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An old photo of a familiar face at Nebo

Nebo

Where Nebo

What A black-and-white photo above the bar of the late Jimmy "Jumbo" Pallotta, father of owners Carla and Christine Pallotta, smoking a cigarette on their mom's high school graduation day.

Whose Idea The sisters deliberately keep this photo of their debonair dad above the bar at their downtown restaurant, even though the late Pallotta, a North End fixture, was a teetotaler. "We told him that wine was good for the heart. He'd fill a shot glass and drink it like medicine!" Carla Pallotta says. "It was cute. Now he watches the bar for us, since that's where trouble can happen." The photo also pictures him holding a forbidden cigarette. Pallotta smoked three packs a day until the surgeon general declared it hazardous. "He quit the day the announcement came out," says Pallotta. One thing didn't change: His adoration for their mother. "He was 22 in this photo, and he loved my mom until the day he died," Pallotta says. Nebo, 520 Atlantic Ave., Boston, 617-723-6326, www.neboboston.com

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KARA BASKIN