What’s up ladies and gents?! I’m back with another of my stories regarding the Outfit’s schemes and this time I strongly advise you all to prepare yourself at least some sandwich or any kind of meal, since this one might give you the munchies…and please save your prayers for after reading this piece…enjoy



The main thing which gave me the inspiration for writing this article was the scene of the famous Godfather movie, where one of the film characters known as Pete Clemenza teaches Michael Corleone on how to make one mouth-watering spaghetti sauce and cook a simple meal for dozens of people. He says “Heh, come over here, kid, learn something. You never know, you might have to cook for 20 guys someday. You see, you start out with a little bit of oil. Then you fry some garlic. Then you throw in some tomatoes, tomato paste, you fry it, ya make sure it doesn’t stick. You get it to a boil, you shove in all your sausage and your meatballs, heh…? And a little bit o’wine. An’ a little bit o’sugar, and that’s my trick…” Another interesting example is when one day I was sitting with my year old son and together we watched the “Mr. Bean” cartoon series, and in one episode you can find Bean having problems with one famous Italian pizza chef who turns out to be a Mafia boss. Because of numerous film scenarios like these, at the beginning of the 21st century, again mostly because of the movies, music and pop culture, in the eyes of some of the everyday citizens, the two different “things”, meaning the Mob and particularly Italian food, slowly became one “thing”.


The definition for “food” is practically any nutritious substance that people eat or drink on daily basis, in order to maintain life and growth. We absorb it in all kinds of forms and we can’t survive without it. On top of that, the everyday food we eat can be either the most powerful form of cure or the lowest form of intoxication. Most of the world’s medical scientists say that a single human can go for more than three weeks without food, but without water is a different story. But that’s not the point of this particular story, since some of the people who can easily buy their daily food supplies, love to prepare their meal in their own kind of style and they like to do it every day. To tell you the truth, I personally love to take a cooking pan and satisfy my dearest ones with my “magical” recipes. I also love to make new experiments with my food and taste different styles of cooking, or in plane words, I’m addicted to good and different tastes of home-made meals. So because of the huge number of people like me, who throw their money on food supplies on daily basis, in time some more thoughtful individuals began to see that the food business can be quite lucrative. In the old days, people used to go directly to the local farmer and buy whatever the individual needed, first hand. But today, we have whole industries which in fact represent complex and global collective of diverse businesses that supplies most of the food consumed by the world population. The only things that are the closer to the so-called old days are the subsistence farmers and hunter-gatherers, which in fact are the only ones in the food industry these days who survive on what they grow or catch, and we can still buy their products first hand. In other words, they can be easily considered outside of the scope of the modern food industry.


Since the beginning of the 20th century these food industries made trillions of dollars from the people around the world, and the “funny” thing is that there are still many hungry individuals in every country. So if there’s the smell of huge amounts of cash, usually there’s also organized crime. Most organized crime groups from around the world have their claws in the food business and they enjoyed this satisfaction since day one. Some of these crime syndicates are even emotionally tied to their food businesses, since many of these individuals love producing and preparing nice meals on their own and they’ve done it during their whole lives and on top of that, most of their families started it that way. Back in the centuries, most of our predecessors were involved in the everyday agriculture, including the criminals. The main thing is that not every crime syndicate is equally successful in this venture, mostly because of their territorial locations, meaning if one group is located in a territory with warm climate and near a sea or an ocean, they usually have a larger “menu” on the sale. As for the ones in the much colder areas, well they obviously have less to show. But the problem is that no matter which crime syndicate is involved in the selling of our daily food products, sooner or later those same groups will make something to take more of your money so you can get less from them. This so-called “practice” can be seen mostly by the crime groups which are located across the Mediterranean coastline, obviously such as the infamous Italian crime syndicates.



Mediterranean type of food


The Italian cuisine is one of the oldest in the world, with roots which are stretching to antiquity, and through those many centuries of social and political changes, it has developed into something so simple, but yet quite so magnificent. According to some history books, the Italian food of which we know of today, allegedly started to form after the fall of the Roman Empire, when different cities began to separate and form their own traditional meals, which in fact were quite similar. Quite different types of styles and variations in cooking techniques and preparations were used like for example, the north of Italy is known for its “risottos”, or the central part of the country is known for its “tortellini” and the southern part is famous for its “pizzas” and “spaghettis”, but generally all over the territory you can find good sea food. The whole thing even became more popular when many Italians began migrating to the so-called “New World” during the late 1800’s and early 1900’s and managed to heavily influence many of the local cuisines. For example, in Venezuela, Brazil, Argentina and Mexico we can easily spot the Italian influence in their traditional meals and according to many historical reports, these were the main places where this cuisine was and still is most appreciated. But the interesting thing is that in the U.S.A., much of the Italian cuisine is based on that found around the southern part of the country, especially Sicily. Obviously by now the original Italian cuisine is heavily Americanized, mainly because of the local ingredients and different styles of preparing the meals.


