The History of Rao’s Pasta Sauce

In 1896, an immigrant from Polla, Italy named Charles Rao purchased a small tavern in an Italian neighborhood in New York City. He and his sons kept the business going through the Prohibition years and in 1958, his son Vincent began introducing Italian dishes to the menu, transitioning the tavern into a restaurant. In 1974, Vincent’s wife, Anna Pellegrino Rao, began working with her husband, bringing elegant style and expertise in southern Italian cuisine to the venture. The restaurant soon began to gain a local following of loyal customers in New York City. In 1975, Frank Pellegrino Sr. also got involved at Rao’s. He steered the menu toward authentic, simple Italian dishes and quickly became one of America’s most influential restauranteurs. In 1977, the restaurant received a favorable review from a prominent food critic and Rao’s exploded in popularity. In response, the proprietors began assigning “table rights” to regular customers who had supported them from the beginning; the rights were highly prized and passed down through families. In 1992, Frank Pellegrino Sr. grew tired of turning down customers at the ultra-busy restaurant and decided to package the Rao’s pasta sauce so that people could enjoy it at home — and Rao’s Homemade Pasta Sauce was born! Notably, Pellegrino insisted on only using high-quality ingredients in the jarred sauce. As popularity and distribution grew, new products were added to the line throughout the 21st century. Today, Rao’s pasta sauces are considered some of the best-tasting and most authentic jarred pasta sauces available.