mangia! mangia! · 2014. 8. 29. · mangia! mangia! elaina and rosanna scotto host a family-style...

Mangia! Mangia!Elaina and Rosanna Scotto host a family-style international feast, right in their own backyard. PHOTOGRAPHS BY ERIC STRIFFLER

A fun mix of Hamptons neighbors gather for the Scottos’

seven-course feast.

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A few weeks ago, my sister, Elaina, and I had a great idea to start the summer: gather 100 of our closest friends and family members, get on a plane to Rome, have a seven-course meal in a restaurant at the

Spanish Steps, get back on the plane and come home. An unforgettable 24 hours. The last time we checked, this fantasy would cost about $200,000. We thought about it for a solid 30 seconds—then moved on to Plan B.

We live to eat and we love to entertain, so we set out to bring Italy to our backyard in Southampton. Up went the tent and in came the troops fromour family restaurant, Fresco by Scotto on 52nd Street in Manhattan. The staff brought the food and wine and filled the tent with sunflowers, and soon the air was filled with the incredible mouthwatering smells that could come only from an Italian kitchen run by pros.

Our guests included TV stars who were ready for the best. I have been lucky to get to know so many of them while working as cohost of Fox 5’s Good Day New York. I love doing cooking segments, but I also know when to turn the show over to the experts—in this case, our mom, Marion. She makes sure there is plenty of food for the table: breadsticks wrapped in prosciutto and arranged in vases; platters of imported salami and cheeses; and, during cocktail hour, our famous Fresco potato and zucchini chips smothered in Gorgonzola and pizzas grilled on the barbecue.

“The Scotto party is always an incredible mix of Scotto warmth, amazing food, great people and fun!”—DONNY DEUTSCH

Elaina and Rosanna Scotto

Seedless watermelon saladwith shaved fennel, radish,local rocket and honey dressing

Sara Ziff and Greg Kelly

Chef Steven Santoro in action

Toasted fregula, roasted summer vegetables and lemon

John, Elaina,Rosanna, Marion andAnthony Scotto Jr.



When it is time to sit down, that is when the Scottos spread out. We love long tables where Anthony Jr., John, Mom and the two of us can oversee and socialize at various parts of the room. We served a meal that we might have ordered at the Spanish Steps—seedless watermelon salad for the first course, followed by conchiglie pasta with lump crab. Smiles and shouts of “to die for” greeted our chicken meatballs. The wines flowed freely, and we won’t torture you by describing the desserts.

The only downside of the event came when the lovely day turned into a chilly, windy evening. Thankfully, our tent had side panels that protected us from the elements, and the great conversation, the terrific food and the ambi-ence of Italy remained warmly inside. H

“The Scottos have mastered the perfect dinner party. Here is the recipe: savory foods—I dare you to say no to their chicken meatballs—delicious drinks and, fi nally, great company.”—HODA KOTB

Fresco’s mouthwateringpotato and zucchini chipswith melted Gorgonzola

Jerry Wolkoff, Dr. Larry Reed and Anthony Scotto

Big-eye tuna tartare withshaved summer vegetablesalad, balsamic vinegar,ginger, soy sauce and wasabi

Richie Zimmer, Amy Rosenblum, Rosanna Scotto, Hoda Kotb, Jay Blumenkopf and

Marc and Rebecca Victor

Michael Berman and Victoria Hagan

Chicken meatballs with herbed ricotta and roasted red pepper tomato sauce

Conchiglie pasta with lump crab ragu, cherry tomatoes, fresh chilies, white wine and sweet basil


HAMPTONS-MAGAZINE.COM 105

“Parties at the Scottos’ are always glamorous, fun and beyond delicious. Not sure how they do it, but they make everyone feel so special. There is an art to their entertaining.”—VICTORIA HAGAN

Roasted baby zucchini with garden herbs and red wine

vinaigrette

Elaina Scottoand Brett Yormark

Louis Ruggiero andRosanna Scotto

Bruce and Avis Richards

Guests enjoyed wine and Marion Scotto’s famous breadsticks

before the fi rst course.


