A Trip to Manganaro’s in Chelsea for a Great Lunch

Editor's note: As part of their fundraising efforts for this year, the Friends of
the Hasbrouck Heights Library is asking area businesses to offer
discounts to library supporters who join their Friends Merchants
program. Friends' Justin Watrel has prepared profiles of
participating businesses, which Patch has agreed to publish one to two times per month throughout the year. Patch plays no role in selecting the
businesses or writing the profiles.

In a recent article, I wrote that even as the boom times seem to be over for now, Chelsea still remains a ‘hot’ neighborhood to live, work and dine. With this type of gentrification, traditional family businesses give way to national chains, which can pay the higher rents demanded. Years ago these very chains would never have entered the neighborhood let alone New York City.

As one after another of these types of businesses close, one family business has stood above the others in way of quality product and service, Manganaro’s Gourmet Foods at 488 Ninth Avenue in the heart of North Chelsea (known also as Clinton or Hell’s Kitchen). The business has held its spot since 1893 and has been one of the foremost Italian groceries in New York City.

Manganaro Foods was established in 1910 when the current owner, Seline Dell’Orto’s, great uncle, James Manganaro, made his way from Italy to New York. He had come to work for his Uncle, Ernest Petrucci who had owned and operated Petrucci’s Wine and Liquor store on Ninth Avenue since 1893. In 1914, her uncle was drafted and then returned to the store after his military service. Soon, her uncle decided to open an imported Italian food shop two blocks from his uncle’s liquor store. When Prohibition took effect, James moved his food operation to his uncle’s store, the present location of the shop.

The shop continued to flourish during these times and in the early 20’s, James was joined by his brother, Louis, their sister, Nina and their mother, Michaela. In 1924, Nina Manganaro married Anthony Dell’Orto. They lived above the store and became the proud parents of four healthy sons, one of whom was Seline’s father Salvatore. As Sal, as he is known grown up, he and his brother, Vincent, were major parts of the family business.

In 1949, Sal Dell'Orto married Marion D’Angleo and they had five daughters of their own, the oldest being Seline.

“I remember growing up around the store and getting in everyone’s way,” Seline Dell’Orto said in the Maganaro Family Cookbook. I loved the smell of the fresh imported cheeses and sausages. I would watch my father for hours as he sliced meat paper-thin and made sandwiches for hungry customers. It wasn’t until I was 16 or 17 that I began working in the store. Like everyone else who starts at Manganaro’s, I was assigned first to the kitchen, making sandwiches and salads. Soon I graduated to hot foods and then got to work the counters. It was the training I needed to run the business I do today.” (Manganaro’s Family Cookbook).

I recently talked with Ms. Della’Orto and she talks of the business with much enthusiasm and love of someone who has been in the family business all her life.

“I started in the business as a child but really got involved in the day to day business in the 80’s working side by side with my father, Sal. My sisters and I help run the business along with my father and I am in the store everyday cooking and greeting customers. I am hoping one day my nieces and nephews have some influence in the family business but right now they
are concentrating on college. I am extremely proud of my niece who attends Vanderbilt University who is becoming an accomplished golfer. My pride is when she still says that on top of her studies and sports that ‘she likes to come home and cook.’ The pride of food and cooking is in the family.”

For a background in the food industry, Ms. Della’Orto has a degree in general studies from Farleigh Dickinson University. “I am truly self-taught and got my training by watching my father run the family business and watching my grandmother, mother and aunts cook. They really influenced the food at Manganaro’s. It is truly Italian home cooking.”

“What makes a trip to Manganaros special is that it is a New York experience,” Ms. Della’Orto describes. “The food is great, you always have a good conversation and everyone participates to make it a social atmosphere. I love talking to my customers when I am working. You can have good coffee or cappuccino after capping off a meal with someone who knows how to do it well. We want you to have a wonderful meal in a nice environment.”

Manganaros is a step back in time with tin ceilings and old-fashion shelving that was prominent in grocery stores at the turn of the last century. All sorts of meats, cheeses and baked products are prominently displayed on the counters and shelves.

“The real secret of Manganaros is my dad. He is really the heart of the business and an icon in the business in his own way. He is so social and welcoming that people just like to gravitate to him. He makes everyone who enters feel special. When he was out sick, people really miss him. He makes the business inviting and friendly. I find that when people come here, they want to experience the past. He really teaches the love of good food.”

“I have a lot of fun in the food business. It’s in my blood. Some of my best times are when I cook. Some of my specials that I pride myself with are my sauce for all entrees, my rice balls and I make one hell of a lasagna. I have new customers come into the store and say ‘I can have lasagna any old time’ in which I say ‘You can have lasagna any old time but not the lasagna that I make. It is really special,” Ms. Della’Orto said with much pride.

“The problem is not the business itself, it’s that the food business as well as eating has changed over the last 20 years. Going to an Italian market is not as unique as it was when the supermarkets didn’t carry Italian supplies like they do now. I tell customers that even though they can buy something similar at Whole Foods, they can’t buy the brand we carry at Manganaros. It’s tough when things are sold everywhere. It’s also tough when people won’t try something new in a specialty store even when you offer it free. Quality makes a difference in this business. When we put the Manganaro cookbook together, we presented the dishes we enjoyed ourselves. It’s full of easy recipes that anyone can cook
at home.”

“Years ago my parents used to travel with the Baldacci’s of the Baldacci’s Specialty Food Market. It was in the years when we, Baldacci’s, Zabar’s and Dean & Deluca used to have a friendly competition to see who could carry things first and present it in the most creative way. It was a time when people were experimenting with new foods and wanted to try the latest trendy foods and the only place you could find them was in stores like us. I sometimes think that people’s attitudes towards foods have changed. Instead of quality they just want it fast and hope it tastes good. I want them to stop and really enjoy the meal I am serving.”

“I also find that our neighborhood is in a place of transition. We are experiencing a positive change in the neighborhood that has not yet gone its course. There is so much building going on in this neighborhood, but the buildings are not yet filled so we are waiting for our new neighbors to move in. This was a neighborhood of family businesses and we are starting to lose that. What were once family bakeries, butcher shops and fish stores have either given way to restaurants or to chain businesses as the owners die or
move away and the kids don’t want to take over the family business. It really has changed the character of our neighborhood. I hope by new people moving in, they will appreciate what special place there are to shop in Chelsea.”

“I want my customers to know that even in these hard times, that I won’t raise my prices. I know people are really struggling and I want them to be able to afford an experience at Manganaro’s. I want to keep these as they are to keep our customers happy,” Ms. Della’Orto added. “We want people to walk away saying things are delicious and that they enjoyed their meal. I always know it by the first bite. You can see the look on their face and know that their meal was well worth it. It is the greatest compliment.”

“Our hot foods are the result of years of watching my family cook. Its special type of cooking that comes with a love of good food. The one thing you experience at Manganaro’s is that once you first walk in is the aroma of cheese and meats and then by the smells of sauce and good Italian entrees. It’s what we call ‘emotional eating’. It satisfies the senses,” Ms. Della’Orto added. “What I want people to experience is great food, good conversation and fun. When they walk though the doors of Manganaros, that they take a step back in time to when things were calmer and people took time to eat. What they can expect is a great sandwich with prosciutto, mozzarella and roasted peppers, a great piece of lasagna or a strong cup of coffee and a sense of satisfaction when they leave.”

Manganaros is at 488 Ninth Avenue and has been a neighborhood tradition since 1893.