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Some restaurants claim they transport you to a magical place when you stick a fork in their spaghetti. Where everyone plays stickball in Brooklyn and Louis Prima sings “When You’re Smiling.” Where family comes first and romance is just a breadstick away. Our story begins in Cleveland. In 1980. When Mike and Fouly Frangos revolutionized American favorites by opening Rascal House near Cleveland State University. Here on the North Coast, kids play wall ball, not stickball, against a brick building while the Michael Stanley Band belts “My Town” on a boom box a few feet away. Our spaghetti, beautifully buried under a blanket of thick and hearty marinara sauce, is like listening to Rocco Scotti sing the National Anthem. And if you’re thinking about taking your relationship to the next level, it’s not uncommon to see couples sharing a bowl of our spaghetti “Lady and the Tramp-style” when they think no one’s looking.
…But before we take credit for our spaghetti making everyone in the world the happiest people on the planet, chew on these noodles we borrowed from the Mobile-Cuisine website to learn more about the fascinating world of spaghetti:
-Spaghetti is the plural form of the Italian word spaghetto, that comes from spago, or thin string, twine.
-Americans celebrate National Spaghetti Day on January 4th
-Italians never use a spoon and fork when eating spaghetti. This tends to be an American habit. In Italy, you simply twirl a fork against the dish.
-in 2000, over 1.3 million pounds of spaghetti were sold in American grocery stores. If you line up all those packages, you could circle the earth nine times.
-On April 1st, 1957 the BBC made everyone believe that spaghetti grew on trees. At the time, spaghetti was considered an exotic delicacy. The spoof even went so far as to explain how severe frost can affect the flavor of spaghetti. This may have been one of the first times TV was used to stage an April Fools hoax.
Shame on you, BBC, for making everyone think that spaghetti grows on trees! We all know by now that spaghetti comes from Rascal House. Yes, the same place where pizza comes from. And seriously substantial overstuffed subs and sandwiches. And Buffalo Wings. Fresh Market Wraps. Garden Fresh Salads. The meaning of life, etc., etc. But we digress. A truly authentic bowl of stupendous spaghetti can only be found at Rascal House. Even the guy who invented spaghetti knows that!
Celebrate National Spaghetti Day with us. Then share your thoughts on Twitter or Instagram using #RascalHouse, or post on our Facebook page!
