POST EVENT – The Authentic Italian Table 13th June, 2020 – Shanghai

“The Authentic Italian Table” organized by China-Italy Chamber of Commerce was successfully held on Saturday June 13th, 2020 at The Langham Shanghai Xintiandi Hotel.

The event is part of the project "True Italian Taste", promoted and financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and carried out by Assocamerestero in collaboration with the Italian Chambers of Commerce abroad, and it aims at enhancing and safeguarding the authentic Italian agri-food productions. "True Italian Taste" is part of the program "The Extraordinary Italian Taste".

The event was opened by Valtero Canepa, CCIC Vice Chairman Shanghai, who gave a warm welcome to all the participants and delivered a speech on the relevance of the project and its main goals. 

Following, the institutional greetings by Ludovica Murazzani, Commercial Consul of Consulate General of Italy in Shanghai and by Valentina Petroli, Deputy Trade Commissioner Italian Trade Agency Shanghai.

Nika Vincenzo, CICC Shanghai Events Coordinator and Emanuela Vizzarro, CCIC Shanghai-Suzhou Office Manager, presented in detail the program of the day, mentioning and thanking the F&B Companies involved in the event.

At the end of the presentation, the public was invited to take part to a F&B Companies exhibition tour, where they had the opportunity to know more about the authentic Italian products and to taste them.

During the event, a series of activities aimed at actively involving the participants was also organized.

One of the activities was the professional cooking show with two Italian chefs, Lucky Lasagna and Chef Gonzo, who, using DOP and IGP certified Italian products, presented three typical italian dishes that represent the cuisine of the North, the Centre, the South and the Islands of Italy. After the show, a qualified jury of experts and the participants tasted the dishes prepared by the chefs and voted for the "The Best Authentic Italian Dish Shanghai 2020".

Following, the Roundtable took place with a focus on "The Authentic Italian Food is: certified, territorial and traditional, healthy and genuine". The Roundtable was moderated by Cristina Corsini, President of the Association for the Promotion of Italian Food and Wine Culture and the Enhancement of Italian Restaurant Techniques in China, Hong Kong and Macao, and the following speakers and experts in the field:

• Nicola Aporti, Partner, Foreign Lawyer at HFG LAW FIRM;
• Valtero Canepa, Leader Slow Food Shanghai Central Convivium;
• Sara Laudani, Internal Medicine and Functional Medicine Specialist:
• Giulioantonio Di Sabato, Executive Chef at Lago Bellagio.

Some of the guests had also the opportunity to participate in the Blind Wine Tasting held by Michele Muraro, Sales Manager & Sommelier at The Wine Guy, where they tasted different Italian wines DOC and DOCG, getting an authentic Italian experience.

The event continued with many others interactive activities aimed at entertaining the guests but also at presenting to the Chinese participants the traditions of the Italian culinary culture.

Other activities held during the event:

• Pizza Workshop, proposed by the Restaurant Mammamia;
• Live Show cooking by Barilla;
• Pastry Chef performance by Fabbri, with the tasting of a typical Italian dessert.

In the drink area, a series of performances with bartenders took place, and the companies interacted mixing their products in order to make typical Italian drinks for the participants.

Special thanks to Funkadeli Group and Campari Group, Jell & Co. with Prosecco on Wheels and again, Fabbri who proposed a series of activities in collaboration with other brands as Peroni, Sinodrink and Viola Beer.

At the end of the event, the KOL and Blogger Meizhi Zhang engaged the audience in a lucky draw session, with a quiz on the Italian culture and tradition and on what they have learnt during the day. The prizes for the winners were a series of Italian products.

Almost 150 local experts of the Food&Beverage sector attended the event, which in the afternoon was also opened to the Chinese consumers, reaching over 200 attendances by the end of the day.

Special thanks to the 26 F&B companies involved and some of the restaurants awarded with Italian Hospitality certificate.