Mostaccioli Is Chicago’s ‘Heaven In Carb Form.’ Here’s How It Became The City’s Go-To Pasta

LITTLE ITALY — Whether it’s at Christmas dinner, a graduation party or a post-funeral luncheon, Chicagoans turn to the holy trinity of foods for comfort: fried chicken, Italian beef and mostaccioli. 

Scooped onto paper plates, we worship these savory foods to a level that may take a leap of faith for outsiders to understand — particularly the cheesy, tomato-y pasta dish we call mostaccioli. 

But ask someone who lives in an eastern, southern or western state if they know what mostaccioli is. Spoiler alert: They probably don’t, although they might find ziti, rigatoni or penne alla vodka divine.

So, then, what exactly is mostaccioli, and how is it different from the rest? This baptism-by-marinara explains it all.

What Is Mostaccioli?

Mostaccioli is as mysterious as it is tubular. While it may seem straightforward, the definition of mostaccioli is flexible. Is it a dish? Is it a noodle? The answer depends on how technical or open-minded you want to be.

The Ultimate Party Dish

Block Club asked Chicagoans to define mostaccioli. Respondents by and large agreed it is a dish made of several components: an elongated, hollow noodle; meat; cheese and sauce.    

Demarcus Robinson, of Avondale, described mostaccioli as “ridged cylinder noodles, meat [and] cheese — and not nicely arranged” with garlic bread on the side. Similarly, Cassidy Baker, who lives in Humboldt Park, described it as “penne with red sauce, mozz[arella] on top and then baked.”

“If you don’t bake it, you can always just do the penne noodles and sauce,” said Anna Ege, a lifelong Illinoisan.

At get-togethers, mostaccioli is frequently served alongside chicken and Italian beef as a reasonable vegetarian option, some respondents said.

Others described the dish in relation to similar pasta dishes. Tasha Cope, an Illinois native now living in Utah, said mostaccioli was “like rigatoni noodles but smaller,” with ricotta cheese and red sauce and topped with mozzarella. Catherine Hunter, a former Illinois resident living in Arizona, likened it to “ziti, but not baked.”

While people’s exact definitions of mostaccioli varied, one thing most agreed on was its ubiquity at gatherings, from First Communion to Christmas Eve.

“It’s what your wannabe-Italian-suburban family members make for every graduation, family gathering or funeral,” said Tori Ofenlock, of Wrigleyville.

Pilsen resident Joanie Faletto put it more bluntly, saying, “Three words: graduation party food.” 

It’s Also A Noodle — And A Cookie

While many people we polled described mostaccioli as the sum of several components, at least two respondents made a different proclamation: Mostaccioli is a noodle all its own, without the trappings of meat sauce and mozzarella.

They’re not wrong, said Furio Bragagnolo, president of Pastificio Bragagnolo, a premium pasta company in Veneto, Italy.

And here’s where it starts to get confusing.

Penne lisce is the Italian term for the noodle many Chicagoans call mostaccioli — not to be confused with penne rigate, which has the same tubular shape as penne lisce but with a ridged surface.

But, Bragagnolo said, “If you asked someone in Italy about mostaccioli as a pasta, they would likely be puzzled.” There, penne lisce and penne rigate are simply called “penne.”

Adding to the confusion, not only is mostaccioli a type of pasta and a type of pasta dish, it’s also a traditional Christmas cookie in Italy, Bragagnolo said.

“In Italy, if you say, ‘mostaccioli,’ people will think of the cookie, not pasta,” he said.

The cookie — also spelled mustaccioli — and the pasta have a similar rhomboid shape. In fact, the word “mostaccioli” can refer to a number of Italian sweet treats, all sharing that rhomboid form, Bragagnolo said.

Pandemic-Era Penne Phenomenon

In American kitchens, people use penne lisce and penne rigate interchangeably, said Jeff Rosati, CFO of Chicago-based Rosati’s Pizza.

For example, penne lisce — that is, mostaccioli — are often called for in recipes for cold noodle salads, though that type of side dish wouldn’t be considered mostaccioli, Rosati said. Conversely, a tray of mostaccioli — pasta, sauce and cheese — served at a Chicago-area gathering would likely use penne rigate rather than penne lisce.

Consumers skipped over penne lisce during the panic-buying phase early in the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a March 2020 Quartz article. There were boxes of penne lisce left on otherwise bare grocery store shelves, while penne rigate, the same noodle but with ridges, was sold out.

The common theory working in penne rigate’s favor is that the ridges hold thick sauces better, while penne lisce is thought to be better for dishes like salads with less sauce. This is one reason people might look to the more widely available and accepted ridged penne when making mostaccioli.

But it’s more complicated than that, say Italian chefs and pasta makers.

“The true mark of quality lies in the die used during pasta-making,” Bragagnolo said.

Pasta made with a bronze die has a porous surface that holds sauce effectively, Bragagnolo said. For that reason, smooth penne made with a bronze die can actually be superior to ridged penne when it comes to a more even distribution of sauce, he said.