So coincidentally, since many of the traditions came mainly from the southern region of Italy, the secret criminal “tradition” also arrived in the states. This wasn’t something planned but instead it was a natural situation, meaning among every 10 honest immigrants, there was probably one criminal. In fact, during that period the U.S. became sort of a “dumping ground” for the many dangerous criminals, mainly from the Campania region and Sicily. As some of you know, the main difference between the Italian and the rest of the local crime syndicates is that the Italians have their own secret criminal organizations with roots all the way to the 18th century, which slowly became one of the main problems for the American government. In those days they had all kinds of Italian criminal groups, such as the “Black Hand” which in fact represented a disorganized method of extortion and very brutal one, and also many other independent gangs which also terrorized the honest citizens. But the biggest problem for the U.S. government, as I previously mentioned, were the secret and highly organized criminal groups such as the “Mafia” and “Camorra”, which still held their connections back home and brought many of their criminal cohorts and began infiltrating every possible illegal or legal business, including the food industry, thus slowly forming their own criminal empire. So as I previously stated that some of the organized crime groups had long ties to the food business and they looked at it as their own tradition.


Many historians say that the trend toward Italian food actually started at the beginning of the 20th century as the Italian immigrants settled themselves and began offering their main specialities. For example, one of the earliest Italian dishes, allegedly created in the U.S., is Chicken Tetrazzini, which in fact was made in honour of Luisa Tetrazzini, the operatic soprano known as The Florentine Nightingale. Or the famous Muffuletta Sandwich, named after the Sicilian muffuliette baked rolls, and Chicago’s Italian Beef Sandwich which was invented by Italian immigrants who worked at Chicago's old Union Stock Yards during the early 1900’s. The legend goes that the workers would often bring home some of the tougher, less desirable cuts of beef sold by the company. To make the meat more palatable, it was slow-roasted to make it more tender, and then slow-simmered in a spicy broth for flavour. The meat was then thinly sliced across the grain and stuffed into fresh Italian bread and there it was. The thing is that most of these were cheap meals made for the everyday people, who did not have the money to sit in a restaurant on daily basis. But for the people with deep pockets, there were the finest Italian cooks, in the finest Italian restaurants, which at the time some of them were ran by gangsters and racketeers.



Chicago’s Beef Sandwich


Like any other old time criminal saga, this one also starts with the so-called “importation” of criminals which went in the same parallel with the importation of everything else, including clothing materials, medical substances and above all, food supplies. Also, the main illegal activities at the time were extortion, prostitution, corruption and murder, which were their basic money “machines” for the local criminals, meaning alcohol and drugs were still legally imported and used by the everyday citizen. So in those days, the other option was for the gangsters to represent themselves as legitimate businessmen, which in fact was their real purpose so they can hide their real parasitic nature. And obviously, one of those main legit operations, which they chose, was the food business since every one of them was a full-blooded Italian. Many of the more successful Italian criminals began opening their own grocery shops, bars and restaurants around their territories, with food, ingredients and products imported straight from back home, which were able to endure the long transportation. You see, some of the more thoughtful Italian criminals also quickly realized or they already knew that with the help of their tasty cuisine, they can easily attract individuals from the highest levels of America’s society and make their dreams come true.


One of those so-called more thoughtful individuals and also big time racketeer was James Coloismo, the guy who I believe there’s not even one Chicago Mob chronology which doesn’t start with his name. Colosimo had Calabrian roots and was an individual, or as I want to call him, a “one man army”, meaning he had the prostitution, gambling and extortion rackets locked down around Chicago’s lucrative Near South Side and Loop, and he also had the most influential political and police protection, but the main thing was that he had his own Italian restaurant, which in fact was his real life passion. “Big Jim”, as he was known, opened his first saloon in 1910 somewhere around that territory and at first it was more like a gambling joint and a whorehouse rather than a saloon, but later by the early 1910’s, he already moved to 2126 South Wabash St. From that point on, his saloon transformed more into an establishment which looked like a high class restaurant, which obviously began attracting high class people and became known as Colosimo’s Café. Story goes that it was the most elegant place, with a huge mahogany and glass bar, and 100 tables all around the dining room, which in turn had red velvet wallpaper on the side walls and the ceiling was painted in sky blue, decorated with huge solid gold chandeliers which hung over the stage. The most interesting thing at the time was the so-called dance hall floor, which was made automatically for it to raise and lower itself with the help of a hidden hydraulic lift.


