Book tip of the week: Ottolenghi Comfort

In 2025, Italy was officially designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site – for its cuisine. Not a single dish. Not a single product. An entire cuisine. As a “system of social practices, regional traditions, and collective rituals”. The initiative for this historic recognition was largely spearheaded by the long-established culinary magazine La Cucina Italiana, whose editor-in-chief, Maddalena Fossati Dondero, has been actively driving the international push for the UNESCO listing of Italian culinary culture since 2020.

And now, of all times, pasta is being reinvented. What sounds like a contradiction is, in truth, a logical consequence: if a cuisine is cultural heritage, it must not become stagnant. It must continue to evolve. Pasta is not merely a side dish in this context. It is the stage.

Vegan cuisine works in the restaurant industry when it’s approached not as an ideology but as a practical solution – economically viable, delicious, and suitable for everyday dining.

Artisanal gelato has evolved. It is no longer merely an accompaniment but is becoming one of the most significant areas of innovation in the international hospitality industry. What we are seeing now is not a short-term trend. It is a structural shift.