The Italian Club of Cape Town will transform itself into the streets of popular tourist attractions such as Rome, Milan, Naples, Venice and Palermo during the first weekend of October when Festa Italiana comes to town.
This celebration of all things Italian will take place on 5 and 6 October in Milnerton and will include everything from Italian food, wine, fashion and music to arts and crafts, and of course cars.
From bread to gelato some if Italy’s famous exports will all be in display thanks to leading Italian lifestyle exhibitors, chefs and wine purveyors.
Experience Italy’s Love Affair With Bread
Bread is one of Italy’s most famous exports, whether it is Focaccia, Ciabatta or Panettone. Recent scholarship suggests humans started baking bread at least 30 000 years ago.
Like many other foods, ancient Romans took the art of bread-making to a higher level. In addition to enhancing the milling techniques of wheat, the Romans were also the first to produce flour, which could be baked into white bread. Rome even opened a baking school in the 1st century AD.
Today, more than 250 different types of bread are made all over Italy, each and every region with its own traditional varieties.
Italians Pamela Fabbian and Simone De Biase of authentic local Italian bakery, dell’Amore will be exhibiting at the event. Commenting on the Italian Love affair with bread Simone explains that Italian wine tastings are often accompanied by a little snack to line the stomach and cleanse the palate.
“What you do as a tourist in the Western Cape is obviously taste wine and we soon realised there was a gap in the market that we could fill with our experience. I come from a family of bakers which I’m passionate about, so we decided to give it a go in South Africa and opened the bakery.”
The World’s Best Ice cream
Italian ice cream, known as gelato, is acknowledged by many experts to be the best ice cream in the world. According to Roman Lionello Giovannetti of Don Gelato, Italy’s authenticity and heritage are responsible for this.
Don Gelato was established in the quaint village of Stanford in 2013. “Don Gelato is where everything started when my dad and I settled here. During all our trips to SA, we never had the opportunity to enjoy a proper Italian gelato as made in Italy by our grandparents. One of the reasons why we decided to settle in Stanford was because we need fresh milk from the local farmers as well as free-range eggs.
“Once we have these ingredients in our laboratory, we start the magic. No chemicals, no preservatives and no stabilisers. We only use passion and respect for the ancient art of the ‘maestri gelatieri’,” he explains.
According to Giovannetti, his last trip to Italy was somewhat disappointing. “We’re losing our authenticity and heritage. Italian gelato became popular because of this. Have you ever seen a sad face holding a cone of genuine gelato? Our payoff line is exactly that – #wescoophappiness!”
Something For Everyone
Commenting on the event organiser Leonardo Sforza says “‘Made in Italy’ is simply in a class of its own and a full programme of exciting festivities is planned for the whole weekend, so there’s sure to be something for every member of the family.”
Fellow organiser, Kiki Ciman-Frauenknecht, adds that visitors will love the fact that they will be able to interact with the various exhibitors.
“Many of our exhibitors are importers or local producers to bring you only the best Italy has to offer. They’re all passionate about and committed to their brands, and love to share it with others.”
Tickets will be available from Webtickets or at the door at a cost of R80 for adults, R55 for pensioners and scholars aged 12 to 18. Kids under twelve enter free.
