Salud, chindon!
This section is dedicated to the specific lifestyle of an italian american. This includes traditions carried out in the home and most importantly at the dinner table, documentaries and other media involving the history of italian americans, and other important aspects of the italian culture such as cars, restaurants, stores, and holidays that were brought to america and transformed into what it has become today.
Photo Tour through a Typical Italian Deli
10/25/13
The photos below are all pictures that I took of my traditional italian deli that I go to when I am home in Staten Island. The deli has been owned by the same italian american family for 3 generations now, and everyone from older italians in the neighborhood to cops to family friends stop by to grab a delicious chicken cutlet sandwich for lunch. Italian deli’s are different from normal american ones in many ways, such as: most of their goods are imported, ingredients (such as fried chicken cutlets) are made fresh to order, and the deli also serves as a hangout during lunch time for many italian americans. There is not a day I go in there when there isn’t a group of middle aged italian men chowing down on prosciutto balls, chicken parm, etc, drinking coffee, reading the paper, and talking neighborhood gossip. Another unique thing about a place like this is that everyone knows each other, and the family aspect that you get just from picking up your lunch is welcoming and natural to me. I walk in and say hi to Mario (the manager), order “my usual” from Al (the cook), and talk to Mario Jr. about how college is going while I’m waiting. You can’t find some place like this just anywhere, deli’s are a unique aspect of the italian american lifestyle.
Growing up as an Italian American
10/17/13
Below is a link to a short video of me interviewing my italian american grandparents about growing up in an italian household. Both of my grandparents grew up in Brooklyn, and both of their parents were italians who immigrated to america. They discuss how different life was at that time and how many italian american went about their life as an american in NYC.
Italian American Culture Blog 