Chicago.com
With so many different festivals being featured throughout the city, choosing the one to attend is not the easiest of tasks. One could pick where to go depending on the food being offered, music being played or even the area it’s taking place in. I decided to visit a smaller fest on the city’s lower west-side, at the intersection of 24th Street and Oakley Avenue running the weekend of June 18-20. The festival is not large in size but definitely is huge in culture, atmosphere and ambiance. The festival is called Festa!Pasta!Vino! and it is exactly that: a festa (party) with a whole lot of pasta and vino.
I decided to go to the festival on Saturday night mainly because hurricane-like conditions prevented me from going on Friday. It turned out to be a great decision since it was a gorgeous day for any outdoor Chi-Town activity.
Arriving at the festival was rather traffic free, however, we – my girlfriend and I – ran into a problem as we couldn’t find a parking spot on the street to save our lives. Nearly 25 minutes after circling around and hoping someone would leave, we struck gold as we found a vacant spot not even 30 yards from the festival itself. After paying the suggested $7 donation (higher than the usual $5 at the other festivals), we entered and were pleasantly surprised with what we walked into.
Upon getting through the gates we were greeted by an older gentlemen belting out Frank Sinatra tunes for the pleasure of those lucky enough to have found an empty seat nearby.
The festival immediately struck me as family friendly occasion. There were kids running around everywhere, laughing and having a genuinely good time. Aside from the little patrons playing tag, one thing visible right away were 12-foot Roman-like statues placed in the middle of the street. These monuments definitely added to the Italian feel of the whole festival and made us forget, for just an instance, that we were experiencing life in one of Chicago’s neighborhoods.
The food at Festa!Pasta!Vino! was authentic Italian-American specialties. Pasta, meatball sandwiches, and of course pizza were just some of the culinary delights featured at this intimate street fest. Vino was the main drink of choice for the crowd while some frequented the beer carts for their choice of Bud products or Stella. I was surprised not to see Peroni beer served.
Aside from gorging yourself on this Italian food, there was a good amount of tents at the festival equipped with jewelry for those interested in shopping. From costume jewelery to “designer” sunglasses and handbags, there was something there for anyone looking to sport Louis Vuitton on a Wal-Mart budget.
The music playing at the stage was something worth talking about. When we arrived at the festival around 6 p.m., a performer by the name of Diva Montell was singing at the stage set up towards the end of the festival. 
Diva was absolutely fantastic! Her vocal talent took us from the clutches of Earth, Wind, and Fire to Andrea Bocelli; from J. Lo to the depths of Italian opera. Diva did a great job of entertaining the crowd and received a great applause after her last song.
Ron Onesti, president of Onesti Entertainment Corporation, is in charge of organizing this event for the 21st year in a row. His organization is in charge of three Italian festivals: Festa!Pasta!Vino,Taylor Street Festa Italiana and the Chicago’s West Suburban Italian Festival in Addison, IL. Ron grew up right around Taylor Street and he has made it his goal to continue providing the Italian neighborhoods of Chicago with festivals celebrating the Italian-American culture.
“My goal was, and still is, to continue to bring the Italian-American heritage back to this community,” Onesti told us. “Yes, this is my business and it’s how I make money but all my satisfaction derives from seeing how happy people are when they come here. I want the people who come here to have a great time and hopefully come year after year,” he continued.
Based on my personal experience, I will certainly be back and something tells me others will too.
Nella Pizzeria Napoletana is the newest venture from the owners behind Francesca’s Restaurants in Chicago. Chef Scott Harris and partner Nella Grassano opened this authentic pizzeria in November of last year with the hope of bringing the passion and the craft of Italian pizza making to the heart of Lincoln Park. Their wood burning pizza oven was imported straight from Naples, and with the help of Corporate Chef of Mia Francesca Massimo Salatino, their recipes have stayed modern and yet still reminiscent of their originals.
