Boston's Only Italian-born Female Chef, Marisa Iocco Salutes Italian-american Cuisine With Her Newest Concept

For the past six years, Italian chef Marisa Iocco - famed for her ground-breaking work in the kitchens of Galleria Italiana, South End Galleria, and La Bettola, followed by her nationally acclaimed work at Bricco, Umbria and Mare - has been utilizing her talent and flair for teaching as a consultant for a handful of restaurants in greater Boston.

Today, Iocco launches a new concept, unlike anything she's done before, at historic Gennaro's 5 North Square Ristorante, in Boston.

MANGIAMERICA takes the Italian-American menu, familiar to all for classics like spaghetti and meatballs and chicken parm, and dramatically raises the bar on their taste, quality and presentation. It's food that is pieno d'amore -- full of love.

For an explanation of how this cutting-edge chef's thinking has evolved, and why Marisa Iocco now chooses to embrace the distinct cuisine of her adoptive country (she became a U.S. citizen in 2011), read The Concept, two sections below.

Highlights of the MANGIAMERICA Menu

Meatball Medley
One order = three meatballs, with Marisa's Marinara for dipping. Or, mix and match as desired: classic beef, pork & pancetta cacciatore, veal saltimbocca, chicken & mushroom marsala, roasted eggplant with Romano and mozzarella.

Mozzarella Bar
Locally made cheese in a quintet of dishes: burratina with tomatoes & basil, braided over green salad, knotted over garlicky broccoli rabe, in carrozza with anchovies, and a fresh ricotta bruschetta.

Macaroni
Made without eggs to produce lighter-than-air classics like Chitarra Amatriciana, Rigatoni Bolognese, Linguini & Scampi, Fettucini Alfredo

Innovations
Gnocchi with Whole Clams in Pizzaiola Sauce
Vegan Ravioloni with Seasonal Vegetables
Mushroom Risotto Arancini with Red Peppers & Sharp Provolone
1 lb. Porterhouse Veal Chop with mushroom piccante sauce
Lamb Chops Cacciatore

Served Family-Style Only
Sausages and Polenta
Pasta with Sunday Gravy and Pork Ribs
Giambotta (Vegetable Stew)
Lasagna

Standards We Cannot Live Without
Fish Stew, Lobster Fra Diavolo, Veal Marsala, Manicotti, Chicken Parm


MANGIAMERICA -- This New Culinary Concept is Actually a Look Back:

Italian-American cooking, often derided as a lesser spinoff of true cucina Italiana, has been receiving some long overdue respect in recent years. Books like John Mariani's Italian-American Cooking, and Lidia Bastianich's Italian-American Kitchen are focusing attention on the roots of Italian-American culinary culture, roots that have grown deep into the soil and soul of American dining.

MANGIAMERICA celebrates the mainstays of the Italian-American table: sausage and polenta, pork chops with potatoes and vinegar peppers, veal Parmigiano, shrimp scampi, and Sunday gravy.

Marisa Iocco may seem like an odd ambassador for Italian-American food, as her career so far has been based on pushing culinary boundaries, but MANGIAMERICA is both a declaration of affection for the United States, and a journey of personal discovery.

Iocco's grandfather Vincenzo built railroads in Boston and New York for decades, to support his family back in Italy. Immigrants like this, coming to America and unable to find the ingredients of home, developed a new cuisine that utilized ingredients that were often in short supply in Italy, yet abundant here: meat, dried pasta and dried herbs, canned tomatoes.

In immigrant enclaves across the country, Italian families transformed such products into economical yet plentiful dishes. Thus evolved a uniquely Italian-American gastronomy, passed down through generations, and served both at home and at neighborhood restaurants that were soon discovered (and adored) by the general pub