Uncle Larry Adventures

Screen and stove

Movie Stars

Italian and Italian-American movie stars and what they cook, open and order — from Tucci's regional obsessions to De Niro's restaurants and Loren's Neapolitan recipes. Live headlines from public news feeds, paired with the best public clips.

12 movie stars tracked

Italian movie stars and what they cook, at a glance

Twelve Italian and Italian-American actors and directors with a genuine food story — cookbooks, restaurants, farms, a limoncello label — the region each one cooks from, and the dish and drink on this site that goes with them.

Italian movie stars, their food credentials, region, and a matching recipe and drink
StarRegionFood credentialCook thisPour this
Stanley TucciCalabrian roots, raised in Westchester, New YorkCo-wrote and co-directed Big Night, the film that made timpano famousSpaghetti CarbonaraNegroni
Sophia LorenNaples and Pozzuoli, CampaniaAuthor of In Cucina con Amore and Recipes & MemoriesPizza MargheritaLimoncello Spritz
Robert De NiroItalian-American New York, with family roots in Molise and CampaniaCo-founded Nobu with chef Nobu Matsuhisa, now a global restaurant and hotel groupLasagna alla BologneseAmericano
Al PacinoEast Harlem and the South Bronx, New YorkThe Godfather's kitchen scenes shaped how a generation pictured Italian-American home cookingHomemade Italian SausageNegroni Sbagliato
Monica BellucciCittà di Castello, UmbriaGrew up in Umbria, a region defined by olive oil, black truffles and pork butcheryPollo alla CacciatoraBicicletta
Giancarlo GianniniLa Spezia, LiguriaLigurian by birth, from the basil and olive oil coastPesto alla GenoveseAperol Spritz
Roberto BenigniCastiglion Fiorentino, TuscanyTuscan-born, from a farming familyBucatini all'AmatricianaNegroni
Danny DeVitoAsbury Park, New Jersey; Italian-American family rootsLaunched Danny DeVito's Premium LimoncelloCannoli SicilianiLimoncello Spritz
Marisa TomeiBrooklyn, New YorkBrooklyn Italian-American upbringingChicken ParmigianaEspresso Martini
Isabella RosselliniRome by birth; Long Island, New York todayRuns Mama Farm, raising heritage breeds and producing eggs and honeySpaghetti CarbonaraGaribaldi
Luca GuadagninoPalermo, SicilyRuns a design studio that has worked on hospitality and restaurant interiors in ItalyPasta alla NormaBellini
Michael ImperioliMount Vernon, New York; Italian-AmericanCentral cast member of The Sopranos, which spawned its own bestselling cookbookMelanzane alla ParmigianaSgroppino

Stanley Tucci

Actor, author, and food travel host

Big Night made him a cult food hero, then Searching for Italy and Tucci in Italy turned him into the world's favorite guide to regional Italian cooking. His memoir Taste is a bestseller.

Stanley Tucci is the actor who turned regional Italian cooking into appointment television, first with Big Night, then with his Italy travel series and the bestselling memoir Taste.

Where the food comes from
Calabrian roots, raised in Westchester, New York
The scene people remember
The timpano in Big Night (1996) — a drum of pasta, egg and meat cut open at the table — is still the most requested Italian-American dish in film.

Why the food story is real

  • Co-wrote and co-directed Big Night, the film that made timpano famous
  • Wrote The Tucci Cookbook and the memoir Taste: My Life Through Food
  • Hosted a CNN travel series touring Italy region by region, then a follow-up series
  • Filmed a widely shared lockdown Negroni video that pushed the drink back into fashion

Cook and drink along with Stanley Tucci

Spaghetti Carbonara — Tucci's Rome episodes put carbonara back on every home cook's list — guanciale, pecorino, egg, no cream.

Negroni — His Negroni clip is the single most-copied celebrity cocktail moment of the last decade.

What is Stanley Tucci's most famous dish?

Timpano, the baked pasta drum from Big Night. His Negroni and his Rome-style carbonara come a close second.

Stanley Tucci — free-to-share file

Stanley Tucci — free-licence portrait from Wikimedia Commons
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Stanley Tucci Jr. ( TOO-chee, Italian: [ˈtuttʃi]; born November 11, 1960) is an American actor and filmmaker. Known as a character actor, he has played a wide variety of roles, earning numerous accolades for his work.

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Sophia Loren

Screen legend and cookbook author

The face of Italian cinema also wrote In Cucina con Amore and Recipes & Memories — Neapolitan home cooking, told through her own life. Famously said everything she has she owes to spaghetti.

Sophia Loren is a screen legend who also published cookbooks of Neapolitan home cooking drawn from her own life.