In reality this was his way of portraying himself in front of the world as legitimate businessman, meaning Colosimo’s joint became the center of social life in Chicago and one of the hottest night spots which the city ever had. Since he was one of the main and feared racketeers at the time, Colosimo brought in various types of people such as one young and talented actor during those days known as John Drew Barrymore or the famous singer Al Jolson, but the thing was that they mixed with “suspicious” faces such as Mike Heitler, Colosimo’s partner in the prostitution business or Dennis Cooney, another partner in that same racket and maybe even two of the most “respectable racketeers” in Chicago’s underworld at the time like Mont Tennes and James O’Leary. Story goes that Colosimo’s so-called “secrets” were the very beautiful showgirls, the crazy talented orchestras, high class clientele but above all, the finest Calabrian dishes and wines. According to few of the remaining menus from the restaurant, Colosimo’s so-called signature dish was the famous “Spaghetti a la Colosimo”, which in fact was ordinary Spaghetti a la Carbonara, as most of us know it today. While the guests enjoyed their meals, it was a nightly occurrence to hear members of the Chicago Civic Opera, such as Mary Garden, Titta Ruffo, John McCormick, and the conductor Maestro Cleofonte Campanini.


During the mid 1910’s, when Chicago’s red-light district which was known as the Levee and was also Colosimo’s personal “playground”, came under constant attacks from the government, the Neapolitan crime boss decided to close down his restaurant for a while and transfer his operations in Burnham. Over there he opened another Colosimo's but this time, he owned only half of the restaurant, and the other half went to one of his closest associates Mike "The Greek" Potson and later to one political fixer known as James Adduci. The problem was that the new so-called saloon was more like gambling joint and a whorehouse rather than a restaurant. This might’ve been the first sign on how Colosimo began to lose his traditional sense, and proof for that was when few years later when he divorced from his wife and took a different path with a younger woman. Who knows, maybe he even lost his sense for business since in 1920 he was found shot to death with a cryptic message next to his lifeless body, in the lobby of his old restaurant, where in fact his old passion started, and that’s where it ended. After the murder of Colosimo, during Prohibition his business partners Potson and Adduci bought Colosimo’s interests in the famous restaurant from his family heirs. Story goes a decade later, Jake Guzik became the so-called silent partner in the same restaurant with the help of one Steve DeKosta, who became the manager and also worked as a bartender at the place.


As you can see, during the 1910’s in Chicago, many criminals from different ethnicities managed to disguise themselves same as the ordinary and harmless individuals, by operating their own legitimate businesses such as restaurants and grocery stores, and obviously served their own traditional drinks and meals. But when many Neapolitan and Sicilian immigrants began opening their joints and operations around the North, West and South sides of the city, the whole situation literally changed. By that time, almost three million Italians left Italy for the United States, and four-fifths of them were from the southern regions such as Abruzzo, Campania, Molise, Calabria and Sicily. Many Italian ships began carrying mainly wheat flour and olive oil, but later they also transported cheese, wine and all kinds of fruit, particularly oranges, lemons, and figs. The thing was that some of those smarter Italian criminals, who managed to smuggle themselves among the rest of their fellow immigrants, also quickly presented themselves as legitimate farmers or businessmen. Now don’t get me wrong, many of them came with no kind of knowledge or skills for anything but some arrived already prepared. For example the city’s North Side at the time, was filled with Italian immigrants, mainly Sicilians, who deeply rooted themselves around the territory and acted as if they were brought back home.


By the end of the decade, few of the most prominent Italian extortionists and Mob leaders around the North Side were Rosario Dispenza and one Pete Catalanetto. Most of these guys circled the area known as “Little Sicily” and while constantly extorting innocent victims and killing each other, somewhere in the middle they successfully managed to operate their legitimate enterprises. For example one of the most prominent and “shady” individuals was Victor Barone, who in turn was a close associate of Dispenza. Now, this guy was a Sicilian and had criminal connections all the way to New York and with the help of his criminal gang, Dispenza managed to prey on its own people by extorting them on daily basis, or in other words, he took the last piece of food right out of the poor man’s mouth. Another of Barone’s close associates was Pietro “Pete” Catalanetto, who in turn also looked upon himself as one of the most powerful crime bosses in that area mainly because of his underworld connections around the country. That is why Barone frequently has been arrested and questioned by the Chicago police in connection with many murders which occurred in the Italian quarter, and each time he has been able to doge the evidences against him, but the police always believed that Barone probably knew a great deal about the workings of the Dispenza and Catalanetto gangs.