We started out with a seafood salad to share. This insalata di mare was bright and fresh with large pieces of cuttlefish, squid, octopus and shrimp. It was served with arugula dressed in lemon juice, sweet peppers, fresh herbs and olive oil. It was a great combination of flavors and a complete surprise from the monotonous, one note seafood salads I’ve had before. This was perfect for a warm day and really whetted our appetites. And thank goodness, because we were in for a feast!
As for the pizza, we went with the recommendation of the General manager Jeff Downing – Prosciutto e Rucola, a white pizza with smoked mozzarella, prosciutto di parma, fresh arugula, shaved parmesan and olive oil. Let me tell you, growing up in the Midwest and living with the corn fed stereotypes most “Coastal Americans” give us, I really appreciate fresh, quality ingredients. Italian food isn’t always all about carbs. True Italian cooking almost always revolves around vegetables and seasonal local ingredients, and Chef Salatino has definitely taken advantage of this. I would absolutely recommend this pizza to every one of our readers. The leftovers were great too!
The next pizza (yes, we had two) was the Pizza Diavolo. Covered in homemade tomato sauce from my favorite San Marzano tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella, spicy salami, basil, and I think a hint of heaven, this pizza was definitely a keeper. Absolutely delicious. Their dough is so good with a slightly charred edge (what you’re looking for with a good wood burning oven) and soft center. This is not just a pepperoni pizza; far from it. The heat from the salami was just right and I’m pretty sure I had strands of melted mozzarella hanging from my face. Yes, I am that sexy. It was embarrassingly good. Perfect for a date, this pie is seductive.
For the lunch crowd, Nella offers a variety of fresh paninis as well. We tried a prosciutto crudo panino with fresh mozzarella, basil, and arugula. Noticing a theme? Prosciutto crudo is a different type of cured Italian ham, thicker than prosciutto di parma but just as savory. And talk about smart cooking, the sandwich bread is leftover pizza dough, cooked up in the oven into perfect rolls. This is a great idea for the local lunch crowd prowling the area. These hearty paninis would definitely keep me satisfied during a long work day and give me just enough incentive to go back for dinner.
Now, if you hang out with Cousin Vinnie, chances are you get treated right. Jeff and Chef Salatino had another surprise for us that wasn’t even on the menu yet. I’ll call it a Banana Galette. Or a Banana Tart. Or….a Banana Pizza. Whatever it’s called, it was amazing. Bananas were roasted in the pizza oven on fresh dough with sugar until they caramelized. Once it’s out of the oven, it gets doused with powdered sugar, mint, and a healthy scoop of vanilla bean ice cream. We enjoyed ours with a cup of strong Mati espresso, perfectly complementing our dessert. My photographer Lauren Palminteri doesn’t like bananas. Or so she told me. I still have the fork mark in my hand where she stabbed me to get the last bite. Let’s hope they keep this on the menu and have band aids available for customers.
Nella is perfect for just about any occasion and even offers a private room for parties or special dinners. Great for families, the menu also provides kid friendly pizzas at parent friendly prices. It really is a treat to get to have a meal that was so completely enjoyable and it definitely makes my job more fun. Timothy our waiter was awesome and took great care of us. He and Jeff obviously love their jobs which made our lunch even better.
Don’t wait for the opportunity to eat at Nellas. Make some time and get there, before the seats are taken. I see this place being a huge hit for a very long time. Make it one of your favorites today.
Call me Nostradamus, because I saw this coming a Magnificent Mile away.
Listen Mrs. First Lady. Back off. First Chicago loses the Olympics. Then our unemployment goes up. And then Forbes thinks we’re miserable. Give us our dignity. Where is your loyalty? In a recent visit to a New York pizzeria (that will remain unnamed in my blog, but if you really want to know – like it matters – check out this link) Michelle Obama stated, in what must have been a momentary lapse in some serious judgment, that “It’s the best pizza, and I’m from Chicago.” Michelle, I think your husband may have lost a few voters.
