NYC Little Italy offers a filling Sunday extravaganza

ANNELISE GILBERT ’17
FEATURES EDITOR
After a month and a half of being confined to Trinity’s campus and West Hartford, Trinity Days arrived just in time for a much needed break. Being from the West Coast, I have been to New York City maybe five times in my life. The constant noise and shoulder-to-shoulder crowds are not what I would consider a relaxing long weekend, but a friend of mine convinced me that Little Italy was worth the trip.
As soon as we exited the subway on Canal Street and started walking towards Mulberry Street, the peaceful and slow environment of Little Italy took me aback. After we made it through the gangs of Chinatown vendors promising high-quality Louis Vuitton bags, the hunt for pasta began.
First, we wandered up and down Mulberry to peruse all of the menus, but to also experience the ambience that Little Italy has to offer. Since neither of us were too familiar with the area, we restored to Yelp to help us choose a restaurant. Follwing some intense research, we decided on Pellegrino’s at 138 Mulberry Street. The staff was very welcoming and attentive. Our server did not even judge me after I butchered the name of my dish. He brought our food out in no time and continued to check in on us for the rest of the meal.
Our pasta entrees, Spaghetti Pellegrino and Gamerbi Scampi, came out steaming hot. The pasta was light and the shrimp were juicy. To accompany the pasta, we had a trio of Italian, French, and Focaccia bread, which is always nice to use so no pasta sauce goes to waste. I had come to Little Italy with one goal though: to eat a cannoli.
Using Yelp again, our next stop was Ferrara Bakery & Café. The cannoli section was displayed front and center in their large glass display filled with hundreds of decadent pastries. While it was around $30 for just six cannolis and fruit tart, it was worth it.
The shell was crunchy and sweet, with a noticeable hint of vanilla. The cream was amazingly smooth and whipped. Yes, it was heavy, but what else do you expect from a cannoli filling? Small chocolate chips were mixed into the filling, so every so often you would have a rich, chocolaty surprise.
I quickly consumed two before we had to start making the trek towards the Financial District for our next activity.
It was sad to leave, but Little Italy was a highlight of my Trinity Days.