So with a reputation like that, Victor Barone easily opened up shop and quite successfully managed to hide his true nature by operating his legitimate business. Barone portrayed himself as a wine merchant and his shop was located at 1024 Cambridge Avenue, and from there he sold imported Italian wine and sold it around the local saloons, restaurants and other liquor shops. Obviously the ones which refused to accept his product or in some cases if there was a strong competition, many Italian owners were terrorized and some were instantly killed by a hale of bullets or a blast from a bomb. In those days, like many other wine merchants from that area, Barone also imported Sicilian type of red wine with fruity smell and strong scent of blackberries and usually with dry and slightly sour taste. This type of wine is still mainly produced in southern part of Sicily, mostly because the wine likes hot and relatively dry climates. But even though he imported already made product which was placed in a bottle and sent on a ship, still the interesting thing was that most of the time Barone imported only the special type of grape and produced his wine in the basement of his shop. The Sicilian type of grape which I’m talking about is used for making wine, according to the newest research, since 6000 years ago and during the beginning of the 20th century they still held by the ancient traditions of winemaking back on the island. For example one of the most popular types of grapes which were and are still used today, is known as Grillo, which is a traditional Sicilian grape and besides making wine, it also can be used for making aperitifs and also for refreshing the plate with variety of Italian cuisines. Story goes that when the Grillo grapes are gently pressed then the juice, which later ferment at cold temperatures, provides a wonderful smell like fresh-cut grass mixed with grapefruit. The next type of grapes which are also used during those days are known as Nero d’Avola which in fact is used for the making of the Mediterranean’s most regal red wines, and also Catarratto, which same as Grillo, is a grape often used for making white wines with a delicate bouquet of white flowers, aromas of ripe citrus, melon and other herbal flavours. In addition, these types of grapes or wine were also not widely known outside of Italy for a very long time until it reached the U.S. In this business Victor Barone had two types of competition, one was the quite expensive French wine which was already placed on the market but had a tough time in getting sold around the Italian parts of the city, and the second competition was more serious which was wine also produced in the southern part of Italy such as the Campania area and same as the Sicilian type, this one was also easily reachable for the local Italian population.



Grillo grapes


Nero d’Avola grapes


Catarratto grapes


So allegedly because of the huge competition, during this period many Sicilian wine makers relocated all the way to California mostly because of the moderately hot days and clear nights, which is a similar climate to southern Italy, which is perfect for growing the needed type of grapes and for producing their wine. One of Barone’s associates in the grape growing business was Tommy Petrotta, who in turn also represented himself as a wealthy wine broker by owning or had connections to thousand hectares of wine grape on the west coast. In no time, besides the local owners on Chicago’s North Side, Barone’s organization began transporting their product even around the Midwest, thus providing huge amounts of legitimate cash for the organization. In addition, from this point on many Chicago businessmen also began investing in the importation of California products in their own city and even on the east coast. But even though his business ventures were going pretty steady, soon Barone’s dreams were about to be shattered since two of his main associates in the underworld were killed by their rivals. On January 23, 1914, Rosario Dispenza and one close associate were ambushed allegedly by one assassin, who in turn killed his victims one by one. Ten days later, Barone was also shot by a shotgun blast at Cambridge Avenue and Hobble Street, only a block away from where his crime boss Dispenza was also killed. After that, Barone was quickly carried to the Columbus Memorial hospital, seriously hurt, but because some of the slugs from the shotgun had deeply penetrated into his skull, he died shortly after the arrival.


The investigators believed at the time that the series of shootings have been part of a “campaign” managed by so-called “Black Hand" extortionists in order to get rid of the local gang leaders such as Dispenza, who in turn belonged to a different and more organized secret society known as the Mafia. On the other hand, I personally believe that this may have also been part of a power struggle within the local Chicago Mafia, since most of the newspaper reporters at the time were not aware of the secret organization. After the murder of Barone, his business partner Tommy Petrotta completely dedicated himself to the wine selling business and one year later, he relocated to Sacramento, California, from where he continued to grow grapes and transport Italian wine all around the Midwest and became one of the wealthiest wine dealers in the country. You see, Petrotta wasn’t the only Chicago mobster who relocated far west and began growing grapes, but since the many shootings, by 1917 he was followed by others such as Tony D’Acunto and one Vincenzo Roselli, who in turn relocated few years later, and they operated around the West Market St. in Los Angeles, California; where many Italian fruit importers and exporters mingled and sold their products. In addition, during the fatal shootings, Pete Catalanetto also received a bullet right into his face from a very close range and died on the spot. Even though he portrayed himself as a prominent olive oil importer, the reality was that it was all a front for his illegal activities. According to some reports, Catalanetto in fact never did any legitimate work, but the cops had tough time in catching the criminal mostly because he always kept dozens of olive oil cans at his house.