Cossetta owner Dave Cossetta dies in Italy: St. Paul loses a local legend

Cossetta's owner unexpectedly passed away in Rome The fourth generation owner of the popular St. Paul restaurant Cossetta died unexpectedly in Rome. The Brief Friends say Dave Cossetta died in a Rome hotel room days after winning two awards at the Panettone World Cup in Milan. Pat Mancini said Cossetta was in Rome on vacation with friends and family when he collapsed while packing samples for the Vatican. After Cossetta died, friends delivered the panettones to the Vatican because Mancini that is what Dave would have wanted. ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Friends say Dave Cossetta's death has left St. Paul mourning a local legend tied closely to Cossetta's dining scene . Dave Cossetta's final trip to Italy The backstory: Pat Mancini said winning a pair of awards at the Panettone World Cup in Milan was one of the high points of Cossetta's life, and he was still celebrating that longtime dream while vacationing in Rome with friends and family. "Sad day, very sad day," said Mancini, a friend of Cossetta's. "For me, he was my best friend. I've known him for 50 years. I lost not only a dear friend, fellow restaurateur, a mentor, somebody who I just enjoyed being around." According to Mancini, a couple of hours after he took a photo at the Vatican, Cossetta and a friend were packing samples of Italian Christmas cakes to deliver to the Pope when Cossetta collapsed and died in his hotel room. Mancini said it appeared to be a heart attack. "A lot of people just kind of in shock, you know, there was no goodbyes, there was no, for me, heavy loss, heavy loss," said Mancini. Legacy beyond the family eatery Why you should care: Mancini said Cossetta's passion was feeding people, from helping turn his family's Italian grocery store into a culinary destination in St. Paul to serving meals to thousands of U.S. service members overseas. Mancini said Cossetta co-founded Serving Our Troops, a nonprofit that made meals for thousands of U.S. service members in places like Kuwait and Iraq. "He loved doing that and he was good at it," said Mancini. After Cossetta died, Mancini said friends delivered those panettones to the Vatican because they believed that is what he would have wanted. "He'll be missed not only in this city, he's very important to the city. He will be missed now worldwide and his panettones will hopefully live on forever I guess," said Mancini. Food and Drink St. Paul Entertainment