Where the food comes from
Naples and Pozzuoli, Campania
The scene people remember
The pizza-frying scenes of L'Oro di Napoli (1954) made her the face of Neapolitan street food before she was a global star.

Why the food story is real

  • Author of In Cucina con Amore and Recipes & Memories
  • Built both books around Campanian home cooking and family stories, not restaurant technique
  • Famously credited spaghetti for everything she has

Cook and drink along with Sophia Loren

Pizza Margherita — Nothing is more Neapolitan, and it is the dish her early films sell hardest.

Limoncello Spritz — Campania in a glass — the lemons come from the same coast she grew up on.

Did Sophia Loren write a cookbook?

Yes — In Cucina con Amore, later published in English, and a second collection, Recipes & Memories. Both are Neapolitan home cooking told through her own life.

Sophia Loren — free-to-share file

Sophia Loren — free-licence portrait from Wikimedia Commons
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Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (Italian: [soˈfiːa vilˈlaːni ʃʃikoˈloːne]; born 20 September 1934), known professionally as Sophia Loren ( lə-REN, Italian: [ˈlɔːren]), is an Italian actress, active in her native country and the United States. With a career spanning over 70 years, she is one of the last surviving major stars from the Golden Age of Hollywood cinema.

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  • 2006 Olympic Winter Games open in Italy

    Rolling Stones said the balls signify snow. Eight women, Italian actress Sophia Loren, Chilean writer Isabel Allende, American actress Susan Sarandon, Nobel ·

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Robert De Niro

Actor and restaurateur

Co-founder of Nobu and Tribeca Grill, with an Italian-American table at the center of half his filmography. One of the few actors who is genuinely a restaurant operator.

Robert De Niro is one of the few actors who is a genuine restaurant operator, as co-founder of Nobu and Tribeca Grill.

Where the food comes from
Italian-American New York, with family roots in Molise and Campania
The scene people remember
The prison kitchen in Goodfellas — razor-thin garlic, the tomatoes, the roast — is the food scene his fans quote most, even though the line is Paul Sorvino's.

Why the food story is real

  • Co-founded Nobu with chef Nobu Matsuhisa, now a global restaurant and hotel group
  • Co-founded Tribeca Grill in downtown Manhattan
  • Long-running involvement in the Tribeca neighborhood's restaurant scene

Cook and drink along with Robert De Niro

Lasagna alla Bolognese — The Sunday-table centerpiece that his Italian-American films keep circling back to.

Americano — A New York Italian's aperitivo — Campari, vermouth, soda, nothing to prove.

What restaurants does Robert De Niro own?

He is a co-founder of the Nobu group and of Tribeca Grill in New York, and has backed several other downtown Manhattan restaurant projects.

Robert De Niro — free-to-share file

Robert De Niro — free-licence portrait from Wikimedia Commons
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Robert Anthony De Niro ( də NEER-roh; Italian: [de ˈniːro]; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor and producer. Widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential actors of his generation, he has received various accolades, including two Academy Awards and a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for eight BAFTA Awards and four Emmy Awards.

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Al Pacino

Actor

The Godfather taught a generation how to brown sausage and add a little wine — the most quoted Italian-American cooking scene ever filmed.

Al Pacino starred in the film that taught America how to cook Italian-American Sunday gravy — The Godfather.

Where the food comes from
East Harlem and the South Bronx, New York
The scene people remember
Clemenza's sauce lesson in The Godfather (1972): fry garlic, throw in tomatoes and tomato paste, add sausage and meatballs, then a little wine and sugar. It is the most quoted cooking scene in film.

Why the food story is real

  • The Godfather's kitchen scenes shaped how a generation pictured Italian-American home cooking
  • The Godfather Part II opens its New York chapters around the family table

Cook and drink along with Al Pacino

Homemade Italian Sausage — Clemenza's gravy starts with sausage. Make your own and the whole pot changes.

Negroni Sbagliato — The mistaken Negroni — prosecco in place of gin — for a long Sunday at the stove.

What is the cooking scene in The Godfather?

Clemenza teaches Michael to make Sunday gravy: garlic in oil, tomatoes and tomato paste, sausage and meatballs, then wine and a pinch of sugar. Pacino's Michael is the one being taught.

Al Pacino — free-to-share file

Al Pacino — free-licence portrait from Wikimedia Commons
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Alfredo James Pacino ( pə-CHEE-noh; Italian: [paˈtʃiːno]; born April 25, 1940) is an American actor. Known for his intense performances on stage and screen, Pacino is widely regarded as one of the greatest actors of all time.

