100+ year old South Philly Italian Festival returns in October

A South Philadelphia festival that has been occurring ever since the early 1900s is returning to South Philadelphia in October.

The Annual St. Nicholas of Tolentine Authentic Italian Festival is scheduled for October 6th from noon to 8 p.m. on the 1700 Block of South 9th Street.

The authentic Italian festival starts with the religious procession throughout the neighborhood with a long line of the Statues of Saints and their faithful following.

After the procession, attendees will be able to grab food from various South Philly Italian food vendors including, The Kitchen Consigliere, Marra’s Pizza, Esposito Porchetta, Termini Bros Bakery, Del Buono Bakery and more. There will also be live entertainment throughout the day and lots of fun for the kids including rides, face painting, games, sandy candy, sand art and more.

The festival is FREE and food and drinks will be pay-as-you-go.

Italian festivals have been held at St. Nicholas of Tolentine Church since 1912 when the parish was established Italian immigrants who wished to maintain a connection to their homeland.

Rev. Nick Martorano, pastor of the church, has strived to make it a very special celebration for South Philadelphia.  He said, “We wanted to create an opportunity for our entire community, not just our parishioners, to come together and celebrate one of the many diverse cultures that make our neighborhood so great.”

Entertainment schedule:

• 1:00 – Elegance String Quartet
• 2:00 – Accordionist Nick Desiderio
• 3:00 – “That’s Amore: The Great Italian-American Songbook”: Featuring Jenna Esposito, Steve Ritrovato & More
• 4:30 – The Vivaci Dancers
• 5:00 – Quaker City String Band
• 5:30 – The Sicilian Tenors
• 6:30 – DJ Bob Kelly from Fox 29
• 7:30 – City Rhythm “Love Train Dance Party”
• DJ Spanky Brown Hosting and Spinning Throughout the Day

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