2017 Festa Italiana Was Action-Packed
And a true food-fest. Our photos capture the fun.
2017 Festa Italiana. Photo by Jack Fennimore.
Festa Italiana celebrated its 40th anniversary of spreading Italian culture to Milwaukee. It’s the oldest ethnic festival in a city that glories in them, and the largest Italian event of its kind in America.
Festival goers were greeted by a replica of the statue of David as they made their way to the many food, gift, and wine vendors. They could take a gondola ride on Lake Michigan, play bocce and futsal and watch the Flag Throwers of Florence or Italian cooking demonstrations. A parade made its way through the Henry Maier Festival Park, which included an appearance by the Pinocchio Mobile. And you can’t forget terrific performances by the UW Marching Band and the Florentine Opera Company.
On the food front there was pizza, naturally, along with pasta and gelato from a host of vendors including Glorioso’s Italian Market, Peter Sciortino Bakery and Carini’s La Conca d’Oro. Other specialties to eat included fried ravioli, Sicilian steak sandwich, and sfingi (Sicilian doughnuts).
At night there were rocking shows by bands like the BoDeans and the Gin Blossoms and nightly fireworks.
Our photos capture the action.
Photo Gallery
Photo Gallery
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Who won the 50 50 raffle
I’ve heard that many folks were less than thrilled with Festa this year.
Complaints of several favorite longtime food vendors deciding not to operate their booths this year and a ripple effect of unusually long lines at those who did open are rampant on social media. Whatever caused these vendors to pull out needs to be addressed before irreparable damage is done to Festa’s reputation.