Rocco Restaurant | |
---|---|
Restaurant information | |
Established | 1922 |
Closed | 2012 |
Previous owner(s) | Rocco Stanziano, Antonio DaSilva, Gianni Respinto |
Street address | 181 Thompson Street |
City | New York City |
County | Manhattan |
State | New York |
Postal/ZIP Code | 10012 |
Country | USA |
Coordinates | 40°43′40.8″N 74°0′0.8″W / 40.728000°N 74.000222°W |
Rocco Restaurant was an Italian restaurant on Thompson Street (Manhattan) in Greenwich Village.[1]
Ralph Redillo, the superintendent of the building, has said it was a “big mob joint” and in the 1950s, attracted Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio. Later celebrity guests included Johnny Depp, Robert De Niro and Screw Magazine editor Al Goldstein.[1]
Mario Batali worked there as a chef.[2]
It is said that in 1952, Anthony "Tony Bender" Strollo ordered a hit there.[2] In September 1952, he met with Joseph Valachi for dinner. He was given a hit on Eugenio Giannini, a Bureau of Narcotics informer from the Lucchese crime family.[3]