The Republic of Italian Food has an embassy in Ireland and precisely in Dublin. In Temple Bar, in the heart of the Irish capital, there is an Italian cooking school, the Italian Cookery School "Pinocchio" which is so successful that it has a waiting list of several weeks, almost as if it were a starred restaurant. It just seems like everyone in Ireland wants to eat Italian.
The cooking school was founded by two Italian entrepreneurs and this year it celebrates its fifteenth birthday with a packed program of courses and masterclasses, ranging from pizza to homemade pasta, desserts and regional cuisine. A school which, in addition to ordinary students, has also hosted various celebrities, including well-known faces from TV or sports champions.
“The idea of the cooking school was born in 2004 when my partner Maurizio and I decided to move to Ireland to start an import-export company of Italian products – he comments Marco Giannantonio, one of the two founders of the Holding Flavor of Italy which, among other activities, also includes a division dedicated to training. “The school, in its initial idea, was supposed to be a place to organize show cooking to present the Italian products that we had selected and that we aimed to launch on the Irish market to chefs, entrepreneurs and restaurateurs”.
Then came the Italian cooking courses which were so successful and in such high demand that the organizers decided to invest in a venue which, from the initial 15 seats, now hosts events with over 80 people. Last year, just to name a few, it was around thousand the students of the school for the normal courses, which are attended by a very varied audience. To them must be added further 2 thousand people for lessons in team building format”.
"In addition to the variety of courses offered, we focus a lot on 'made in Italy' conviviality, an aspect which, without a doubt, is what has allowed us to differentiate ourselves from our competitors - he adds Maurizio Mastrangelo, founding partner of Flavor of Italy. “Our cooking classes, and in particular our 'cookery parties', aim to make the experience as pleasant as possible, trying to make the participants feel at home with friends”. The formula is very simple: guests, guided by the chefs, learn to cook the best traditional dishes – from fresh pasta to pizza to tiramisu – while sipping excellent Italian wine. Then all together enjoy the dinner prepared from the basic ingredients. Part cooking class, part party, it's a unique opportunity to have fun, learn new things and team up around a table, according to the most authentic Italian tradition. “An occasion that, from a simple moment of sharing, also becomes a moment of human knowledge and that many companies here in Ireland, especially the large multinationals, including Facebook, Instagram, Pfizer, KPMG, Microsoft, LinkedIn, Google eTwitter they appreciate and – concludes Mastrangelo – they use on a weekly basis as a team building tool to create cohesion between work groups”.
The director of the school has been for several years Joseph Crupi, who arrived in Dublin to perfect his studies in mechanical engineering and who then found his dimension in the kitchen, in the midst of people where, thanks to his inspiration, his sympathy and his love for teaching, he has become both the customer reference than a well-known face, thanks to his constant appearances on Tv3, where he is often a guest and where, before lunch, he goes to prepare recipes of Italian cuisine. “On the occasion of the fifteenth year since the foundation of the school - comments the director - we have thought of various initiatives: both new courses and some cookery parties dedicated to sweets are planned. Finally, without forgetting – concludes Crupi – that, in the coming months, we will be launching new courses dedicated to the various Italian regional cuisines, deepening together with the participants also the historical tourist aspects of the localities which, from time to time, will be the protagonists of the lessons”.
The Flavor of Italy Group represents an interesting case of success of two entrepreneurs from Molise who, having left Italy, made their fortune abroad by promoting Italy. Today the group is a small holding company of "Made in Italy" (the Irish alternative to "Eataly") which operates in various sectors: fromfood and wine (with two restaurants in Dublin and an import-export service of products) al (it is a tour operator for trips to Italy and Ireland) up to the world of training (thanks to a very popular Italian cooking school).
In recent weeks, the Italian ambassador in Dublin presented the two founders of the Flavor of Italy Group with the honor of Knights of the Star of Italy, assigned by President of the Italian Republic to those who have acquired particular merits in promoting friendship and collaboration between Italy and other countries and in promoting ties with Italy. The explanatory memorandum reads: “The Flavor of Italy Group carries out a very important action in the promotion of Italian food and wine culture in Ireland, with large repercussions in our country ... and works in the promotion of food and wine tourism in Italy, with particular pay attention to less known realities”.
Finally, it should be remembered that the group carries out a constant activity of training, which in recent years has opened its doors to dozens of Italian kids who have been able to participate in school-work alternation projects in the Irish capital.
