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Thousands flock to the Electric City for La Festa Italiana

Pastries, pizza, and more are what visitors got when they stopped in downtown Scranton for La Festa Italiana 2023.

LACKAWANNA COUNTY, Pa. — From the gourmet pizza to mouth-watering desserts and more, La Festa Italiana on Courthouse Square in downtown Scranton has something for everyone.

"The food, of course, the atmosphere, I'm Italian; what can I say," said Gena Manzo of upstate New York.

"We've lived in this area since 1997, so every year, if we are not out of town, we make sure," said Rose Termini. "Now I work at the university, so it was easy to park my car and walk down the hill."

The Mountain Top native spent much of Friday evening picking out pastries she says you can only get when the Italian festival comes to the city.

"We've been around to some of the different festivals in the summertime, but this is the best place you can come and get a dinner, you can get dessert, you can have some fun,' said Termini.

For Allan and Paula Whitney, enjoying the fun and food at La Festa has been a tradition for the last 18 years. 

"Pizza, Ice cream, and a drink, I can't think of two more for you," said Allan.

"Well, first I got to have my pizza, then I'll have Zeppoli's, then my Italian pastry, and then maybe a sausage and pepper sandwich somewhere along the way," Originally from Brooklyn, New York, when La Festa weekend is here Paula says her and her husband are given a taste of home.

"Got to eat the same things I get to eat here and get to see the same stuff we see here, so it's a wonderful memory to bring it here, and it's wonderful that something I used to do in New York I can do here in Northeast Pennsylvania," said Paula.

The festival will run through the weekend, wrapping up Monday night.

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