New York’s Little Italy Still Evolving

Little Italy – Still Hanging Tight to Its Immigrant Roots

Despite some rumors to the contrary, Manhattan’s Little Italy isn’t dead.  Some famous Mafia and movie figures have breathed their last living or liberated moments in this well-known part of Manhattan, but the neighborhood lives on with its own vibrancy despite increasing encroachment by the city’s expanding Asian community.

Populated by Germans and Irish in the early 19^thcentury, Little Italy was the center of a thriving, transplanted Italian community in New York City starting around 1880.  Mainland and Sicilian immigrants sought to replicate their traditions with shops, dining establishments and a sense of community that still exists, albeit on a much smaller scale.

What remains today among smatterings of Chinese back rub stores, Malaysian restaurants and kitschy souvenir stands are a new Italian American Museum and a determined group of shopkeepers and restaurateurs, working together to keep the Italian footprint alive, well and delicious in Lower Manhattan.

This is a neighborhood where tradition is strong.  Just look at the hydrants painted red, white and green for the flag of Italy or the tinsel decorations strung gaily over Mulberry Street that signal that you’ve entered Little Italy.  Or revel in the fact that the local and important St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral has just been named a basilica, and you’ll get a sense of the pride here.  The Feast of San Gennaro, a riot of smells, people, and buskers for 11 days in September is centered around mass at the Most Precious Blood Church.  It’s a festival rooted in religion but inviting in its celebration of all that is Italian culture.

There’s a feistiness that comes from having roots as a tight-knit community.  Little Italy’s multi-generational Italian food and sundry shops have a longevity that most stores could only dream of, given today’s economic vagaries.  Take E. Rossi & Co., for example.  The store began as an Italian music store, evolved into an “everything Italian” gift and hardware emporium, and moved a block over to escape escalating rents.  But it’s still there and the original owner’s grandson, Ernie, will sing you an Italian ballad that will make you feel like you’re sitting on the shores of Naples.  Next door, family-run Ferrara’s Bakery & Café dating from 1892 seems a bit glitzy and modern with sliding glass doors, but it nonetheless prides itself on its traditional-recipe ices, cannolis and lobster tails, all drawing mobs of visitors.  For less of the tourist feel, walk a block to Caffé Roma, marvel at its old-world pressed tin ceiling and mosaic floor, and grab an espresso and pignoli cookie as you reflect on the immigrants who transported these lasting gifts to America.

Back on Grand Street is where you’ll find the food shops that keep this neighborhood a shopping destination for locals.  The oldest dairy in the U.S., Alleva Cheese Shop, is a fourth-generation market with mozzarellas and bocconcinis that will have you screaming bravissimo. Its friendly competitor, DiPalo’s Fine Foods — 100 years young — is the neighborhood grocery store with dairy, cheese, meat, olive oil and other Italian staples, most available for sampling.  Also family-run and now in its fourth generation, DiPalo’s is known for giving advice on how to put together flawless recipes or even set the perfect Italian table.  Just ask Lidia Bastianich, grande dame of the New York Italian restaurant scene; she’s a regular here.  Lou DiPalo has the patience of a saint – he’ll talk to you for as long as you’d like to make sure you mangia molto bene that evening.  DiPalo’s new enoteca has just opened next door so you can pick up your favorite Orvieto Classico, Barolo or even a bracing grappa to complement your meal.  If all you want is pasta, the folks at Piemonte Ravioli know it better than anyone else.  Piemonte has been supplying homemakers, restaurants, and hotels since 1920. Heading a bit north on Mott Street, fourth-generation and family-run Parisi Bakery is a favorite for hearty sandwiches and breads.  Their prosciutto rolls have kept taxi drivers coming back for years.   Even further north, in the section of Little Italy often referred to as NoLita (North of Little Italy), you can visit Albanese Meats and Poultry, a butcher of the old country type.  Live animals no longer wander around the back of the store, but the meat is prepared fresh using traditional cleavers and tools, and master butcher Moe will help you decide which cut best fits your recipe.

Dining is the main draw to the southern part of the neighborhood.  Along Mulberry Street and Grand Street, the two streets most thought of as today’s eponymous Little Italy, you’ll find a plethora of red sauce and pasta restaurants.  If you’re looking to find the true Italian experience, avoid the ones with hawkers handing out menus to passersby – they’re likely to be run and owned by Albanians rather than Italians.  Stay focused, instead, on restaurants that have long history in the neighborhood such as Angelo’s, Umbertos Clam House and Vincent’s, and you’re likely to have a more authentic experience. Angelo’s of Mulberry Street has been around since 1902, a family-run Little Italy tradition that serves as a dining room to many of the city’s Italian community.  There’s nothing trendy about Angelo’s, but the food is consistently good, the Italian spirit alive and well, and you’ll be one of the family if you’re a frequent guest.  Don’t miss the spaghetti with crabs if it’s on the menu or the homemade manicotti with Angelo’s famous marinara sauce.  And be sure to get to know Bruno or Gaspare—they’ll take good care of you.  Umbertos Clam House is now in its third location.  First housed in the restaurant at the corner of Mulberry and Grand, currently Da Gennaro, Umbertos was the site where infamous gangster Joey Gallo was rubbed out in 1972.  Most diners today are unaware of this horrific incident, and when the restaurant moved across to Broome Street the association was virtually erased.  The new location on Mulberry Street is smaller and has even less of a connection to Mafia days past, but the clams are still the ticket.  Sit outside if you can and try Umbertos’ baked version, a recipe that hasn’t changed in generations.   Both Angelo’s and Umbertos serve up fresh pastas with a variety of sauces, eggplant and veal parmigiana, and risottos with what’s freshest of the moment like frutti di mare, asparagus or porcini mushrooms.  If it’s not on the menu, don’t be afraid to ask for it.  It’s likely that the cook will honor your request if he’s not busy.

NoLita fans will tell you that their restaurants reflect the younger Italian New Yorker.  Look at the lines forming outside of Torrisi Italian Specialties (near Prince Street), or try to get a walk-in table at Peasant (near Spring Street) and you’ll feel a different sort of Little Italy vibe, where fashion is as important as cuisine.  But this is also where you’ll find Lombardi’s, the country’s first pizzeria, and the Basilica at St. Patrick’s Old Cathedral, two sites firmly steeped in Little Italy history.  It’s also where other nationalities and hipsters have taken up residence like the fabulous Papabubble caramel shop from Spain or non-Italian restaurants like La Esquina and Kenmare.

Call it Chitaly, or “little” Little Italy, or whatever. The point is that Little Italy is alive in its morphed or re-labeled state.  If you have any doubt, come back in September for the Feast of San Gennaro and put your snobbishness aside.  Eat some fried Oreos or a zeppole, try your hand at a game of chance, and sing O Sole Mio with Ernie.  La Dolce Vita is good here.