The first edition of Tastaly entitled Five Senses of Italy, took place on Monday, September 12 in the heart of London, Piccadilly.
The event is with an intention to promote the image of Sicily and bring the public closer to the artistic beauties of the British capital, the area and the islanders talents, were brought together in a series of events during the course of the day, leading figures of entertainment, art and agribusiness producers together to represent the cultural wealth of Italy.
The press presentation of The Sicilian documentary film, is directed by Francis Lama and kicked off the whole day event at the headquarters of the prestigious BAFTA. In the dining room, before the projected film, journalists and representatives of the Italian-British cultural associations participated in the Q & A followed by the presentation of the director and the cast of the film.
In new prestigious seat of Savini, the historian Milan restaurant was opened only a few months ago in Piccadilly, a show of Sicilian cooking by Carmelo Carnival chef and Vincenzo Oliveri was dedicated to journalists and the HoReCa sector that are passionate to try the gastronomic specialties with 18 Italian companies showcasing their products at Savini.
The magnificent interior of the restaurant was greatly inspirational to the photographer Rosellina Garbo and the artist Domenico Pellegrino.
“Five Senses of Italy, dedicated to Italian excellence and the great attention paid to Sicily throughout this year, in the UK, shows that there is renewed interest in everything that comes from Italy. Highlights of acquired credibility with our commitment, we can be referenced in a future edition for all those who aspire to promote high-quality products and like us, they see the opportunity to grow the concept of valuing our great environmental, cultural and food “. said Joseph Portella organizer of the event together with Stefano Cirillo and Maria Teresa Passalacqua.
The day ended in style with a charity dinner in favor of the NGO Helping Burundi, attended among institutional representatives: the Minister Plenipotentiary of the Embassy of Italy Vincenzo Celeste, the Consul General Massimiliano Mazzanti, the Director of ‘Italian Trade Agency Fortunato Celi Zullo’. Special guests of the evening, the actress Maria Grazia Cucinotta came directly from the Venice Film Festival in Venice to take part in the event and soprano Laura Giordano who delighted the guests with a short performance of her vocal abilities.
Among other important guests: the political Fabrizio Ferrandelli came specially from Palermo to underline the attention of policy toward events like Five Senses of Italy; the entrepreneur Joe Ricotta star of a major operation to promote tourism in Sicily in the UK; the venture capitalist Matthew Cerri, the founder of The Family Officer Group with which funds and supports dozens of Italian start-ups founded on British soil.
The event had the patronage of the Italian Embassy in London and the ITA and has been entirely sponsored by Tastaly.