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Monica Bellucci

Actress

Umbrian to the core, Bellucci talks openly about olive oil, truffles and the long family lunches of Città di Castello whenever the subject turns to food.

Monica Bellucci is an Umbrian actress who talks about olive oil, truffles and long family lunches whenever the subject turns to food.

Where the food comes from
Città di Castello, Umbria
The scene people remember
Umbrian settings and tables run through her Italian-language work, and she returns to the region's cooking constantly in interviews.

Why the food story is real

  • Grew up in Umbria, a region defined by olive oil, black truffles and pork butchery
  • Speaks regularly about family lunches and regional produce rather than restaurant dining

Cook and drink along with Monica Bellucci

Pollo alla Cacciatora — Hunter-style chicken is central Italian home cooking at its plainest and best.

Bicicletta — White wine, Campari, soda — the light country aperitivo of central and northern Italy.

What food is Monica Bellucci's region known for?

Umbria: extra virgin olive oil, black truffles from Norcia, cured pork, lentils from Castelluccio and simple grilled meats.

Monica Bellucci — free-to-share file

Monica Bellucci — free-licence portrait from Wikimedia Commons
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Monica Anna Maria Bellucci (Italian: [ˈmɔːnika belˈluttʃi]; born 30 September 1964) is an Italian actress who began her career as a fashion model before working in Italian, American, British, and French films.

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Giancarlo Giannini

Actor

A fixture of Italian cinema whose on-screen tables — Wertmüller, Bond, Hannibal — are as memorable as his performances, and a vocal defender of traditional Ligurian cooking.

Giancarlo Giannini is a pillar of Italian cinema and a vocal defender of traditional Ligurian cooking.

Where the food comes from
La Spezia, Liguria
The scene people remember
His Lina Wertmüller films put working-class Italian tables on screen long before food television existed.

Why the food story is real

  • Ligurian by birth, from the basil and olive oil coast
  • Frequently defends regional cooking and its ingredients in interviews

Cook and drink along with Giancarlo Giannini

Pesto alla Genovese — Liguria's signature — basil, pine nuts, two cheeses, good oil, no shortcuts.

Aperol Spritz — The default seaside aperitivo up and down the Italian coast.

What is Ligurian food?

Coastal cooking built on basil, olive oil, pine nuts, seafood and thin flatbreads — pesto, focaccia, farinata and trofie are the best known examples.

Giancarlo Giannini — free-to-share file

Giancarlo Giannini — free-licence portrait from Wikimedia Commons
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Giancarlo Giannini (Italian: [dʒaŋˈkarlo dʒanˈniːni]; born 1 August 1942) is an Italian actor. He won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor for his performance in Love and Anarchy (1973) and received an Academy Award nomination for Seven Beauties (1975). He is also a four-time recipient of the David di Donatello Award for Best Actor.

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Roberto Benigni

Actor and director

Tuscany's loudest ambassador. Life Is Beautiful put an Italian family table on the Oscars stage, and his riffs on Tuscan bread and wine are their own genre.

Roberto Benigni is Tuscany's loudest ambassador, and his riffs on Tuscan bread and wine are a genre of their own.

Where the food comes from
Castiglion Fiorentino, Tuscany
The scene people remember
Life Is Beautiful (1997) put an Italian family table on the Oscars stage and turned a waiter's dining-room scenes into its emotional spine.

Why the food story is real

  • Tuscan-born, from a farming family
  • Life Is Beautiful builds much of its first act inside a restaurant dining room

Cook and drink along with Roberto Benigni

Bucatini all'Amatriciana — Central Italian, pork-and-pecorino cooking — the kind of plate Benigni actually talks about.

Negroni — Invented in Florence. There is no more Tuscan glass.

What is Tuscan food known for?

Unsalted bread, beans, grilled meat over wood, olive oil and Chianti — plain ingredients handled with restraint.

Roberto Benigni — free-to-share file

Roberto Benigni — free-licence portrait from Wikimedia Commons
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Roberto Remigio Benigni ( bə-NEE-nyee, Italian: [roˈbɛrto beˈniɲɲi]; born 27 October 1952) is an Italian actor, comedian, screenwriter, and film director.

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Danny DeVito

Actor and limoncello maker

Launched Danny DeVito's Premium Limoncello after falling for the Sorrento original — the rare actor whose product ended up in real Italian digestivo conversations.

Danny DeVito makes and sells his own limoncello, after falling for the Sorrento original.

Where the food comes from
Asbury Park, New Jersey; Italian-American family roots
The scene people remember
His limoncello brand grew out of an on-air moment that turned into an actual product line.

