It is now online http://www.myitalianfriends.com, the website that lists a network of Home Restaurants, cooking schools and wine tasting venues for the benefit of foreign tourists. An original initiative that allows open minded travelers to know first hand how life is really like in Italy, thanks to the hospitality of Italians who will open the doors of their homes to share the culinary traditions of Italy by organizing dinners, lunches, aperitifs, or by organizing both professional or informal cooking classes. My Italian Friends Ltd is also the name of the start-up with Head Office in London and that has the purpose of creating a network of “Italian Friends” who can interact with the tourists with the spontaneity and warmth that there is between friends “I have a great passion for cooking and I would like to travel more but, due to family commitments, this is not always possible”, explains Stefania from Florence, who has been an Italian friend for three months and two weeks ago hosted for one week iin Tuscany two couples from Scotland: “In the morning we went to the market to buy the ingredients , then I taught them how to make egg pasta and made them try preparing the recipe. At the end we ate what we had cooked together and had a bottle of Chianti. We had a great morning and I am also proud because they complimented me on my English, which I thought was a bit rusty…” For tourists who visit Italy being hosted by a Home Restaurant is an opportunity for an inter cultural exchange and also a way of sharing the ritual of Italian families that, once a day, gather around the table For Italians, food is an opportunity to socialize and for the visitor it can be an original experience. My Italian Friends is gathering together home restaurants managed by English-speaking Italians who are more than happy to cook traditional Italian food for you. The site not only hosts home restaurants located in many different areas of Italy, it also helps visitors to Italy locate professional cooking classes and wine tasting experiences.
The blog http://www.myitalianfriends.com/blog also offers useful information to the tourists who do not know the area where the Home Restaurant is located.Eating in an Italian home with the help of an “Italian Friend” will bring a different kind of tourism to life. A service designed for travelers who really want to get to know the traditions of the places they visit by getting inside information from the locals. The idea is to discover Italy through the eyes of the people who live here and explore places few tourists have ever visited. So far, there are dozens of home restaurants in many regions of Italy on My Italian Friends.com website where you will be able to get information on your potential hosts and the variety of foods and activities they offer.