Two days ago, I told my LOYAL readers that Chicago.com is in pre-production for a Best Pizza in Chicago video. Plans are still a go. But now, I think we have a little more incentive. Please send me the names of your favorite pizzerias. If someone has already posted it, post it again. We’re looking for the best in a few categories: taste, value, and tradition, with a separate category looking for most original.
Bring it on Chicago. Let’s show D.C. and N.Y.C. what we’re really made of. When our panel of pizza-pie-tastic experts have made their decisions and the winners have been chosen, we will invite you to partake in their cheesy Chicago.com debut. That’s right, everyone who leaves a pizza related comment will able to be in the video we produce. So send is your comments Chicago and remind the First Lady where she came from.
Pizza from the heart
Chicago.com’s Cousin Vinnie is looking for the best Chicago pizzeria to be in their new video “pizza in Chicago”. If you want to leave a comment and tell me who you think has the best Chicago pie please do so. Also if you know someone that owns a Chicago pizza joint and wants some exposure tell them to contact me at Vinnie@chicago.com or tell them to leave a comment.
Since the first hungry Italian put cheese and tomatoes on dough, there’s been a debate heard round the country on who’s got the best pizza: New York City or Sweet Home Chicago.
Now I am not here to bash New York’s pies, but I sure as hell am going to defend my hometown.
My Dad, the Original Cousin Vinnie, has been in the pizzeria business all of his life. At the ripe young age of 8yrs old he used to sit on top of the cheese grinder at Connie’s pizzeria in the south side of Chicago and grind cheese for the pies. He has owned places in Chicago like D’Anardo’s Pizza as well as Cousin Vinnie’s in Arizona. Believe you me, we know pizzas. Pizza sauce runs through my family’s veins. Here you can get deep dish or thin crust, hand tossed or rolled. And lucky for us, Chicago specializes in deep-dish (also known as stuffed) pizza. It’s more than a meal, it’s an event. Layers of thick, gooey mozzarella, mild Italian sausage, herbs, and my poppa’s homemade sauce are what I crave when I’m looking to satisfy my picky Chicagoan palate. Deep-dish pizza is as much Chicago as the cheese steak is to Philly, chowder is to Boston, and the California roll is to well, California. Here is one of my papa’s recipes for a “Chicago style pizza” for those of you that do not live here and for those of you that do.
That’s that! Now enjoy the pizza recipe and let me know how it turns out.
| Chicago Deep dish dough:
2 cups warm water 1/2 cup vegetable oil 4 tablespoons olive oil 1/2 cup cornmeal 5 1/2 cups flour 2 packages of rapid rise yeast 1/4 stick of melted butter |
Use a mixer bowl and dissolve rapid rise yeast in warm water. Then add olive oil and vegetable oil, butter, corn meal and1/2 the flour. Mix all contents with a dough hook (you can do it by hand, but it is very difficult) and mix in the rest of the flour. Remove dough and place on a clean countertop. Cover with a damp towel in a large bowl and allow to rise until double in bulk. Knuckle it down and allow to rise again.
It is very important to oil your deep-dish pizza pan or else your pie will stick to the pan. Place some dough in the pan and push it out to the edges using your fingers. Put in enough dough so that you can run the crust up the side of the pan. Make it about 1/8-inch thick throughout the pan.
Every great “Chicago style pizza” starts out with a great filling:
2 cups of peeled tomatoes, and make sure you drain em
1/3 lb of sliced Mozzarella
11 basil leaves
2 1/2tbl spoons of extra virgin olive oil (first cold press makes all the difference)
1 big handful of Parmesan Reggiano
3 good size cloves of garlic (minced)
Place mozzarella in layers on the bottom of the pie. If you want to add other ingredients, add other ingredients such as bulk Italian sausage, pepperoni or fungi (mushrooms). Place them directly on the cheese and under the tomatoes. Then layer the basil, garlic, oregano and salt. Next put in the tomatoes. The parmesan cheese will be used for the top of the pizza. Drizzle olive oil all over the top of the pizza.
Bake the pie in a 475°F oven until the crust is light golden brown and the top is bubbly, in about 35 to 45 minutes.