San Gennaro Feast Maintains Tradition

Little Italy, NY - The production head, Mort Berkowitz, of this year’s 84th annual San Gennaro Feast declares that due to the loyal vendors and restaurants this feast continues to be traditional, regardless of vendors noticing a more international crowd.


When asked if this street fair is growing to be more diverse, Mort Berkowitz responds: “It is the same event, with ninety five percent of the same exhibitors year to year and probably half are Italian.” He disagrees with the idea that the festival is evolving to become less Italian, recalling that it has been this way since he was a kid. When further questioned on the topic of diversity, he states: “No, no, same people, people have had their stands here for seventy years. They’re family.”

Many vendors on the streets confirmed that they have been attending this Feast for decades, but noted that the crowd is a mixture of ethnicities. Peter Tratoni, the owner of Pete’s Original Zeppoli, reflects on how the festival has changed in the thirty five years he has been involved the production: “A lot. It is more universal, there are many nationalities, every nationality is here. It is an Italian festival, but yet it is not because every one joins in, years ago it was just Italians.” Josaphine Caso, who has been attending San Gennaro for over fifty years, has a similar observation: “Not the same- but every nationality works well with the feast, what I am going to say? We got to get along with everybody, and its good for the business around here.”

It is good for business, especially since 1995 when La Costa Nostra, the organized crime group which previously controlled this festival, was taken to court for extortion and businesses have been able manage their own proceeds. Soon after that incident Mayor Giuliani wrote in, Freeing the Economy from Organized Crime and Restoring Open, Competitive Markets, “The City is asked to issue a permit for this festival each year. We suspended permits to the feast and only restored them after the organizers agreed to a City-appointed monitor, to insure the integrity of their operation.” For the past twelve years Mort and Ray Productions, the company owned by Mort Berkowitz, has been supervising this event and guaranteeing that it remains honest. In this time they have also raised nearly 2 million dollars for Catholic Education. This street fair is unquestionably clean now, as Mr. Berkowitz ensures, “I don’t think I’m part of any Jewish mafia. Nobody has every intimidated me, or said a word to me. So have no clue who any of these people are, and we are just as clean as any other event in the city.” His staff member sitting next to him agrees telling me as an aside that he has not seen so much as a physical argument in the four years he has been working this event.

The San Gennaro Feast is a safe all ages festival these days. As Ed Ferington, a police officer, commented on the crowd: “Very mundane, calm, the young, the old, it’s a mixture.” Mort Berkowitz witnesses the same, “everything, everybody, families until seven and after seven I think we get more couples… or people looking to become couples.”