Frank Sinatra Once Blamed This Hearty Soup For An Onstage Burping Fit

Frank Sinatra may be one of the best-known Italian-American celebrities, with roots in both the south and north ends of the country. (His dad was from Sicily, while his mom was from Liguria.) Some of his favorite restaurants were Italian ones, too — when in Manhattan, the veal Milanese from Patsy's was one of his go-to orders, while in his hometown of Hoboken, he favored the Italian fare at Leo's Grandevous. In Providence, Rhode Island, his eatery of choice was Camille's Roman Garden, and he was said to have been particularly fond of the Italian wedding soup. It might not have returned his affection, though, since on one occasion that soup led to an embarrassing on-stage belch.

The burp heard around the world — or at least, around the Providence Civic Center — took place when Sinatra was performing after having dined at Camille's. The incident is said to have taken place sometime in the '70s, by which time the crooner was well into his fourth decade in show business (or perhaps beginning his fifth). He wasn't the least bit fazed, but simply excused himself by saying that he'd just eaten a marvelous meal at Camille's.

Camille's on the Hill remains in business today, but the notorious burping hazard no longer appears on either the lunch or dinner menu. If you want to taste one of Sinatra's favorite soups, however, you can always check out our Italian wedding soup recipe.

The Providence burping incident wasn't the last time Frank Sinatra would have an onstage eructation. In 1982, he was performing in Las Vegas at Caesars Palace. (Just like Little Caesars, the casino eschews an apostrophe in its name.) Again, he paused mid-show to expel a little air, and again, he apologized and blamed — or rather, credited — the delicious food he'd just eaten. The restaurant in question, Villa d'Este, was soon mobbed by customers since, apparently, a Sinatra endorsement was some kind of gold standard in the restaurant industry.

You'll no longer find a restaurant called Villa d'Este on the Las Vegas Strip, but the restaurant lives on in the form of its successor, Piero's Italian Cuisine. While we don't know if the restaurant featured Italian wedding soup back in the '80s, Sinatra is said to have enjoyed Villa d'Este's pasta-bean soup called pasta e fagioli, or "pasta fazool," in certain Italian-American dialects. This dish, which is still served at Piero's, may very well have contributed to the spot of "agita" he experienced onstage. This word, also in the Italian-American vocabulary, can be applied to either emotional or digestive distress. Rigatoni bolognese and veal chops, both of which can still be found on Piero's menu, may also have been enjoyed by Ol' Blue Eyes.