Four hundred hungry pasta lovers. Eight restaurants. And 155 pounds of pasta. 

Little Italy San Jose’s fifth annual Boss of the Sauce packed the piazza, speakeasy, Poor House Bistro and their outdoor patio for one of Downtown San Jose’s tastiest community traditions. 

Hosted by the Little Italy Foundation, the competition brought together Italian restaurants from across San Jose and the South Bay, each bringing their special sauce, and in many cases, a family story behind it. 

The Littlest Little Italy brought some heat with a spicy vodka sauce. Willow Glen’s Locanda Ischia served a recipe passed down through generations from Mama Carmela, inspired by the way she made it in Naples. 

Poor House Bistro entered the Meduri family’s sauce, a recipe their mother cooked on a weekly basis while the brothers were growing up. Paesano Ristorante Italiano kept things simple with fresh Roma tomatoes that are never canned, always cooked, then passed through a passatutto and cooked again. 

Campbell’s Sorelle Italian Bistro, founded by three sisters and their mother, brought generations of family cooking to the competition. Deanna Orkin described their sauce as the heart of their kitchen. 

Tony & Alba’s brought a hearty meat sauce from West San Jose, while Vito’s Trattoria arrived from North San Jose with a recipe rooted in generations of Italian tradition. 

Then came the judging. The judges—including yours truly, Brian Kurtz of the San Jose Downtown Association and Linda Zavoral reporter from The Mercury News gave the top prize to Poor House Bistro. The reason was simple: it tasted like a traditional homemade pasta sauce. 

The crowd had its own favorite. Sorelle Italian Bistro took home the People’s Choice Award. 

Boss of the Sauce began in 2017 as a collaboration between the Little Italy Foundation and DiNapoli tomatoes.  

“Little Italy San Jose is more than honoring a historic Italian neighborhood and district,” said Joshua Melander Devencenzi. “Events like our Boss of the Sauce and Little Italy Italian Festival in October show we are honoring and celebrating our entire Italian American community in Santa Clara County.” 

Congratulations to Joshua Melander Devencenzi, the Little Italy board, the volunteers, participating restaurants, and everyone who somehow found room for one more bowl.