Chef Gennaro Esposito, who runs the Michelin-starred restaurant Torre del Saracino in Naples, Italy, is a staunch subscriber to this belief.

The “elegance” of smooth penne lisce “has no rivals,” Esposito told Quartz, while penne rigate exemplifies “the apex of weak thought,” he said in an interview with Vanity Fair Italy.

The ridges of penne rigate cook faster than the rest of the noodle and are, therefore, partially overcooked by the end of boiling. While cooking, penne rigate also releases starch, which helps the sauce stick to it, Esposito said. 

“But it’s a botch, a binding agent that, in my opinion, pollutes the dish,” Esposito said.

Made correctly, penne lisce — the “queen of pasta” — also tastes better, he said.

How Penne — And Mostaccioli — Began

Smooth penne lisce is the original penne, invented in Italy. The more popular ridged variety came later. 

So how did mostaccioli become a thing in Chicago?

Fortunately, penne is one of the few pastas with a traceable history.

In March 1865, Giovanni Battista Capurro filed a patent near Genoa, Italy, for a device that would cut pasta diagonally to resemble the shape of a fountain pen nib, according to the Pomì company.

Prior to this time, pasta cut on a diagonal was done by hand using scissors, which, in addition to being inefficient and expensive, created shapes that were inconsistent and squished on the ends. With the new invention, diagonal-cut pasta could be made quicker, easier, cheaper and more uniformly, according to Pomì.

These original penne — penne means “quill” or “pen” in English — were smooth, what Americans today would call “mostaccioli” (though Italians wouldn’t), Bragagnolo said.

The popularity of the noodle grew, and communities quickly began making their own variations, including ridged penne. In the southern Italian region of Campania, smooth penne lisce called “mostaccioli” took hold. Other types included pennette, penne a candela, pennoni and ziti.

How Mostaccioli Got Its Name

The exact origin of the term “mostaccioli” being used in reference to penne lisce in the United States is not entirely clear.

The ends of the pasta tube, when viewed from above, resemble a diamond shape — similar to the shape of the mostaccioli cookie, which gets its name from its ingredients. Could the pasta have gotten its “mostaccioli” name from its similarity to the cookie?

“The shape of … what Americans call ‘mostaccioli’ does resemble a rhomboid,” Bragagnolo said. “However, it is unclear whether the Italian immigrants who popularized the term ‘mostaccioli’ in the United States did so because of this visual analogy with the sweets, or if in some dialects the term was already used for smooth penne back in their regions of origin.”

It’s likely a result of Italian immigrants bringing over regional or dialectal names for pasta that resonated with their communities, Bragagnolo said.

Italian Migration To Midwest

Two waves of Italian immigrants to Chicago occurred between 1850 and about 1915. The first wave brought residents from northern Italy, while the second wave between 1880 and the early 1900s saw immigrants from central and southern Italy. 

These new settlers created at least 16 “Little Italy” neighborhoods, each with its own “history, character, and reputation,” according to an article by author Robert M. Lombardo titled “Chicago’s Little Sicily” for the Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society. They also brought with them their various cultures, traditions and foods, including penne lisce. 

“While penne lisce seems to have essentially no fans in [northern Italy], it still enjoys popularity in and around Naples,” according to Quartz. “That’s where many Italians who emigrated to the U.S. are from, bringing with them to the new world their pasta — which at the time, was smooth.”

Other places Italian immigrants settled in the Midwest were Minnesota and Missouri, specifically the St. Louis area.

One of the earliest newspaper mentions of mostaccioli in U.S. newspapers appeared in a blurb in the Oct. 1, 1891, edition of The Minneapolis Journal, which noted the formation of The Italian Macaroni Company in St. Paul, a manufacturer and distributor of pasta, including macaroni, spaghetti, vermicelli, “mostaccioli-sisci and mostaccioli-richti.”

In February 1908, a notice in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch advertised Count Clerico’s Italian Restaurant, which served spaghetti, ravioli and mostaccioli dinners for 50 cents.

Three years later, the Eagle Brand Macaroni company was manufacturing its own pastas, including mostaccioli, at the McAlester Macaroni Factory in McAlester, Oklahoma, according to local newspapers. By 1916, the Dalpini Macaroni Co. was producing mostaccioli noodles in St. Louis.

A 1917 St. Louis Post-Dispatch article titled, “Inexpensive Dishes to Cut Your Market Bill” described macaroni, spaghetti and mostaccioli as “moderate-priced foods … [that] have about the same food value as common white bread,” a good replacement for rice or potatoes.

“These dishes, with cheese, constitute the bread and meat of Italian workmen and by some food experts are considered a desirable substitute for meat,” according to the article. 

To make the dish, the article recommended adding pasta to boiling water, letting it cook for 30 minutes, draining it through a colander and adding “cold water for a few minutes.” Drain the pasta again and serve it with tomato sauce and grated cheese, the article suggested — or, cut cheese into cubes or slices, mix with the pasta, add tomato juice and bake for 30 minutes.

“There are a variety of ways to serve these dishes, but the above recipe is the simplest and least expensive,” according to the story.

