Vinny's father, Paul, was a pastry chef, his mother a seamstress and lifelong cook. The couple met in Sicily, near the town of Palermo. They moved to the Bronx in 1955. Paul worked in famous bakeries along Arthur Avenue. In 1986 he moved the family to Cape Coral, taking a job baking for Publix.

"My dad was, he was from-scratch everything," Vinny said. "That kind of was passed on to us."

Vinny opened Sicily on Oct. 18, 2006, just months after his father's death. His family rallied around him to help get the place off the ground. They still support him daily.

Aunt Marie makes the soups and starts the sauces. Mimi rolls pastas and washes dishes when the mood strikes. Vinny bakes bread daily, just as his father taught him to. His pizza dough and pastries are his father's recipes, as well.

"If my dad is somewhere, he's at least at peace," Vinny said. "He knows we're taking care of each other, that we're doing OK."