Utica greens: The Italian staple Syracuse shares with central New York
Avicolli’s Coal Fire is one of many Syracuse Italian restaurants that make Utica Greens, a dish popular in central New York. Leonardo Eriman | Photo Editor
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Italian restaurants typically share many of the same dishes: spaghetti and meatballs, chicken parmesan, Margherita pizza. But beyond the classics, many of central New York’s Italian menus share another meal: Utica greens.
In Syracuse, the dish, which consists of bitter escarole, olive oil, garlic and pepper, goes by the name Utica greens. In Utica, it’s “Greens Morelle.” Others call it “Georgio Green” or “Greens Trunfio.” No matter its name, the dish is a core part of central New York’s Italian food culture.
Utica greens made it to Syracuse in the early 1980s, said Robert Searing, curator of history at the Onondaga Historical Association. The meal’s presence today and survival over the last few decades is a testament to the dish’s importance and interest across central New York, he said.
“It represents the melting pot in Syracuse, people can come from all over and give you a taste of their culture through food,” Searing said. “It’s one of the great human divinations that brings us together over many divides.”
The dish is featured in many well-known Syracuse restaurants, like Francesca’s Cucina and Santagelo’s Restaurant, though the specific components vary.
Some Syracuse restaurants, like Delmonico’s Italian Steakhouse, call the food “East Utica Greens” on their menu, while others like Attilio’s call it “Bleecker Street Greens.”
Joe Morelle, the late head chef at Chesterfield’s Tavolo, popularized Utica greens at the restaurant in Utica, New York — hence the name.
Grimaldi’s Restaurant had a version of the greens as an occasional menu special in the early 1980s at their Syracuse, Utica and Albany locations. They first opened in Utica in 1943 and Syracuse in 1968.
After working at Grimaldi’s, Morelle adapted the recipe with his own spin and introduced it to the Chesterfield’s Tavolo menu in 1987. Chesterfield’s Tavolo restaurant was the first to make the dish permanent.
Avicolli’s Coal Fire in Fayetteville has three menu items using Utica Greens: an appetizer, in a calzone and on the Utica Greens Pizza. Leonardo Eriman | Photo Editor
More than 35 years later, when customers visit Chesterfield’s Tavolo and try to order Utica greens, the restaurant’s owner, Salvatore “Sal” Borruso, corrects them — the dish is called “Greens Morelle.”
For Borruso, reminding people of Utica greens’ pioneer and origins gives recognition to the dish that Morelle helped spread across central New York.
The same dish and ingredients that Morelle brought to the restaurant remain on Chesterfield’s Tavolo’s menu today: escarole, hot cherry peppers, prosciutto, Romano cheese and breadcrumbs.
With locations across central New York in Syracuse, Utica and Albany, Searing credits Grimaldi’s for spreading Utica greens in the area.
For some Italian restaurants in Syracuse, more than one Utica greens variation exists on the same menu. Francesca’s Cucina has both Utica-Style Greens and Seafood Utica Greens.
At Avicolli’s Coal Fire in Fayetteville, New York, Utica greens appear three times on the menu: as an appetizer, on a pizza and in a calzone.
“With this version (of greens) being invented right over in Utica, it gives us local roots to have it on our menu here and that Italian heritage background for us,” said Jared Horton, head chef at Avicolli’s. “We want to offer variations that stay close to home but give ourselves our own identity as well.”
Instead of prosciutto and Romano cheese, Avicolli’s uses pancetta and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese in their Utica greens.
Despite escarole’s “bitterness,” Horton said if you use the right ingredients and give the dish the right love and care, Utica greens can be delicious. He said he wants the locally known dish to create positive memories for his customers.
Horton, who grew up in Liverpool, has always eaten Utica greens. Since he found his love for cooking in high school, Horton experimented to perfect his own Utica greens recipe.
Every day, Avicolli’s sells dozens of plates of Utica greens, Horton said. Often, customers come in knowing it’s what they will order.
“Utica greens are a staple,” Horton said. “People come in and they grab their Utica greens and they look over the menu while they’re enjoying them. They know that they come and have a good dish to start.”
The food’s popularity in central New York reflects the diversity of cultures in the area, Searing said.
“Any popular dish is a manifestation of the creativity of the chef that made it,” Searing said. “It’s them trying to do something true to their roots, while maybe trying to expand who has access to those foods they might not have.”
