MANGIA!

Come here close to a Catholic holiday, when pastry shops work extra hard to create delicious and festive treats.

Quick Tips:

Best Way To Get Around:

Baked clams sprinkled with breadcrumbs, garlic and lemon juice. Octopus salad, panelle's, and sausage and peppers. Great for lunch. Sit down next to working men on their lunch break or old Italian couples.

Villabate Pasticeria (pastry shop) is my favorite on 18th Avenue. Exquisitely-decorated cakes, over 20 varieties of cookies, marzipan fruits, cannoli's, Italian cheese cakes, Italian bread, and gelato make my mouth water every time I come here. During the Christmas and Easter holidays, come early in the morning to avoid the line that runs out the door and wraps around the block.

The Bari Pork Store is dubbed The King of Sausage. Pretty lofty, but in Bensonhurst, it's true. Sausage comes prepared in many different ways- rings, loops and strips of seasoned meat are on display in the back. Upon entering, choose from over ten varieties of pasta, delight in Kinder chocolate eggs and Mulino Bianco cookies and purchase many other imports from Italy.

Patrons can pre-order rabbit or lamb for Easter dinner, another cultural find in Brooklyn.

In late August, 18th Avenue closes down for the Feast of Santa Rosalia. Every Italian-American in the neighborhhood comes together to enjoy sausage and peppers, pizza, marzipan fruit, baked clams, linguine with mussels, panelles (fried chick pea pattie with ricotta and parmesan cheese on a toasted bun), zeppoles (fried dough sprinkled with powdered sugar), and vanilla or chocolate cannoli's.

Numerous trattorias display their best dishes while an Italian band fills the air with both traditional and pop Italian songs. There are many knick-knacks to buy including red bull horns, colored mirror key chains, t-shirts that say "Proud to be Italian," house music, ten-minute Chinese massages, and fortunes.

Muscle men walk around with snakes around their necks or an iguana propped on their shoulders, young teenagers parade up and down the avenue and families gather for gelato and games.

On the weekend, Goombah Johnny of KTU, a NY-based dance radio station, usually stops by to get the party started.