Believe it or not, there’s more than one holiday in March. That’s right, the calendar focus goes from Ireland to Italy on March 19th in honor of St. Joseph’s Day. As a big holiday for many Italians {and coveted, the holiday is a day dedicated to celebrating St. Joseph, the patron saint of Sicily. Read on to learn all about St. Joseph’s Day and how Dolce and Salato in Hoboken is celebrating:
The History
St. Joseph’s Day is celebrated with the Feast of St. Joseph. As many Italian families immigrated to the U.S. during the 19th century, honoring this patron saint was a tradition that followed them to this country.
It is believed that during the Middle Ages Sicily was experiencing a major drought. As a result, the locals prayed to St. Joseph to help provide them with rainfall to end the natural disaster. Luckily, during that time, there was one crop that survived and help sustain the locals – the fava bean.
Legend has it that God sent St. Joseph to create rain for the local Sicilians, and ever since then, that blessing is honored with the Feast of St. Joseph on March 19th. Today, many Italian-Americans uphold this tradition by decorating altars {with flowers, candles, fava beans, and more}, or by eating + serving foods with bread crumbs {to pay homage to the saint, as he was a carpenter}.
Dolce + Salato’s St. Joseph’s Celebration
{Photo: @dolceandsalato_hoboken}
For those ready to celebrate the patron saint or simply participate in some more fun {and delicious} festivities following St. Patty’s Day, Hoboken has no shortage of excellent Italian locales participating in the fun.
{Photo: Facebook}
One traditional Italian spot is Dolce + Salato, located at 1101 Grand Street.
In honor of St. Joseph’s Day, the cafe will be serving special pastries filled with custard, cannoli, and Chantilly filling. Stop by any time on Tuesday, March 19th to pick one up
Dolce & Salato is a neighborhood Italian café and Pasticceria and the {delicious} brainchild of two partners who hail from Italy and Hoboken respectively: Maurizio Dolce and Michael Nirchio. When Maurizio was 12, he immigrated to New Jersey from Palermo, Sicily and for the first time, saw Hoboken — what was to become the home of his future restaurant endeavor. Michael, a native of Hoboken, was born in Saint Mary’s Hospital in Hoboken to parents who came from Molfetta, Italy.
^Maurizio Dolce of Dolce & Salato
{Photo: Facebook}
The sweet treats can be purchased in-store or ordered in advance for any special St. Joseph’s Day celebrations of your own.
What’s more — Dolce + Salato has an awesome deal in our deals directory:
Purchase any sandwich and get a free bowl of soup and cannoli if you mention ‘HOBOKEN GIRL’ at checkout in-store.
Valid any time, one per person.
Enjoy!
How are you celebrating St. Joseph’s Day {or just eating dessert per usual}?
Let us know in the comments!
This post is sponsored by Dolce and Salato.
