Red Sauce America - Food, Culture, and Italian American Experience




A History of Eating Contests at The Feast of San Gennaro

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Sunday, September 14th, 2025 | 499 views

San Gennaro bunting and lights across the street with the Italian flag and the empire state building

The feast of San Gennaro once hosted competitive eating contests for cannoli, meatballs, pizza, and zeppole, but then in 2023 all that changed. Here’s a look back at the history eating contests at the Feast.

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Artusi’s Polpette

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Tuesday, August 9th, 2022 | 1,699 views

American Meatballs

Italian meatballs were very different than American meatballs, and rarely served with spaghetti and red sauce.

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American Polpette

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Tuesday, June 7th, 2022 | 1,247 views

American Meatballs

American-style meatballs served over spaghetti was invented by immigrants arriving in the United States. Typically, Italian meatballs were served separately rather than alongside spaghetti.

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Large Meatball Home Style

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Tuesday, April 12th, 2022 | 1,198 views

American Meatballs

Ada Boni’s The Talisman Italian Cook Book is a classic of pre-war Italian cooking. When Metilda la Rosa published a post-war translation in English, it included a few additional recipes.

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Rudy Valentino’s Savory Meat Balls

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Thursday, December 9th, 2021 | 1,312 views

meatballs are an all American dish

Meatballs and spaghetti are an American invention, and one of the earliest documented versions of spaghetti and meatballs might have been an accident.

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