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Not only was Frank Sinatra a Grammy-winning musician and an Oscar-winning actor, he was also a professional enjoyer who knew how to relish a good meal. It’s perhaps a fitting homage, then, that Italian restaurants from coast to coast still play Sinatra’s music in their dining rooms. During his lifetime, Sinatra was an enthusiastic fan of Patsy’s Italian Restaurant in Midtown Manhattan (fellow star singer Liza Minelli also loves Patsy’s). When he sat down for dinner at Patsy’s, Sinatra was a known fan of the establishment’s stuffed artichokes, but the kitchen knew to slightly alter the recipe when preparing the dish for Ol’ Blue Eyes. His preference? Lose the garlic.
The culinary team at Patsy’s is all about straightforward, from-scratch Neapolitan fare, which is notoriously garlic-forward regional cuisine. When they made Sinatra’s stuffed artichokes, they used far less garlic than the dish would normally include. According to Patsy’s (via WLIW), the kitchen used just one minced garlic clove per four large artichokes when cooking for Frank. Over the years, Patsy’s has been helmed by only three chefs: Pasquale “Patsy” Scognamillo (who founded the establishment), his son Joe, and (currently, since 1988) Joe’s son Sal. So, the kitchen would have been familiar with Sinatra’s order on a personal level. Sinatra was also an avid orderer of Patsy’s fusilli with garlic and anchovies — light on the garlic, of course (six garlic cloves per pound of pasta).
Sinatra liked his dishes light on the garlic
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The Italian-American singer wasn’t a huge fan of garlic-loaded dishes — but not because of the ingredient’s pungent flavor. As Sal Scognamillo told The Wall Street Journal in 2011, even small amounts of garlic had a negative impact on the singer’s digestive system. Instead, explains the chef, the culinary team would add garlicky flavor (sans actual garlic) to Sinatra’s dishes by sauteing garlic in the olive oil that would be used in his meals, then removing the chunks of actual garlic before plating.
Today, the official Patsy’s website reads “Patsy’s — A New York Landmark Made Famous By Frank Sinatra.” Patsy’s has been family-owned and managed by three generations since opening its doors in 1944, and Sinatra developed a personal relationship with the Scognamillo family. According to the restaurant’s website, “[Sinatra’s] family still enjoys dining at Patsy’s Italian Restaurant whenever they are in town.” In fact, following Sinatra’s passing on May 14, 1998, close friends and family congregated at Patsy’s to honor the late singer. As Sal told The New York Times, multiple patrons noted “I just felt I had to be here today,” touching Sinatra’s personal table located upstairs in the back. For more ravenous Rat Pack aficionados, we’ve rounded up 11 more restaurants that Frank Sinatra loved across the U.S. (just be sure to hold the garlic).