HAMPTONS-MAGAZINE.COM 105

“Parties at the Scottos’ are always glamorous, fun and beyond delicious. Not sure how they do it, but they make everyone feel so special. There is an art to their entertaining.”—VICTORIA HAGAN

Roasted baby zucchini with garden herbs and red wine

vinaigrette

Elaina Scottoand Brett Yormark

Louis Ruggiero andRosanna Scotto

Bruce and Avis Richards

Guests enjoyed wine and Marion Scotto’s famous breadsticks

before the fi rst course.


ContributorsSome of our favorite Hamptons voices inside this issue

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NIGEL PARRY

Parry has snapped some of the biggest celebrities and most of today’s impor-tant figures in a photography career

that began in London more than 20 years ago. His work has been exhibited across the globe in festivals, museums and galleries, but perhaps his most impressive honor was an invitation to be the first portrait photographer to exhibit at the Cannes Film Festival. Parry has also dabbled in publishing, releasing four photography books, and now focuses his attentions on a series of video projects. The photography master brilliantly captures Emmanuelle Chriqui for our cover.

ROSANNA AND ELAINA SCOTTO

The two talented sisters play host in this issue’s Entertaining feature on page 102. Elaina and Rosanna grew up in Brooklyn and have since discovered their own callings. Elaina serves as vice president

of her family’s Fresco by Scotto restaurant in New York City. A former fashion public relations representative, working for designers Mary Ann Restivo, Bill Robinson and Yves Saint Laurent, she now does all the PR work for the restaurant and is leading the expansion of Fresco on the Go. Rosanna, a self-professed avid reader of Hamptons for years, currently coanchors WNYW’s Good Day New York. As one of the first faces many people see in the morning, Rosanna has been awarded three Emmys and numerous Associated Press First Place Awards for her work on-air.

CHUCK SCARBOROUGH

Scarborough, coanchor of News 4 New

York and anchor of New York Nightly

News at 7PM, has earned 31 Emmy Awards in virtually every category related to his field. The celebrated broadcaster served for four years in the US Air Force (he still has a commercial pilot’s license) before begin-ning his television career in Mississippi. Philanthropy is close to Scarborough’s heart; the journalist and his wife, Ellen, spend their summers in Southampton where they are hosting the Unconditional Love benefit for the second year in a row. Scarborough spreads the word on the event that sup-ports the Southampton Animal Shelter Foundation in “Sweet Charity” on page 142.ROCCO DISPIRITO

DiSpirito burst onto the culinary scene after opening his Union Pacific restau-rant in New York City. Since then the

acclaimed chef and Amagansett resident has been awarded the James Beard Award for his cookbook Flavor, has been named “Best New Chef” by Food & Wine magazine and was the first chef to grace the cover of Gourmet. The culinary leader has also made a name for himself as a successful author and television personality. DiSpirito has written six acclaimed cookbooks, one of which became a New York

Times best seller. He has starred on television in such series as Melting Pot on Food Network, The

Restaurant on NBC and A&E’s Rocco Gets Real. The busy chef’s newest series, Rocco’s Dinner

Party on Bravo, is a fresh take on the popular culinary competition format. For Hamptons, DiSpirito—who claims “Mexican grilled corn is life-altering”—shares his passion for cooking in our “Open Kitchen” section (page 118).

JACK LENOR LARSEN

Larsen, an internationally recognized textile designer, author and collec-tor, joins us in celebrating the 20th

anniversary of the LongHouse Reserve, the East Hampton museum and sculpture garden he founded that also serves as his private home (page 66). The innovator supports traditional contemporary crafts and has contributed to this artwork with his weaves, such as the award-winning “Larsen Look,” and through the eponymous fabric firm he opened in 1952. Larsen’s work has been so influential across the globe that he holds the distinction of being one of only four Americans to ever show an exhibition in the Palais du Louvre.


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mangia! mangia! · 2014. 8. 29. · mangia! mangia! elaina and rosanna scotto host a family-style...

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