Chicago Festa Italiana

Adventures off in the humid summer air of TaylorStreet Festival Italiana festival. Our little Italy is straight down Taylor Street with Italian restaurants, wine bars, and bakeries full of everyone's Italian favorites. The festival took place on this street with a few different stages of music and vendors with smaller portions of the delicious, calorie filled foods. 

Special selections included: the wood fired Margherita Pizza, Toasted Ravioli, Tortellini with Vodka Sauce, Spinach and Ricotta Rice balls, Italian Sausage, Italian ice, cannolis, Italian cookies, Fried Calimari, Calzones, and the list goes on. 
When you go to an Italian festival, one may think there would be a cute Italian guy. While I spotted a couple, they were both under thirty. I am definitely not the cougar type either yikes keep moving boys!
Oh well, the food and music were a much higher priority and the food partially delivered, but the music was fanastic. It consisted of a great group. A singer who played the part of Frank Sinatra quite well. Everyone was up and dancing in the 90 degree heat including the man danced in black, leather mini shorts and a black Harley vest with nothing underneath. He was quite entertaining. 
After I ran into a friend from Willow who is the King of Lemon ice. He gave me a cup and I was in heaven.
It was getting crowded and people were coming to drink, which was my exit. I decided to stop at the famous "Pompeii" to get a chocolate canoli, a regular canoli, and a piece of Tiramisu to go. Was I planning on sharing? Nope, just having a taste test. They all passed the test:) 

 But one may ask, "Where were the zeppolis?" After a walk back and forth a couple times checking out each booth-they were no where to  be seen!
It would be sad to say I came to a festival for zeppolis(fried dough of some sort-delicious), but it's the truth. Perhaps it's a New York thing, but I had no answers from the Italians about this travesty. 

Back to New York one day for the Oreo Zeppolis!

BUT Ferrara bakery did come through with some amazing Pignoli cookies. I worked at the one in New York for about five minutes as they found screaming and insults plus a New York environment to be an effective environment.
The free cookies and deserts were definitely not worth that treatment.

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Welcome!

French shirt for Italian Festival nice one;)

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When we exited the restaurant people were pushing in against the door an I saw their umbrellas blowing backwards. It was a complete downpour and we decided to take an adventure through it all to the car. We didn't make it far and waited under the tent with fifty other people pushing and shoving and my umbrella was effective until the end of the tent water dumped right on my Mom!
Instead of being concerned about getting wet, I was worried about my two cannolis in the paper bags. Please keep them safe! When do I even come to Little Italy in Chicago-like never!

When it finally stopped raining, we got to the car where we laughed the whole thing off and I opened up my bag to check the cannolis-still intact and ready to eat....Maybe it would have been better for the rain to have them, but Mangia, Mangia like Italy

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