Mama Randazzo's

Mama Randazzo was born in Socorso Provincia, a little providence south of Messina, Italy, on the island of Sicily. Growing up in Sicily, where she lived on a farm, Mama learned to cook with only the freshest and finest of ingredients. When she was sixteen, she immigrated from Italy to the Bronx, New York, where she met our father. Our father grew up in a little village called Sciara, south of the biggest city in Sicily, Palermo. In the village where our dad grew up, there is a street called Via Randazzo. Dad lived there until he turned eighteen, in 1957. After that, he immigrated to New York and began work in the Stella Dora Cookie Factory. Our parents met at the cookie factory in 1968 and wed after only a year. Their marriage ceremony was held at Mt. Carmel church on 187th street, in the Bronx. After having two kids in the Bronx, a daughter named Maria and a son named Giuseppe, they were beginning to feel pretty settled. Then one day our dad made a trip to a little town in Pennsylvania called Altoona, to visit our Nonna (Grandmother). The next thing our mom knew, our dad had put a down payment on a house. Our mom's first reaction was "Where?". So in 1974, our parents up and moved to Altoona, Pennsylvania. Here, they would start a new life for themselves, like they had in their youth. After moving to Altoona, our mother began to think of a way to share the wonderful recipes she learned in Sicily with everyone in the area. Unfortunately, this idea would have to wait in favor of more pressing matters. After two years in Altoona, the next addition of our family would arrive. Mom and Dad had another son in 1976, named Marco. Three years after that, yet another son was born, Paolo. In the years to pass, our mother would perfect her cooking skills and share food with our family and friends in the area. She would see her children grow up and begin lives of their own. Maria became an administrator in Reston, VA, Giuseppe became a pharmaceutical sales representative, and Marco later moved into sales as well. The exception was I, Paolo. I shared in the same vision as my mom. I believed that a simple, yet authentic little place where people could buy homemade Italian specialties, as well as Pizza, Subs, Wings, Salads and a variety of other tasty foods would give back to the community that had given so much to us. And this is where we are today... We hope you enjoy our mom's cooking as much as we have. Again, thank you for your patronage.