The Old-School Philadelphia Italian Restaurant Where Diners Are Served By Opera Singers

Opera is often seen as an art form for upper-class snobs peering disdainfully down at the stage through their fancy little glasses. But for many years, opera was a popular art form for all classes — Italians Giuseppe Verdi and Giacomo Puccini had legendary careers composing operas, and many working-class Italian immigrants would listen to recordings of arias — solo songs from operas. Today, opera may not be as popular as it once was, but bastions remain — perhaps most surprisingly at the Victor Café, an Italian restaurant in Philadelphia where the waitstaff sing opera.

The practice started in 1979, when a waiter who was studying to become an opera singer would favor diners with an aria or two during his shift. This was a hit with customers, and soon enough, a tradition was established. Today, every 20 minutes, a bell will ring, and the waiters will stage a performance for the pleasure of those noshing on calamari or arugula salad. It's a little like the line dancing tradition at Texas Roadhouse, except a bit more classy. (We mean no disrespect to Texas Roadhouse and its iconically fluffy rolls, or line dancing as an art form, but when you're up against Verdi and Puccini, you're gonna have your work cut out for you.)

The Victor Café didn't actually start as a restaurant; originally, it was a gramophone store, selling old-fashioned record players and music to play on them. (It also sold spumoni and other desserts, though.) It was operated by one John DiStefano, an Italian immigrant who loved opera and other kinds of classical music. When the record store closed in the early 1930s, DiStefano turned it into an Italian restaurant and named it the Victor Café, after the Victor brand of gramophone.

Today, the restaurant is still run by DiStefano's descendants, and the menu reflects their Italian heritage. It's filled with stalwart menu items like linguine ai frutti di mare (linguini with seafood like shrimp and mussels), ravioli stuffed with porcini mushrooms, veal saltimbocca (fried veal with prosciutto and risotto), and, of course, a nice caprese. Like any Italian restaurant worth its salt, the Victor Café has an assortment of wine from the old country, along with that undeniable picture-perfect atmosphere that made it an ideal choice to stand in for Adrian's restaurant in the 2006 film "Rocky Balboa." The opera is just icing on the cake — or the cannoli, as the case may be.