Wednesday, December 21, 2016

It's the End of Era Da Silvano Restaurant is CLosed in GREENWICH VILLAGE


         



A SAD DAY in GREENWICH VILLAGE NEW YORK


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A shuttered DaSilvano December 21, 2016

THE END of an ERA


It's a sad day in Greenwich Village today, for lovers of good Italian Food and dining out. Famed restaurant to the stars Da Silvano has closed its doors after 40 years in business. Silvano Marcheto of Florence Italy moved to the great city of New York and worked as a waiter at the now defunct Derby Restaurant on Macdougal Street in New York's Greenwich Village before going out on his own in 1976.  Silvano acquired a small storefront that was formerly a laundromat and turned it into a place that would one day become the top celebrity spot in the of New York City. When Silvano first opened Da Silvano back in 1976 his rent was a mere $ 500 a month, it's now $41,000 a month and one of the reasons the restaurant is closing, another victim of a greedy landlord. Silvano knew how to churn out great Italian Food, Tuscan in particular and to take good care of his customers. His customers besides us mere mortals would turn out to be a whose who of Hollywood, the Fashion and Art Worlds, Publishing and Media Big Wigs, and all sorts of celebrities under the Sun which include the likes of; Paul McCarteny, Sting, Keith Richards, David Bowie, Richard Gere, Gwyneth Palthrow, Anna Wintour, and on and on, everbody who was anybody dined at Da Silvano and I myself witnessed the throngs of celebrities that I myself took care of as a Maitre'd / Manager at Da Silvano in its heyday as Celebrity Central of New York. Da Silvano had quite a good run doing a brisk busines for about 30 years until a string of events that began to bring less and less business to the onced packed-every-night restaurant. The first thing that started the slow down turn of business and the great luster of this once booming restaurant was when Grayden Carter the famed Editor in Chief of the celebrity powerful Vanity Fair Magazine went and opened his own restaurant the Waverly Inn. This was the beginning of what would become the end of Da Silvano in December of 2016. Carter who dined at Da Silvano 5 night a week where he had his own regular table opened the Waverly Inn in 2008 and things at Da Silvano immediately began going south. Pracitcally the entire Celeb Crowd that frequented Da Silvano on a nightly basis for years simply Jumped Shipped to Carter's Waverly Inn and Silvano had lost most of his Celebrity Crowd. The US and World economy took a tank and this didn't help things either. I who lived in a building very close to Da Silvano noticed an immediate decline in the restaurants business which I estimated at somehere around 40 to 50 percent until the current situation we now see, the sad day of Silvano Marchetto closing the days of his beloved namesake restaurant Da Silvano in December 2016, it's the end of an Era.





by Daniel Bellino Zwicke












SILVANO MARCHETTO
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SILVANO in Better Days

with Art Dealer Tony Shafrazzi (L)
and Publisher Peter Brandt (R)



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Silvano Marchetto with one of His Beloved Ferrari 's



A PARTIAL LIST of Da SILVANO'S many CELEBRITY & Notable CUSTOMERS                    over The Years ...
AL PACINO
ROBERT DiNERO
JOE PESCI
DAVID BOWIE
GWYNETH PALTHROW
KEITH RICHARDS
RICHARD GERE
WILLEM DEFOE
NICK TOSCHES
DOMINIC DUNNE
CALVIN KLEIN
UMA THURMAN
ETHAN HAWKE
SARA JESSICA PARKER
MATHEW BRODERICK
GRAYDON CARTER
DONALD TRUMP
SAMMY SOSA
SHERYLE CROW
MATT DILLON
LUCY LUI
LOU REED
DEBRA HARRY
JAY McINERNEY
ANNA WINTOUR
SY NEWHOUSE
FRANCESCO CLEMENTE








Da SILVANO used to be Packed Every NIGHT





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Daniel Bellino Zwicke

Saturday, December 17, 2016

Mariah Carey Carpool Karaoke

 
MARIAH CAREY
 
 
 
CARPOOL KARAOKE
 
 
Youtube
 
Mariah Carey with James Corden
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
MARIAH & JAMES Belt It OUT !!!
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Wednesday, December 7, 2016

BROOKLYN BEST ITALIAN FOOD

 