Why the food story is real

  • Launched Danny DeVito's Premium Limoncello
  • One of the few celebrity drinks brands that Italians will argue about seriously

Cook and drink along with Danny DeVito

Cannoli Siciliani — Southern dessert, southern digestivo — the pairing runs itself.

Limoncello Spritz — The long version of the shot he actually sells.

Does Danny DeVito make limoncello?

Yes — he launched his own limoncello brand after becoming a fan of the Sorrento-style original.

Danny DeVito — free-to-share file

Danny DeVito — free-licence portrait from Wikimedia Commons
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Daniel Michael DeVito Jr., ( də-VEE-toh; born November 17, 1944) is an American actor, comedian and filmmaker. Known for his short stature, raspy voice, distinct accent, and energetic comedy roles, he gained prominence for his portrayal of the taxi dispatcher Louie De Palma in the television series Taxi (1978–1983), which won him a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award.

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Marisa Tomei

Actress

Brooklyn Italian-American through and through — from My Cousin Vinny to Only You, her roles keep landing at the family table, and she cooks the same way off camera.

Marisa Tomei is a Brooklyn Italian-American actress whose roles keep landing at the family table.

Where the food comes from
Brooklyn, New York
The scene people remember
My Cousin Vinny (1992) runs on kitchen and diner scenes as much as courtroom ones.

Why the food story is real

  • Brooklyn Italian-American upbringing
  • Repeatedly cast in films built around Italian-American family meals

Cook and drink along with Marisa Tomei

Chicken Parmigiana — The Italian-American red-sauce plate that Brooklyn kitchens run on.

Espresso Martini — A New York after-dinner drink with an Italian coffee heart.

Is Marisa Tomei Italian?

She is Italian-American, raised in Brooklyn, with family roots in southern Italy.

Marisa Tomei — free-to-share file

Marisa Tomei — free-licence portrait from Wikimedia Commons
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Marisa Tomei (, Italian: [toˈmɛi]; born December 4, 1964) is an American actress. She gained prominence for her comedic performance in My Cousin Vinny (1992), which earned her the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress. She received further nominations in the category for In the Bedroom (2001) and The Wrestler (2008).

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Isabella Rossellini

Actress and farmer

Runs Mama Farm on Long Island — heritage animals, eggs, honey — and talks about food as agriculture first, glamour second.

Isabella Rossellini runs Mama Farm on Long Island and talks about food as agriculture first, glamour second.

Where the food comes from
Rome by birth; Long Island, New York today
The scene people remember
Her farming and animal-behaviour projects have become as public as her film work.

Why the food story is real

  • Runs Mama Farm, raising heritage breeds and producing eggs and honey
  • Studied animal behaviour and conservation
  • Speaks about biodiversity and heritage breeds rather than restaurant trends

Cook and drink along with Isabella Rossellini

Spaghetti Carbonara — A four-ingredient dish that lives or dies on the quality of the eggs.

Garibaldi — Campari and fluffy fresh orange juice — a produce-first drink.

What does Isabella Rossellini farm?

Heritage-breed animals at Mama Farm on Long Island, including chickens and bees, with eggs and honey sold locally.

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Isabella Rossellini — free-licence portrait from Wikimedia Commons
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Isabella Fiorella Elettra Giovanna Rossellini (Italian: [izaˈbɛlla rosselˈliːni]; born 18 June 1952) is an Italian and American actress and model. The daughter of Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman and Italian film director Roberto Rossellini, she is noted for her successful tenure as a Lancôme model and an established career in American and European cinema.

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Luca Guadagnino

Director and designer

Films that eat well — Call Me by Your Name's apricots, Bones and All's road food — and a side career designing restaurant interiors in Italy.

Luca Guadagnino makes films that eat well, and has a side career designing interiors, including restaurants.

Where the food comes from
Palermo, Sicily
The scene people remember
Call Me by Your Name's apricots, soft-boiled eggs and Lombard summer table are the most copied food images in recent arthouse cinema.

Why the food story is real

  • Runs a design studio that has worked on hospitality and restaurant interiors in Italy
  • Builds meals into his films as structure rather than decoration

Cook and drink along with Luca Guadagnino

Pasta alla Norma — Sicilian to the core — aubergine, tomato, ricotta salata — from the island he was born on.

Bellini — Stone fruit and prosecco, the northern Italian summer his films keep filming.

Why is there so much food in Luca Guadagnino's films?

He uses meals and shared tables to structure scenes — the apricots and long lunches of Call Me by Your Name are plot devices, not set dressing.

