Tuesday, January 29, 2019

Old School Italian 100 Years Old NYC



portoricocoffeejan2019

Porto Rico Coffee Roasters , Since 1907

The name may sound Puerto Rican, but it's not. Porto Rico Coffee is Italian, owned and operated by the Italian-American Longo family in Greenwich Village Since  1907


 
bc6a7-8rafettoopastaaaaa


RAFETTO'S PASTA
In Greenwich Village Since 1906

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d2e74-8rafettooooo


Fresh Homemade RAVIOLIS 

#FETTUCCINE #LASAGNA #MANICOTTI

#CAVATELLI #PASTA  and ?


To have a great little pasta shop like Raffetto's is a true Blessing. For years this part of Greenwich Village was a hardcore Italian neighborhoood filled with Italian Immigrants mostly fromthe Southern Italian Regions of Naples (Napolitan), Sicily (Sicilian), and Calabrese, with some Genoese (Genoa) sprikled in as well, as were the Raffetto family who opened their passta shop on Houston Street in the South Greenwich Village neighborhood in 1906, and I'm for one of thousands who are so grateful they did. I'm able to go around the block and get my box of 48 homemade Meat Or Cheeese Ravioli and grated Peccorino or Parmigiano to sprinkle over the Ravioli.
You get a box of Raffetto Raviolis and leave them in your freezer. Whenever you're going to have lunch or dinner, all you have to do is put on a pot of boiling water, throw your Ravioli in, and a few minutes later they're ready to eat. Drain the raviolis, lay on a plate, put on a pate of butter, a tiny bit of Olive Oil and sprinkle on some grated cheese and you're all ready to go with a delicious plate of Italian Ravioli. "What's better than that?" Ravioli from Raffetto Pasta are a God Send.

I love to dress them with Butter & Parmigiano as they dress ravioli in most places around Italy. Or do as the the Neapolitans and Caprese prefer, dressed in Sugo di Pomodoro (Tomato Sauce), and cheese.  



montemosconi




MONTE'S TRATTORIA
On Macdougal Street in GREENWICH VILLAGE Since 1918
100 YEAR OLD NEW YORK ITALIAN
Owned and Operated by The MOSCONI FAMILY
Three Generations of MOSCONI'S in front of MONTE'S
PIETRO MOSCONO (Chef/Owner) with Son PETER (GM/Owner) 
and PIETRO'S Grandsons : Pietro, Anthony, and Paulo

 

Like Rafettos Pasta and Porto Rico Italian Coffee Roasters, Monte's Trattoria is a beloved 100 year old, Italian Food Business in Greenwich Village New York. And just like Rafettto's, Caffe Reggio, and Porto Rico, Monte's is a God-Send of a place that we can all go to with our friends and family, for a good Old School Italian meal, and enjoy life. We are quite fortunate that places like Rafetto and Monte's are still here and haven't been obliterated by high-rent and other variables which have taken a toll on wonderful Old School Italian places like Lanza's and DeRobertis Italian Pastries, two 100 year old Italian food-spots (a restaurant & Pastry Shop) that so sadly recently closed. Places like Monte's Trattoria and John's of E. 12th Street are two "Living Museum Pieces" that Than God are both still open for us to enjoy and have those warm wonderful feeling of Old New York Italian Enclaves, you can still have a tasty Italian Dinner in restaurants that have been serving New Yorkers and people from literally All Around The World for 100 Years and more. "We Thank You All."


   
11RAFETTO


Inside RAFFETTO'S


 
11JohnsPIZZA


Not 100 YEARS OLD

But JOHN'S PIZZERIA of BLEECKER STREET

Is Not Far Behind, serving some of America's BEST PIZZA

Since 1929
Photo COPYRIGHT DANIEL BELLINO ZWICKE

I've been going to John's Pizzeria on Bleeccker Street in Greenwich Village, New York since the late 1970s ... It's long been a favorite of mine. The PIZZA is wonderful, the ambiance, prices, and everything about the place, "I just Love it."



