The Pungent Ingredient Frank Sinatra Couldn't Stomach - And How He Got Around It

Believe it or not, there was a time in Frank Sinatra's career when he was seen as, essentially, a teeny-bopper: A heartthrob who had a fervent fan base of teenage girls without really getting much in the way of critical respect. To wit: In 1945, he starred in a movie with Gene Kelly called "Anchors Aweigh," and their whole dynamic positioned Kelly as the "cool one." (We mean no disrespect to Mr. Kelly, who had a terrific recipe for a mashed potato sandwich.) Eventually, of course, Sinatra became the "Chairman of the Board," a man of such authority and gravitas that he probably didn't even need his reputed ties to the Mafia to get what he wanted. It's hard to imagine a man like him being brought low by a bit of garlic. But Sinatra would often get upset stomachs if he ate any — so he had his cooks infuse his dishes with the flavor instead.

Anyone with such a sensitivity to garlic would be missing out on some truly delicious food, but Sinatra's case was especially unfortunate. He is, after all, one of the most famous Italian-Americans in history — his picture is a more common sight in Italian restaurants than checkered red tablecloths. To accommodate his preference, his cooks used small amounts of garlic in his dishes and infused the flavor by sauteeing the cloves in olive oil, discarding the cloves, and cooking the dish with the infused oil.

Three of Frank Sinatra's favorite cooks were not his own private chefs, but the three generations who ran Patsy's Italian Restaurant in New York City: founder Pasquale "Patsy" Scognamillo, his son and successor Joe Scognamillo, and Joe's son and successor Sal Scognamillo. (It was Sal who mentioned Sinatra's aversion to garlic in 2011.) The restaurant has served a laundry list of famous diners, including Tom Hanks, Liza Minnelli, and Madonna, but none are as closely associated with Patsy's as Sinatra. This was, after all, it was the restaurant that once opened on Thanksgiving specifically so a dejected Sinatra could eat his dinner there.

Some of Sinatra's favorite dishes from Patsy's were the stuffed artichokes (his favorite appetizer), filled with breadcrumbs, olives, and parmesan cheese; the fusilli served with anchovies and garlic (but not too much garlic); clams Posillipo, clams in red sauce; and veal Milanese, which Sal said Sinatra preferred sliced very thin. His favorite dessert, a lemon ricotta torte, was also a Patsy's specialty.