Luca Guadagnino — free-to-share file

Luca Guadagnino — free-licence portrait from Wikimedia Commons
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Luca Guadagnino (Italian: [ˈluːka ɡwadaɲˈɲiːno]; born 10 August 1971) is an Italian film director and producer. His films are characterized by their emotional complexity, eroticism, and lavish visuals.

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Michael Imperioli

Actor and writer

The Sopranos made Sunday gravy, Vesuvio and baked ziti part of American food language; Imperioli still gets asked about the food more than the plot.

Michael Imperioli starred in the show that made Sunday gravy, baked ziti and Vesuvio part of American food language.

Where the food comes from
Mount Vernon, New York; Italian-American
The scene people remember
The Sopranos turned a New Jersey Italian-American restaurant into a recurring character, and its food is discussed as much as its plot.

Why the food story is real

  • Central cast member of The Sopranos, which spawned its own bestselling cookbook
  • Writer and director on the series

Cook and drink along with Michael Imperioli

Melanzane alla Parmigiana — Baked, layered, red-sauce cooking — the exact register of the show's table scenes.

Sgroppino — Lemon sorbet, prosecco, vodka — the palate cleanser to end a heavy Sunday plate.

What food is The Sopranos famous for?

Sunday gravy, baked ziti, capicola, gabagool talk and the Vesuvio restaurant scenes — enough that the series produced its own cookbook.

Michael Imperioli — free-to-share file

Michael Imperioli — free-licence portrait from Wikimedia Commons
PhilipRomanoPhoto · CC BY-SA 4.0

Michael Imperioli (Italian: [impeˈrjɔːli]; born March 26, 1966) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Christopher Moltisanti in the HBO crime drama series The Sopranos (1999–2007), which earned him the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in 2004.

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James Gandolfini Aka 'Tony Soprano' Attacks Paparazzi For Filming Him Trick Or Treating With His SonThe Hollywood FixVideo page →
Paulie Walnuts from the Sopranos sends a message in Family Guyg4m3r1993Video page →

Questions readers ask

Which movie stars are covered on this page?
We track Stanley Tucci, Sophia Loren, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Monica Bellucci, Giancarlo Giannini and other Italian and Italian-American actors and directors whose food stories are worth following.
How often does the movie star food news update?
Headlines refresh continuously from public news feeds and are re-checked every few minutes, so each star's block shows their latest food, restaurant and cooking stories.
Where do the videos come from?
Each star block shows the best-matching public YouTube clips — cooking segments, restaurant features and interviews. Nothing loads until you press play.
Which Italian movie stars actually cook?
Stanley Tucci and Sophia Loren have both published cookbooks, Robert De Niro co-founded Nobu and Tribeca Grill, Danny DeVito makes limoncello, and Isabella Rossellini runs a working farm.
What is Stanley Tucci's most famous dish?
Timpano, the baked pasta drum from Big Night. His Negroni and his Rome-style carbonara come a close second.
Did Sophia Loren write a cookbook?
Yes — In Cucina con Amore, later published in English, and a second collection, Recipes & Memories. Both are Neapolitan home cooking told through her own life.
What restaurants does Robert De Niro own?
He is a co-founder of the Nobu group and of Tribeca Grill in New York, and has backed several other downtown Manhattan restaurant projects.
What is the cooking scene in The Godfather?
Clemenza teaches Michael to make Sunday gravy: garlic in oil, tomatoes and tomato paste, sausage and meatballs, then wine and a pinch of sugar. Pacino's Michael is the one being taught.
What food is Monica Bellucci's region known for?
Umbria: extra virgin olive oil, black truffles from Norcia, cured pork, lentils from Castelluccio and simple grilled meats.
What is Ligurian food?
Coastal cooking built on basil, olive oil, pine nuts, seafood and thin flatbreads — pesto, focaccia, farinata and trofie are the best known examples.
What is Tuscan food known for?
Unsalted bread, beans, grilled meat over wood, olive oil and Chianti — plain ingredients handled with restraint.
Does Danny DeVito make limoncello?
Yes — he launched his own limoncello brand after becoming a fan of the Sorrento-style original.
Is Marisa Tomei Italian?
She is Italian-American, raised in Brooklyn, with family roots in southern Italy.
What does Isabella Rossellini farm?
Heritage-breed animals at Mama Farm on Long Island, including chickens and bees, with eggs and honey sold locally.
Why is there so much food in Luca Guadagnino's films?
He uses meals and shared tables to structure scenes — the apricots and long lunches of Call Me by Your Name are plot devices, not set dressing.
What food is The Sopranos famous for?
Sunday gravy, baked ziti, capicola, gabagool talk and the Vesuvio restaurant scenes — enough that the series produced its own cookbook.

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