderly, the needy, and parishes of the Archdiocese of New York. 

Festivities for the oldest and biggest street festival in Lower Manhattan include parades, a variety of live musical performances, more than 300 food stands, and a cannoli-eating contest. The free entertainment, ranging from performances of Italian folk songs to rock and old standards, runs each night from 7:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. at the bandstand located at Grand and Baxter Streets.

The Feast of San Gennaro is an annual celebration of Saint Gennaro, the Patron Saint of Naples, who was martyred in 305 A.D.  New York City's first feast took place on September 19, 1926, when newly arrived immigrants from Naples settled along Mulberry Street and decided to continue the celebration that began in Italy years before.

On Monday, September 19, a celebratory mass and candlelit procession will take place as the Statue of the Saint is carried from its permanent home in Most Precious Blood Church on Mulberry Street.

During the feast, many local restaurants and cafes serve meals outside, giving visitors an opportunity to enjoy al fresco dining in the delightful summer-turning-into-fall weather. For those in need of a little culinary guidance, please consult the following San Gennaro food glossary, first published on LowerManhattan.info in September 2003. Mangia!

• Fried Oreos -- There may be nothing particularly Italian about fried Oreos, but they are distinctly San Gennaro. "My brother invented them," proclaims Laura Trapani. Eight years ago, Trapani's brother Peter decided to dip an Oreo cookie in funnel-cake batter and fry it up. Ever since, they've been a part of the Feast, and have grown to be every bit as popular as traditional zeppoles, she says. "We're definitely becoming known for them," she continued. "We've even been on Emeril."
  
  
  
  
• Gelato -- "It's Italian ice cream, but creamier than regular ice cream and with a sweeter taste," says Johnna Delutro. Delutro's parents own Café Palermo on Mulberry Street, which runs a gelato stand out front each year as part of the Feast. In addition to about a dozen flavors of gelato, Delutro also serves eight or so flavors of sorbet. "Sorbet is more like Italian ice," she says. "It's water-based and has a slushy kind of feeling." Top sellers among the gelato flavors are hazelnut and chocolate chip, she reports. And for sorbet, it's raspberry and lemon. "The lemon's better," she confides, "but some people really like raspberry, I guess."
  
  
  
  
• Mostaccioli Riepeni  -- "That's probably the one people ask about the most," says Tony Andriola, who sells a dozen different varieties of imported Italian cookies, as well as assorted nuts and candy. "Mostaccioli are chocolate cookies filled with fruit and nuts," he says. His top seller, though, are the anisette (licorice-flavored) biscotti. Some people buy two or three pounds at a time. But Andriola, a retired high-school history teacher from New Jersey, favors the papatelle over all else. "They're good for breakfast, with your coffee in the morning. Not too sweet."
  
  
  
  
• Polpi -- "That's baby octopus," says Pamela Bellomo, pointed to a tentacle-covered tray. The polpi are mixed with sesame seeds, paprika, and olive oil and baked in the oven, she explains. The top seller, though, at the stand where Bellomo works on Grand Street is the fried calamari, hands down, she says. Also available: fried shrimp, mixed seafood salad, and fried ravioli.
  
  
  
• Pork Braciole -- "It's a pork steak, rolled and stuffed with garlic, parsley, grated cheese, black pepper, and oregano," explains Maria Spata, who has helped run her brother-in-law's San Gennaro stand each year for the past decade. Though she was born in the United States, Spata's family hails from the Calabria region of Italy. "A lot of Italian families cook braciole in a thick tomato sauce for a Sunday meal," she says. Braciole can also be made with beef, or even chicken, but in Spata's opinion, pork is best.
  
  
  
• Sausage and peppers -- You don't have to be Italian to recognize sausage and peppers, and you can't attend the Feast without seeing or smelling them. Sweet or hot Italian sausage is cooked on a hot grill and served piled high with sautéed sliced onions and red and green peppers. Delicious -- and the festival's top-selling item, according to most anyone you ask.
  
  
  
• Stiglioli   -- "Intestines," says Frankie Damico, searching for the word for cow to explain their source. Stiglioni aren't actually served at the stand where Damico works, though the sign above his head lists them. "They are delicious," he is quick to say, but perhaps not as popular among the increasingly diverse crowd that San Gennaro today draws, he offers.
  
  
  
• Tiramisu -- "It's like a custard -- it's made with marscapone cream, Kahlúa, espresso, and ladyfinger cookies," says Mike Caruso, manning the stand run by his brother-in-law John Fratta. Fratta's great-grandfather, Luigi Vitale, started the Feast in 1827. "It started as a block party," Fratta explains. "In those days, they had a contest to see who could decorate their fire escapes the best." It grew gradually from one day to a weekend and eventually to the 11-day carnival it is today.
  
  
  
• Torrone  -- An imported Italian candy, torrone is made from honey, sugar, and egg whites, says Sal (last name withheld), who chisels pieces from a large block as interested customers approach his cart near the intersection of Mulberry and Grand Streets. "I don't make it," he says. "It's all imported straight from Italy." Sal has sold as much as 20 pounds each to some customers. "People just love it," he says. "They buy it to eat all year long, or to save for Christmas."

This year, the Feast of San Gennaro begins on Thursday, September 15, and continues through Sunday, September 25. Centered along Mulberry Street between Canal and Houston Streets, stands of food and games extend beyond Mulberry along intersecting side streets. For information, call (212)768-9320 or visit www.sangennaro.org. 

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