RAO'S

East Harlem 

NEW YORK




The Dining Room

RAO'S

"And You CAN'T GET a TABLE !"





MEATBALLS


RECIPES 





JOHN'S of East 12th STREET

GOING STRONG SINCE 1908

Once a SPEAKEASY, in the Back Room

Front Room has Always been an ITALIAN RESTAURANT

Original Decor from 1908





Screen Shot 2018-02-17 at 2.15.26 PM

Vesuvio Bakery

Italian Bread Bakers
PRINCE STREET
Artwork Copyright DanielBellinoZwicke .com

 
A Readers Comment o The old VESUVIO BAKERY
.
I used to live around the corner, on prince street in soho, back when the neighborhood’s italian immigrant roots were much more evident than they are now. there was none of the abercrombie crew emporio starbucks navy barn nonsense back then…. storefronts were owner-occupied a la michael anchin, or (real) art galleries and museums (guggenheim soho, anyone?) or art “stores” like keith haring’s pop shop, or independent interiors shops like ad hoc softwares and almost everything on lafayette and the forever-missed canal surplus down on, you guessed it, canal street. by the time i’d moved into the neighborhood, soho was well on it’s way to transforming from a once-african-then-irish-then-italian immigrant neighborhood into an artist neighborhood, and, though i didn’t realize it at the time, into the bourgouise enclave i’d flee just a few years later for artier (and more affordable) digs.
but, in the meantime, mr. dapolito welcomed us all.
Anothny Dapolito was wonderful and equally friendly to his old friends and “newcomers” like me, probably 40, 50 years his junior. from the first time i walked into vesuvio bakery until the last time i was there before his death (he’d been frail and sick and not always behind the counter in the last years,) he treated me like a part of the neighborhood and i felt, as an extension of that welcome, like a part of the family. a distant cousin, perhaps, but family, nonetheless.

It bore a stark contrast to my neighborhood baker near my just-previous apartment, which happened to be in paris, france… there, the baker (boulangeriere) pretended not to even know who i was for the first year i lived there, despite my arrival roughly four days per week for a fresh baguette and croissants on almost the weekend.

when mr. dapolito died, the doors stayed open, and when people would inquire where he was, the kind and stoic and slightly sad but honest and open reply, given no doubt by someone who loved him more than we did, was this,”he died last week… but thank you for asking about him.” that “vesuvio bakery” storefront is an iconic new york image, and mr. dapolito was everything that was right with new york. i am glad i got to know him, beyond the iconic surface, if only a little bit. His bread wasn’t half bad, either.




 
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New York BRUNELLO Tasting 2019 ItalianWine

CARPARZO BRUNELLO
At The NEW YORK BRUNELLO TASTING 2019
 
 
Brunello di Montalcino means “Brunello of Montalcino” with Montalcino being a hilltop village located south of Siena in Tuscany and Brunello being a very specific clone of Sangiovese called “Sangiovese Grosso” which means ‘little dark one.’ It’s grapes are full and dark, and it is the only Tuscan red wine that is not a blend so you get the absolute purest expression of the grape. It’s classic flavor profiles include blackberry, black cherry, chocolate and leather. Is it just me or is that not insanely delicious sounding?
Just like France, Italy takes wine making very, very seriously. The DOCG rules there are strict and wine makers are held only to the highest standards. Case in point: Brunello vineyards can’t be planted at a higher altitude than 1968ft above sea level in order to guarantee that the grapes reach the highest flavor and ripeness. Additionally, Brunello can’t be bottled until after it has aged no less than 4 years; 5 years for the Reserves. This is because it takes THAT long for the strong tannins to soften. These are just a couple of the reasons why Brunello is so unique and truly special.
 
