South Philly Review

Jules Esposito doesn't get much sleep on the weekends. It's the busiest time for him and his sons, Jules Jr. and Michael, who usually "cook around the clock" for hundreds of customers, including restaurants, caterers, country clubs and, of course, individuals.

With the Sorrento Cheese 9th Street Italian Market Festival coming up May 20 and 21, Jules, owner of Esposito's Porchetta, definitely won't be catching much shut-eye - there's too much pork to be roasted.

Esposito's Porchetta, 1627 S. 10th St., carves up seven to 10, 170-pound pigs for each festival day and uses them to make mouth-watering pork sandwiches.

A third-generation pork merchant, Esposito and his cousins, Louis and Lee, who own Esposito Meats at Ninth and Carpenter streets in the Italian Market, have been participating in the free, outdoor festival since it first started in the late 1970s.

"You get people from all walks of life," Jules said of the fest. "They're just enjoying the nuances of the market and what they can get there. You meet so many kinds of people that day."

TAKING PLACE 10 A.M. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, the festival spans Ninth Street from Fitzwater to Federal streets. Dozens of Market vendors and restaurants set up booths, many with curbside café seating, and the streets will be packed with culinary demonstrations and artisans selling their wares. Last year, the festivities drew an estimated 100,000 people.

They'll also be plenty of music on three stages. This year, one of South Philadelphia's favorite sons - Frankie Avalon - will perform 1 p.m. Saturday on the main stage at Ninth Street and Washington Avenue. The South Philly native has not sung in his hometown in more than 20 years.

"The fact that this is a homecoming for him and the fact that he has not appeared in a public musical performance in over two decades in Philadelphia - we're really pleased that he's coming back and I know that he is too. He has friends and family in the neighborhood," Judy Faye, executive producer of the festival, said. She and co-producer Drew Keegan are with Center City Proprietors Foundation, a nonprofit that raises money to support and market retail communities. In addition to this weekend's event, the foundation also sponsors The Book and The Cook.

"Without the support of the merchants we wouldn't be doing this," Faye said of the Italian Market fest.

She and Keegan promote the affair in conjunction with Epiphany "Pip" DeLuca, president of the South 9th Street Merchants Association and owner of Villa Di Roma Italian restaurant in the Market.

"Besides being a tradition - and tradition is very important to Italians - it's an opportunity for us to showcase what we do. Ninth Street and the Italian Market bring a lot of fun to people," DeLuca said.

Many folks who grew up in the area or live there constantly walk through the market to get to other places and may have come to take it for granted, DeLuca said. The festival is a way to remind residents about the gem right in their own neighborhood.

"It is the largest and longest continuously operated open-air market in the country." Faye said. "Open-air markets that are operated year-round are a thing of the past. Farmers' markets come and go, they are seasonal. We [Philadelphia] have something unique in this country in terms of a marketplace."

Faye and Keegan live in Bella Vista and are passionate about promoting a festival in their own backyard.

"It's just an amazingly vibrant and vital community. It's a wonderful place to live and do business. It just keeps getting better by the moment," Faye said of her neighborhood.

In addition to Avalon, acts will perform on two smaller stages - one at the corner of Ninth and Christian Streets and another at Ninth and Annin streets.

Spice Corner owner Herta Ginsburgs was responsible for bringing musical entertainment on the Ninth-and-Christian stage by getting her business partner, Wharton Tract, to perform. Wharton Tract and the 9th Street Band specialize in blues and rock.

"That was very important to me," Ginsburgs said of the group hitting the local stage. Growing up in Austria and Italy, Ginsburgs attended her share of outdoor festivals. "You don't have a festival without dancing and music," she added.