From November 13 to 19, the 8th edition of La Cucina Italiana nel mondo (Italian Cuisine in the World) will be held, the annual thematic review dedicated to the promotion of quality Italian cuisine and food products, promoted by the network of Embassies, Consulates, Italian Cultural Institutes, and ICE Offices abroad. 
The main theme of this year’s event is: “At table with Italian cuisine: well-being with taste” dealing with topics such as sustainability, health, and solidarity at the table. Among the many events organized around the world, certainly those at the Italian Embassy in Washington are among the most important and eagerly awaited. Prominent among them is the dinner to be held on November 15, organized by Italian Ambassador Mariangela Zappia at her official residence, Villa Firenze, for a few guests, members of the political, economic, cultural and media elite of the American capital. For the occasion, the Italian Embassy chose to invite Stefano Pinciaroli, chef of PS Ristorante, an excellence in the field of sustainability in the kitchen. The restaurant in Cerreto Guidi, Tuscany, is not only a Michelin Green Star, but is part of a much larger and more ambitious sustainability project Villa Petriolo, which just a year ago received a GSTC certification as the world’s first totally sustainable agritourism conceived by Daniele Nannetti the soul of the project.
“Italian cuisine, already beloved by our American friends for its authenticity and quality, is also synonymous with well-being and sustainability, in a perfect blend of tradition and innovation,” Ambassador Zappia pointed out, noting that “Chef Pinciaroli and Villa Petriolo allow us to concretely enhance, within the framework of the growth diplomacy strategy led by the Farnesina, Italy’s leadership in sustainability, in the kitchen and in the agri-food sector as a whole.” The Villa Petriolo farm reinterprets the history of Tuscany’s rural economy through a regenerated business concept that merges hospitality with agricultural production and natural animal husbandry under the banner of local traditions that have always been synonymous with excellence in flour, meat, and wine production. Villa Petriolo is a way of life that gathers the experience of the local community and merges it into new processes of responsible and sustainable production. Ancient Senatore Cappelli grains, Cinta Senese meats, eggs, goat and sheep cheeses, oil and wine are just some of the products, strictly organic, of this ecosystem that seeks balance between man and nature in every aspect. And this fully represents the new culture of responsible business that it stands for. “The new Italian excellence is the result of the harmony between the highest standards of quality and the ethics of sustainability that find fertile ground with us in the most literal sense of the term,” explains Daniele Nannetti. And all this will be brought to Washington to create the menu designed by the chef, which is conceived solely and exclusively with ingredients grown and raised at Villa Petriolo.
“Everything that comes to your plate is born and raised in the surrounding area, the traceability of which you can literally touch with your hand,” explains Chef Pinciaroli, “we can name our suppliers one by one because we know them, they are friends, as well as part of our project since forever.”
On Nov. 16, however, Chef Pinciaroli will have a four-handed dinner at Centrolina one of the most popular Italian restaurants in the American capital. The Tuscan chef, together with chef and owner Amy Brandwein, named several times among the capital’s most appreciated women of food, will build a fresh and seasonal menu trying to create original dishes, a complete fusion between Brandwein’s technique and Pinciaroli’s creativity and dictates of sustainability, in a mix of ingredients from the Washington market and others, unique, brought from Italy. “For me, what makes a restaurant great is a distinctive personality. When you walk in, you get a sense of the people behind the restaurant,” explains Chef Amy Brandwein “It has a sense of style, warmth and makes people feel at home, regardless of the type of restaurant. Big restaurants are usually owned by individuals, by small business owners, so there’s a bit of quirkiness.” Also on the same wavelength is Chef Pinciaroli, who points out, “For me, the hallmark of PS is uniqueness, the factor whereby when the guest sits down at the table, they find something that doesn’t exist anywhere else, both from the food and wine point of view and from the experience point of view.” When you say great minds think alike. A unique experience, an original combination that will give a few lucky guests the chance for a rare American-Italian fusion dinner.
