A Memorable Feast

An Italian-American chef sheds light on the Feast of the Seven Fishes.

IT’S A DECADES-OLD ITALIAN-AMERICAN Christmas Eve tradition, but the Feast of the Seven Fishes is not well known outside the U.S., even in Italy. In fact,   before Franco Paterno, Executive Chef at the Marriott in Providence, Rhode   Island, came to these shores from Calabria, he had never heard of the feast—at least not by its American name. “The Feast of The Seven Fishes is more of an Americanized term; for us it was always La Vigilia,” Paterno explains.
    That’s shorthand for La Vigilia di Natale, or Christmas Eve. In Southern Italy, where La Vigilia  is primarily celebrated, it is an event marked with bonfires, all-night partying, and most importantly,  a seven-course feast of epic proportions, sometimes requiring weeks or months of preparation.
     According to Paterno, there is not a strict menu for La Vigilia, though the feast is made up primarily of seafood, which is a reflection of the religious origins of the celebration: Catholics are required to abstain from meat and milk on the eve of holy events. Despite these restrictions, families are not expected to prepare any particular dish, though there are some traditional favorites. Baccalà, salted cod, usually makes an appearance, while shrimp, smelts, and squid are classic entrées as well. There is no hard and fast rule about how many different fish or courses are required for the lengthy meal, though tradition dictates it should be an odd number.
     “Odd numbers were always superstitious—you wanted to have an uneven number,” says  Paterno. “It was always seven or nine or thirteen, those were always considered lucky numbers.” Notably, odd numbers frequently appear in the Bible, with seven appearing the most. Considering the religious symbolism, it makes sense that the number became a focal point of the feast.
     It is not known how exactly La Vigilia came to be the Feast of the Seven Fishes. Paterno says that having seven distinct fish dishes is “definitely more of an American thing…back then it was seven dishes, not so much seven fishes.” Likely, the abundance of fresh seafood in America contributed to the change, as Italian families no longer had to rely on the limited wares of a fish monger or whatever fish they had preserved months in advance.
     Now, the feast is less about religion and more about coming together. Paterno says that  “[La Vigilia] is centered around the church,” and that the event is really a nightlong celebration of the birth of Christ. The feast, however, has moved away from those religious roots. It is still meant to take place on Christmas Eve, but the dinner now revolves more around bringing family together, and keeping an Italian tradition alive.
     Although the feast has changed on American soil, ultimately it’s an endearing example of what makes holiday traditions so sweet: old customs, new interpretations, and delicious food shared around a table. 

Originally published in the Winter 2015 issue of The Coastal Table.