Cannoli King Ready to Celebrate as San Gennaro Festival Turns 100 in Little Italy

Like many Italian-Americans in the city, San Gennaro, has always held a special place in John DeLutro’s heart.

In fact, he credits much of his success to the relatively obscure patron saint of Naples, Italy, who is at the center of one of the biggest celebrations of Italian culture in the city, the annual San Gennaro Festival in Little Italy.

“I pray to him every day because without him I’m a nobody,” said DeLutro who in addition to being a long time area businessman and resident is also a member of the Little Italy Merchant’s Association.

The Feast of San Gennaro that DeLutro says allowed him to stay afloat as a young entrepreneur, will kick off its centennial celebration this month, taking over over Little Italy Sept. 17 through Sept. 27. This year, it is expected to bring bring a record setting two million people to the neighborhood centered on Mulberry Street. On the opening day and procession a statute of the ancient saint will be carried after Mass at Most Precious Blood Church to a place of honor where visitors tape money and pray for good luck in the coming year. The ten-day festival will bring food stands, carnival games, live performances and a Ferris wheel to Mulberry Street, the center of Little Italy.

DeLutro, who owns two of Little Italy’s popular eateries–Caffé Palermo and Baby John’s Pizzeria–says he plans to have the biggest parade float in honor of the centennial.

“I’ve invited most of my customers with their kids,” DeLutro said about the parade. “You got to give back in life.”

Before he was crowned the “Cannoli King” thanks to Caffé Palermo, DeLutro was a scrappy teenager trying to make ends meet after losing his mother as a teen. His father was rarely on the scene. When she died in a 1971 car accident, DeLutro knew he needed to find a way to keep her business alive.

DeLutro’s mother had owned a beauty and cosmetic supply store that shared space with a barber shop in the 148 Mulberry Street building where Caffé Palermo now resides.

After the accident, rent for his mother’s side of the building cost $75 per month which was not yet something a teenage DeLutro could afford.

“I was going to school,” he said. “I didn’t have 75 cents.”

Unwilling to give up the store, DeLutro approached his landlord asking if he could pay rent once a year after the San Gennaro festival. When she said yes, he was officially in business.

DeLutro sold everything from slippers at the festival to toys during the holidays and remembers making between $2,200 and $2,500 at the festival each year.

“I paid the rent, still put money in my pocket and I kept the store,” he recalled.

His luck eventually ran out one day when he only had $6 to his name. To make matters worse on an already rainy day, DeLutro got caught in a hailstorm.

“I was living alone. I had no parents and I was hungry,” DeLutro said.

When the wind took his umbrella at the corner of Mulberry street, DeLutro started to hear some commotion.

“I go to look, and I see Ferrara’s around the corner with a line to get inside,” DeLutro said. “So I said to myself, ‘Is it possible that people are waiting in line for cappuccino, or espresso or cannoli?’”

That’s when everything changed for 17-year-old DeLutro.

The next day, he borrowed $50, built a wooden counter and made an agreement with nearby Caffé Roma.

With $100 monthly payments to Caffé Roma in exchange for a $2,000 espresso machine, DeLutro started selling cappuccinos after school and found a collection of mismatched chairs and tables from the street to furnish his new cafe.

53 years later, what started as espresso drinks and a few pastries turned into a decades-long business and home to DeLutro’s award winning cannoli.

As a man of many nicknames, DeLutro was first known around the neighborhood as “Baby John” thanks to being the youngest of three. His earned nickname of “Cannoli King” came from his cousin and the name has stuck thanks to a loyal customer base and frequent write-ups in area newspapers and appearances on local tv news shows.

“People know me all over the world, I ship (cannoli) every day,” DeLutro said.

From Mel Brooks to Clint Eastwood to James Gandolfini from the HBO hit “The Sopranos,” Caffé Palermo has also seen visits from celebrities over the years—something a young DeLutro with just $6 could have never imagined.

Even after a bout with leukemia and two open heart surgeries, not much can slow DeLutro down. In 2023 he took over the space next to Caffé Palermo adding Baby John’s Pizzeria which continues to serve slices to customers everyday.

“I always say I’m in the flour and water business,” DeLutro said. “Flour water pasta, flour water pastry, flour water pizza. I started in the flour and water business, and I kept it going.”

At 73-years-old DeLutro is still dreaming big with hopes of bringing his cannoli to grocery stores nationwide. Cannoli King retail outlets are also in the works as DeLutro plans to visit Sarasota, FL and Hoboken, NJ before the end of the year to check out retail space.

If all goes according to plan, DeLutro said he likes the idea of eventually opening a cannoli museum in Little Italy.

Until then, Caffé Palermo remains his biggest pride and priority.

“It’s my baby, and this is always going to be my baby, no matter how many businesses I own,” Delutro said at a Caffé Palermo table. “This chair I’m sitting on is a chair I’m going to die on.”

Just days away from this year’s 100th anniversary San Gennaro festival, DeLutro looks forward to celebrating. He’ll be rolling up his sleeves and plans to set up three different stands.

Of course, one will offer cannoli, another cacio e pepe and the third will debut DeLutro’s Sunday Sauce which is a traditional weekly dish for Italian families.

Calling it one of the “best sauces in the world,” DeLutro is ready to share his recipe with the world at this year’s festival.