San Gennaro Festival: Little Italy’s Biggest Street Party

The Feast of San Gennaro in New York is a religious celebration held in Manhattan's Little Italy that runs for 11 days starting the second Thursday of every September (check out other can't-miss events during September in New York).

The 2025 San Gennaro Festival in Manhattan takes place September 11 through September 21, marking 99 years!

The tradition began in 1926 as an initiative of the Neapolitan community in honor of their patron saint. For those days on Mulberry Street, between Houston Street and Canal Street, there are processions, music, vendors, games and, above all, a whole lot of food 🙂

Where is the Feast of San Gennaro held?

The Italian festival takes over Manhattan's Little Italy, along Mulberry Street and the surrounding blocks, between Canal and Houston.

When is the Feast of San Gennaro 2025?

As mentioned above, the 2025 Feast of San Gennaro runs from Thursday, September 11 through Sunday, September 21.

That gives you plenty of days to enjoy the cannoli, zeppole and other Italian specialties the festival is known for.

Weeks before the festival even starts, the streets of Little Italy fill with festive decorations in the Italian tricolor. So if you're traveling a bit earlier, you can still soak up the atmosphere.

«Leave the gun, take the cannoli»

But it's not all Naples during the feast of its patron saint. Sicily is represented too, with cannoli, the classic Sicilian pastry catapulted to fame by The Godfather.

You surely remember the famous line «leave the gun, take the cannoli» delivered by the mobster Clemenza after committing a murder.

Another cannoli scene: in The Godfather Part III, Connie finishes off Don Altobello with a poisoned pastry.

Discover other movies filmed in New York that are as iconic as The Godfather trilogy 📽️.

Also memorable from The Godfather Part III is the scene where Vincent (Andy García) kills Joey Zasa during the San Gennaro procession right on Elizabeth Street.

If these references give you chills, if you know exactly what we're talking about, you need to visit New York's Little Italy during the Feast of San Gennaro.

What to eat during the Feast of San Gennaro in New York

But cannoli aren't the only stars of this celebration. There's also plenty of zeppole, those Neapolitan doughnuts fried in olive oil, and lots of Chianti to taste.

Inevitably, dishes from other corners of the world sneak into a stand or two. That's normal. That's New York.

The procession of the patron saint of Naples in Little Italy

If you want to watch or join the saint's biggest procession, it takes place on the first Saturday of the festival starting at 2 p.m., which means Saturday, September 13, 2025.

That day, the procession sets out from the Most Precious Blood Church. Parishioners carry San Gennaro through all the streets of Little Italy in Manhattan, many of which have by now become part of Manhattan's Chinatown.

During the feast, garlands and colored lights are strung from sidewalk to sidewalk, making New York look like a Neapolitan village.

The atmosphere, the smells and the colors are fascinating, especially knowing that a few blocks' walk is all it takes to leave the Italian charm behind and return to cosmopolitan New York.

You can learn more about the history of San Gennaro and his connection to New York on the organizers' official site for this annual Manhattan celebration.

What events are happening this year?

Besides the procession, the days of the Feast of San Gennaro bring other events like pizza eating contests, zeppole eating contests and meatball eating contests. There are live music shows too.

You can see the full lineup on the official calendar on the organizers' website.

More Italian traditions in New York

According to San Gennaro Festival figures, more than a million visitors from all over the world turn up each year to take part in this tribute to the patron saint of Naples.

If crowds aren't your thing, remember you can follow the Italian trail in New York through other neighborhoods, like the Little Italy in the Bronx (the city's most authentic Italian district) or Bensonhurst in Brooklyn.

Another interesting fact: Staten Island claims to be the borough with the highest share of Italian Americans in the city (40%).