DiFARA PIZZA

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PIZZA MAESTRO

The Great DOM DeMARCO

This without Question "The BEST PIZZA in NEW YORK"



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Ferdinanda's Foccaceria

GET the "VESTEDDI"

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It'S THE BEST in THE CITY

SICILIAN VESTEDDI SANDWICH

with CAZZILLI (Potato Croquetts) in Background





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COURT STREET ITALIAN PASTRY SHOP






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Gaspar with His Fresh Baked SFOGLIATELLE

COURT PASTRY SHOP





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Mazzola's Italian Pastries

Carroll Gardens Brooklyn NEW YORK



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CANNOLIS 

MAZZOLA ITALIAN PASTRIES





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RECIPES FROM MY SICILIAN NONNA





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SAINT JOSEPH'S DAY SFINCI

Court Street Pastry Shop



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The Boys at ESPOSITO'S PORK STORE

SAUSAGES The SPECIALTY






SAUSAGE & PEPPERS







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FRANKIE'S SPUNTINO

Court Street


BROOKLYN, NEW YORK




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THE FEAST of THE 7 FISH




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Tuesday, December 6, 2016

Mommys Stuffed Peppers Recipe




Stuffed Peppers alla Lucia


As I walked out of my apartment in Greenwich Village, something hit me. It was an unmistakeable smell ... A smell and aromas that instantly brought me back to my youth and my mother cooking the dish. Yes I know that smell quite well and can easily identify. The smell? Why Stuffed Peppers of course! As the peppers roast, stuffed most likely with ground beed mixed with rice (to strecth-out the beef), garlic and grated Parmiggiano Reggiano with tomato sauce. Yes the smell is quite wonderful and when I remember as my mother cooked the dish often. Stuffed Peppers along with; Meatballs, Stuffed Artichokes, Meatlaof, Eggplant, Braciole, and Stuffed Shells were one of the main-stays of my mothers Italian roots repetoire. A dish I always loved, but releived as I walked out my door the other day, a dish, just like Stuffed Shells and Chicken Cacctiatore that are hardly ever eat these days. I pondered why, and decided there was no good reason and I have to remedy this little delema, and soon.
I haven't had the dish in quite some time,  and decided I must have it soon. I went to the supermarket and got all the ingredients,; the Green Bell Peppers, ground beef, a can of San Marzano Tomatoes, and rice. I bought the Grated Parmiggiano at Raffetto's around the block and I was all set to go.
First things first, so I put the rice on to cook.  I got a little tomato sauce going with garlic, olive oil, Pepperoncino, and the San Marzano's,   I chopped the Italian Parsely, onions, and Garlic for the stuffing, and got things ready.
  I got 6 peppers that I would cut the tops off, then pull out the core inside. 
So the rice had finished cooking and cooled down, and it was time to put in a mixing bowl with the ground beef, garlic, chopped onions, grated cheese, and parsley. Season with salt and Black Pepper, throw in one egg and mix with my hands till everything was well mixed, just they mommy did. The stuffing was ready to stuff into the peppers. Fill all the peppers with the beef mixture, top them with their tops, pot some tomato sauce in the casserole dish, place the peppers in there, and throw them in the oven. In a little more than an hour they'd be done.
I pot on some Sinatra and Louie Prima, cracked open a "Nice Bottle of Chianti," as Anthony Hopkins would say, and waited for the Peppers to cook. 
Now I was making my own again, and I'm sure some of the neighbors were jealous as I was the other day, smelling those tasty Stuffed Peppers one of my neighbors was making, but none would I have. Not that day anyway, but now, and time for others to be wanting and not me. I'm sorry I can't feed everyone. Now anyone who knows me, knows that I love to cook and feed others. My friends, family, whoever, and this often do, of which many will attest to.
Well noone is coming today. I'm gonna eat a couple of these suckers today, and the rest I'll leave in the frig and have 3 or 4 more meals of these babies during the week, Stuffed Peppers, Chianti, and Sinatra, "yes life is good at times," times like these ....



Daniel Bellino-Zwicke


LUCIA'S STUFFED PEPPERS
in

Daniel Bellino's

SUNDAY SAUCE

When Italian-AMericans Cook