Downtown Cape Coral will be flooded with irresistible food and great family entertainment Saturday, Oct. 11, as the Columbus Day Parade returns for another round of celebrating Italian heritage.

This time the parade will be accompanied by an Italian Food Fest, a first for the longstanding Cape tradition.

Event organizers thought the time was right to expand the event to include a food festival.

“Our parade usually had nothing attached to it. People would come to the parade and then go home,” said event organizer Linda Biondi of the Sons of Italy, Charles J. Bonaparte, Lodge #2504, the group that puts on the annual parade in the Cape. “But we have always talked about having an Italian Food Fest here in the Cape.”

Biondi also spoke of better utilizing the downtown area by working closely with the Community Redevelopment Agency.

CRA Marketing Director Helen Ramey said the downtown group has been involved with the food festival “since its inception.”

“We’ve been working closely with the Sons of Italy,” Ramey said. “We’re sponsoring the headline entertainment for the evening, and it’s going to be fabulous.”

The inclusion of live entertainment is but one of the many facets of the fest, what Ramey described as a giant “block party”.

The Rat Pack Now — a tribute to the Old Blue Eyes and the gang — will headline the event, along with DJ Z-Bop Unlimited, who will get the party started. There will also be a martial arts demonstration, face painting, clowns, and a rock climbing wall for the kids.

Still, the focus of the festival will be on the food, as vendors — Paisano’s Italian Market, selling Italian sausage and peppers, and Sal’s Pizza among them — have been lining up to sell their tasty Italian treats.

“The vendors were very excited about coming. They were excited as we are to the event,” Linda Biondi said.

In charge of the vendors is Pete Simone, owner and operator of Pete’s Philly Steaks in Big John’s Plaza.

Originally from South Philadelphia, Simone was excited about the vendors during a phone interview on Friday.

“Everything is going to be great, I’m really looking forward to it,” Simone said. “Everybody at the Italian American Club has really jumped on board to make this a fun-filled family event.”

Simone said the vendor list has “reached capacity,” with 13 vendors and 16 artists selling everything from clothing to sculptures.

It all lends itself to the block party atmosphere that both the Italian American Club and CRA are shooting for, by combining food, art, and music.

“There’s all kinds of stuff going,” Simone added. “We’re going to have mussels marinara, chicken parmigiana, a spaghetti eating contest, a pizza eating contest … and for the spaghetti contest you’re not allowed to use your hands!”

The block party kicks off at 4 p.m., with the parade starting promptly at 5 p.m.

Organizers suggest bringing lawn chairs and grabbing a spot no later than 4:30.

“If they want a good spot, be there no later than 4:30,” Biondi warned. “They can come, grab a drink, watch the parade, and come back for the festival.”

The parade’s grand marshall will be B103.9 DJ Drew Steele, who has strong ties to the Italian American Community in Southwest Florida.

Steele — who’s real last name is Sessa — has had family in the Cape since 1979. His grandfather on his mother’s side, Frank D’anna, came to the United States via Ellis Island, settling in New York before arriving in the Cape.

And on his father’s side, grandparents Pasquale and Josephine Sessa, originally from Naples, Italy, moved to Cape Coral in 1986, also from New York.

“I cherish my Italian-American heritage,” Steele wrote in an e-mail. “Growing up, I always remember close family, fun, food and laughter. I cannot wait for Southwest Florida to share the joys of our heritage with us. It’s going to be an amazing day.”