This past Sunday was a
special day on Arthur Ave as the area celebrated Ferragosto, an annual
festival. Ferragosto is a centuries-old
Italian tradition that recognizes the end of the harvest with the consumption
of the fruits of the labor. Several
blocks of the Avenue were closed to cars and opened for local vendors to set up
shops along the street.
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| The crowded streets during Ferragosto |
I was quickly overwhelmed by
the options for food but also impressed by the variety and quality of it
all. Along the street, there were people
selling handmade pastas, fresh raw oysters, all kinds of breads, freshly
roasted coffee, stuffed clams, and many types of cookies and pastries, not to
mention the choices for pizza. Also,
restaurants along the street added outdoor seating and were serving from
their menu. It was difficult to decide
what I wanted to eat, but I soon found myself in line for sausage, pepper, and
onion sandwiches.
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| One of the many markets on the street |
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| Another vendor selling Italian specialties |
After eating, I continued
walking down Arthur Ave and saw some of Ferragosto’s other offerings, including
handmade cigar rolling, wine tastings, and several musical artists performing
live. Although it was crowded, I very
much enjoyed spending the day taking in the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes
of the festival. And while perhaps not
every trip to the “real” Little Italy of New York City is quite as entertaining
as it was on Sunday, I feel very fortunate that the Italian restaurants and
specialty shops open every day on that street are less than a 5 minute walk
from my home at Rose Hill.
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| Vendors cooking food right on Arthur Ave. |
Blog By: Brendan Burke
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