 
 
 
Tasting Ticket
BENVENUTO BRUNELLO
NEW YORK 2019
 
"I Miss GOTHAM HALL"
 
Yes, I miss Gotham Halle where the New York Benveuto Brunello tasting was helf for a number of years. Gotham Hall is one of the most beutiful event spaces in all of New York. Gotham Hall is in gorgeous hall that once housed The Greenwich Savings Bank. This year, the Brunello Event was moved to  Tribeca 360, which is a nice enough space with a fantastic view of lower Manhattan to the Hudson River and New Jersey beyond. I'd rather be in the beautiful NeoClassic Building that houses Gotham Hall, you feel as if you're in a Beautiful Palazzo in Venice or some other grand Italian city. Tribeca 360 has way too much light, and the vibe is completely different than a Brunello Italian Wine Tasting at Gotham Hall, Tribecca 360 justed can't compete with the Beauty and Granduer of Gotham Hall.
Anyway, "Nuff Said," lets move on to talking about Brunello and the tasting itself.
IL POGGIONE
 
Great VIN SANTO and of course Brunello Di Montalcino
 
IL Poggione was one of my favorite producers showing at the 2019 Benvenuto Brunello New York Tasting. I really liked the Il Poggione Brunello 2012 as well as they IL Poggione Brunello riserva 2012 ... The IL Poggione VIN SANTO was Text-Book Vin Santo with that wonderful Walnut Tasting taste that all properly made Vin Santo has. 
 
Sangivovese Grosso
 
aka BRUNELLO Grapes
 
On Vines in MONTALCINO , ITALY
 
in TOSCANO
 
 
 
 
The Brunello di Montalcino Consortium, the association that promotes and safeguards the celebrated Tuscan wines, will host the annual Benvenuto Brunello event in the United States on Monday, January 28th at Tribeca 360 in New York. Benvenuto Brunello is an exclusive wine tasting experience for trade and media during which the latest vintage release from 30 renowned Brunello producers is previewed.
Producers will showcase their 2014 Brunello di Montalcino and 2013 Riserva, as well as the 2017 vintage of their Rosso di Montalcino, Sant'Antimo and Moscadello di Montalcino. This year's participating wineries include Altesino, Carpineto, Fanti, Fattoria La Magia, Le Chiuse and Villa Poggio Salvi, among many others. 
 
 
 
The events will feature a walk-around tasting, as well as select seminars, which will be led by Sotheby's Master of Wine Candidate Nick Jackson and Giacomo Pondini, Director of the Consortium of Brunello di Montalcino. 
"Benvenuto Brunello in New York is an incredibly important event for us, as America is one of our largest export markets and one of the global wine capitals," says Consortium President Patrizio Cencioni, "challenging, wet and cool, 2014 harvest yielded limited quantities of supple and delicate Brunello".
 
 
 
Overall, I wasn't too crazy about many of the wines at this tasting as opposed to other years like; 1999, 2001, 2004, 2007, and 2010, the Brunello Vintage of 2014 was not a very good year. It was good enough to meet all the criterior to make Brunello, it's just that it was little better than a mediocer year. Sorry, but I'm not the only one who feels this way.
 
 
 
Daniel Bellino Zwicke
 
 
 
 
 
 
Conti Francesco Cinzano (Owner of Col D'Orcia)
 
with Author/ Italian Wine Guy - Daniel Bellino-Zwicke .com
 
 
 
 
 
MARCHESE FERDINANDO FRESCOBALDI
 
 
 
BEST SELLING ITALIAN COOKBOOK AUTHOR
 
ITALIAN WINE GUY
 
CREATOR of "BAR CICHETTI"
 
AMERICA'S 1st Ever BACARO
 
aka VENETIAN WINE BAR
 
 
 
 
.
 
 
 
Actor James Starace
 
with Author Daniel Bellino Zwicke
 
At CASTELLO VERAZZANO
 
GREVE in CHIANTI
 
TUSCANY, ITALY
 
 
READ about CASTELLO VERRAZZANO
 
And CHIANTI
 
At BELLINO on VINO
.
 
SUNDAY SAUCE
 
 
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.
 
 
"I MISS GOTHAM HALL" !!!