The late James Ganfoldini played the infamous character of Tony Soprano in HBO’s critically acclaimed television series The Sopranos (1999-2007). Tony, mob-boss/ family man, deals with running his illegal side jobs and managing his crew while he attempts to be a present father and husband. As a fan of the show myself, I can’t help but look back upon the copious amounts of italian food featured within the series and how these dishes symbolize emotion and togetherness.
“Gabagool” is an italian pork cold-cut that plays an interesting role in the series. Tony snacks on these cold cuts in numerous episodes and notably experiences a panic attack while eating the meat one afternoon. After a session with his psychiatrist, Dr. Melfi (Lorraine Bracco), it is revealed that Tony’s relationship to gabagool is related to childhood trauma and his consumption of the meat as a child while his parents were verbally and physically abusive towards each other. Gandolfini’s character is extremely complex. He is simultaneously a ruthless mafia boss, yet he struggles with emotions related to anger, frustration and love. When he eats, these emotions either subside or become exacerbated. There are numerous scenes of him coming home and heading straight to the fridge to eat gabagool, left over ziti, or lasagna- anything to distract him from his work. He relies on his wife’s authentic italian cooking (to the point where he is borderline possessive) as comfort because his day-to-day life of crime and drama wear him thin.
Food is so closely tied into The Sopranos because the families involved with the organized crime share a strong bond; a bond that is tied with their shared experiences of violence and experiences of being Italian-Americans. The show primarily takes place in New Jersey where there is a large Italian-American population. Authentic Italian cooking is an important symbol in The Sopranos because their italian dishes symbolize respect, tradition, and togetherness amidst the conflicts between characters and the plot. I plan on rewatching this series again and anticipate noting the countless italian dishes, wines, and appetizers eaten in the show!