Mama Marucci’s and the History of Italian-American Cuisine

During the late 19th and early 20th century when the bulk of Italian immigrants came to America they sailed into New York Harbor from all over the old country. Many came with the intent to work not in farming as they did back home, but in high-paying industrial and construction jobs in the city.

Some came with the expectation of making a small fortune and eventually returning to their families (which many did) while others opted for a fresh start and a new life.

Lady liberty opened her arms to mostly southern Italians from regions like Campania, Calabria, and Sicilia because these areas were the most impoverished.

With these new immigrants came a sense of pride and tradition that is the fabric of all Italians. Each family and each village has its own way of cooking, their own way of doing things, their way which was “the only way” and “no other” could do better. That attitude still exists today in Italians all over the world and there is a grave seriousness that surrounds it.

Italians cannot settle for something that (to them) isn’t just right, especially when it comes to food. To do so would be to fail, and lower your social standing.

Being strangers to a new land caused these regionally futile people to be drawn together in a strange new world by the simple common and comforting bond of being from the same country.

At first they came to live in the same areas and formed enclaves all over New York’s five boroughs. As it always does with immigrants that live in the same neighborhood a girl from Corleone might fall in love and marry a boy from Napoli and consequently, the customs and traditions from these areas became amalgamated by virtue of their union.

The new bride would take the cooking lessons learned from her mother and her family’s treasured secrets and regional recipes and would come to the groom’s home to learn how to cook for her new husband from his mother.

Soon the new bride’s skills were put to the test by cooking a meal for her new father-in-law and if he approved (which inevitably he did) all was right in the family.

Consequently, Italian food which is so different in every village and region in the old country came together to form a new hybrid cuisine we know and love today as Italian-American food.

Back then it was not uncommon for the women from many households and families to get together on Sunday after church and cook a feast, Sunday after all was family day. The women would work together cooking a multi-course meal that was served intermittently throughout the afternoon as each dish became ready. And after a long week of hard labor the men would sit around, talk, drink, smoke, practice their English and play bocce ball, while course after course of delicious, mouthwatering, and irresistible homemade food came out of the kitchen.

The men knew each morsel was made with the care, attention, love and adoration, typically bestowed upon a newly born child. Bearing that in mind and the fact that the food really did taste phenomenal they ate with reverence and honest appreciation.

In the last 30 years, Italian-American food has changed; sometimes for the better and sometimes not. The Italians back home are using new produce such as avocados and creating dishes they would never have dreamed of such as spaghetti and meatballs. In America, Italian cuisine has devolved in many ways such as, overcooked pasta, the excessive use of garlic, cheap substitutes for parmesan cheese and the bastardization of sauces like Alfredo which bear no resemblance to the genuine article.

Part of the reason for this is capitalism. In the old country people go to the market on a daily basis and expect in-season fresh ingredients. They don’t expect to see asparagus in late fall, or a fresh pumpkin in spring. In America, because we expect everything to be available year round our produce is grown on less expensive land (sometimes in other countries like Mexico) far from the markets. It’s picked unripe, and rushed to our stores, never being able to fully reach its peak flavor. That is why so many better restaurants form relationships with famers and local vendors. This way growers know their crops will be sold locally and can leave them in the ground longer to properly mature so that when they are harvested they will be at the peak of flavor. In addition, farmers can grow a variety of produce and rotate crops the way they are supposed to. This makes the job of being a cook far more challenging. Chefs need to know what fruits and vegetables are in-season and how to change their menus to reflect that in their cooking.

This is the big reason why when tourists go to Italy the food tastes so good. The Italian way is to get ingredients at the peak of their in-season freshness and do as little as possible to change those flavors. That’s the real secret of Italian cuisine. In addition, you’ll find that the better Italian menus do not have dish after dish listed. They have perfected their regional dishes and serve them knowing they will be excellent!

At Mama Marucci’s we feel the same way. Our menu is limited, for example, we offer just three salads. We keep to traditional and authentic recipes such and we also try to be innovative by creating new flavor combinations that are exceptional such as our Berry Pizza.

In no uncertain terms we create wholesome, fresh food using only the finest quality ingredients available all the while holding to the highest culinary standards. The only way to understand and believe that we do make everything with passion is to try our food. We hope after you taste what we have to offer you have no choice but to fall in love.

Because we insist on making everything in small batches and demand top quality and freshness occasionally we may be out of an item. So if you have your heart set on something and we don’t have it, don’t get upset, be happy because what you do get his food that is at once fresh and clean, crafted with love and a serious commitment to authenticity, quality and most importantly to you our patrons. “Chi mangia bene, vive bene” –  Who eats well lives well.