Mostaccioli Catches On

One of the first mentions of a communal mostaccioli supper appeared in 1927 in The Daily Republican newspaper of Poplar Bluff, Missouri; the dinner fed 16 guests. References to mostaccioli the dish and the noodle expanded in the early 1930s to Maryland, New York, California, Ohio and Nebraska, among other states.

In 1937, an ad in the Chicago Tribune for the Monte Cristo Italian Restaurant, 645 N. St. Clair St., highlighted its “new delicious mostaccioli dinner” for just $1, bottle of wine included. 

By the early 1940s, the Italian dish of mostaccioli was being advertised in small-town newspapers across Illinois, including in Alton, Belleville, Edwardsville, Mascoutah and Waterloo.

Though its popularity was on the rise, it wasn’t until World War II ended that mostaccioli — particularly as a dish made with penne — exploded in the area.

“Pasta didn’t become as ubiquitous as it is today until after World War II and the invention of mass production,” according to Quartz. “Production then moved from Naples to places like Parma, where Barilla was founded.”

There, ridged penne could be made faster and cheaper.

By the early 1950s, mostaccioli meals were advertised across Chicago at restaurants like Tower of Pizza, La Porte’s Italian Casino Pizzeria, The Hookey Inn, Frank Sylvano’s Restaurant and Lounge (serving it baked with ricotta cheese) and Connie’s Pizzeria.

In April 1960, the Chicago-based Suburbanite Economist newspaper told the story of “Volunteer of the Year” semifinalist Mrs. Humbert Groppi, who was known to have prepared “100 pounds of mostaccioli for the men in uniform.”

Mentions of mostaccioli described it being served a number of ways, including baked and unbaked, with or without meat sauce, with various cheeses, with leftover Thanksgiving roast turkey or other meats like Italian sausage or meatballs, and with sauce additions like bell peppers and olives. It usually came with garlic bread or salad on the side.

By the mid-’60s, Chicago had decided that mostaccioli — smooth or ridged, dish or noodle — was here to stay.

A Regional Specialty

As discussed in this Reddit thread and in Block Club’s Instagram poll, Chicagoans are sometimes shocked to learn that outside of Illinois, most of the country is unfamiliar with mostaccioli’s existence — though people are likely familiar with dishes that use noodle variants, like ziti.

“California offended me when I found out they didn’t call it mostaccioli out here,” said Scarlett Cermak, a former Illinois resident now living on the West Coast. 

“What do people eat at lame weddings everywhere else?” one person asked on Instagram.

Mostaccioli is most often confused with baked ziti, a noodle and red sauce dish popular on the East Coast. 

“’The Sopranos’ taught me that it was ziti on the East Coast,” one Instagram commenter said.

Some out-of-towners are skeptical that Chicago has any claim on mostaccioli at all. 

“As a transplant, I keep stumbling across new dishes claiming to be a classic Chicago food,” another person wrote. “At this point y’all could just be making them up.”

Proof Is In The Pasta Search Terms

The idea of mostaccioli being inextricably tied to Chicago is confirmed when looking at internet search term trends.

While it’s true that people in other states occasionally search for “mostaccioli” online, for the past 21 years no one has done it more than Illinoisians.

Between Jan. 1, 2004, and March 27, 2025, Illinois had the highest number of inquiries for “mostaccioli” in the United States, with Missouri coming in second, according to Google Trends. 

Interest in the term “mostaccioli” has grown over time, peaking in Illinois in December 2022. Google searches for “mostaccioli” have outnumbered “penne” in Illinois since 2011, with the Chicago, Rockford and St. Louis metro areas showing the most interest, Google data shows.

‘Heaven In Carb Form’ 

While mostaccioli isn’t exclusive to Chicago, mostaccioli is Chicago’s food because the city claims it, supporters say. 

“I stopped watching ‘The Bear’ during season [one] because that beef shop had spaghetti,” @megramsanders wrote. “Everyone who knows anything about Chicago knows our official pasta dish is mostaccioli.” 

At Rosati’s Pizza, mostaccioli and lasagna trade off as the two most popular menu items, Rosati told Block Club. 

Now a national chain, Rosati’s sees the biggest uptick in mostaccioli sales in winter, with December the busiest mostaccioli month, followed by other major holidays and occasions like graduation season, Rosati said. 

Rosati’s began selling mostaccioli in 1964 at its original location, using a family recipe, Rosati said. While the business has expanded to 18 other states, the dish remains a core offering on its menus. In all, Rosati’s sells over 1 million pounds of cooked mostaccioli per year across its locations, Rosati said. 

Social media commenters said the presence of mostaccioli on a menu or dinner table brings up overwhelmingly positive memories. 

“It means family get-together,” one person wrote. A “hug on a plate,” wrote another.

Yet another person described it as “heaven in carb form.”

One Chicagoan said it wasn’t until he was older that he discovered mostaccioli wasn’t known or considered a “real” dish by native Italians, people outside Chicago and most of the country. 

He summed up his experience with a sentiment likely shared by many locals: “Long live baked mostaccioli, the tastiest, most comforting, most under-recognized Chicago dish there is.”  

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