Barilla Launches Summer of Italy in NYC, Bringing Casa Barilla™ to the U.S. for the First Time

BANNOCKBURN, Ill., Aug. 17, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Barilla, the Italian food company, is offering New Yorkers a Summer of Italy, a six-week celebration of authentic Italian food and culture, culminating in the first-ever Casa Barilla in the United States in New York's iconic Central Park.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110817/NY53612)

On Wednesday, July 27, Barilla began presenting New Yorkers with everything Italian cuisine and culture has to offer via a variety of engaging, interactive activities, including:

• Cooking classes at Eataly led by Barilla Executive Chef Lorenzo Boni
• A Barilla pasta truck distributing free dinner kits filled with essential ingredients for an Italian meal at key commuter hubs
• Five Barilla-branded FIAT 500 (Cinquecento) cars buzzing through the five boroughs to highlight hidden Italian gems and hand out vouchers for upcoming events
• Casa Barilla in Central Park, a four-day Italian celebration in Rumsey Playfield
• Main sponsor of Andrea Bocelli Live in Central Park, a free performance on Central Park's Great Lawn where Barilla will be the exclusive food provider during the concert

"Barilla helps people around the world experience the joys of sharing the table, an integral part of Italian culture. In this spirit, we are delighted to offer this Summer of Italy to New York," said Guido Barilla, Barilla Group chairman. "The festivities will include traditional Italian dishes prepared by New York's and Italy's finest chefs and also activities and events for all city residents to enjoy."

In an effort to ensure that all New Yorkers have the chance to share the table, Barilla is partnering with the Food Bank For New York City, the city's major hunger-relief organization. Proceeds from select events throughout the Summer of Italy will benefit the organization.

Barilla Cooking Classes at Eataly: July 27 – September 7

To kick off the Summer of Italy, Barilla Executive Chef Lorenzo Boni will be offering a series of cooking classes at Eataly. The available classes include Italian Pasta Classics, Italian Coastal Pasta, Summer Italian Pasta and Simple Healthy Pasta. Students will learn the tips and tricks that all great Italian chefs use to create authentic, simple and delicious meals. Each class seats 20 and consumers can sign up on www.Eatalyny.com to reserve a space in class.

A Meal for a Meal:  August 15 – 18

An integral part of Italian food and culture is sharing the table with family and friends, and Barilla will be giving New Yorkers the opportunity to do just that as the Barilla pasta truck takes Manhattan by storm. From August 15 to 18, the truck will be stationed at busy commuter hubs between 4 and 8 p.m., giving New Yorkers an easy way to share the table with families and friends that evening in the form of Spaghettata-to-Go dinner kits. The first 5,000 commuters to stop by the Barilla pasta truck will each receive a kit that includes a box of Barilla spaghetti, fresh greens, a jar of Barilla sauce, exclusive Academia Barilla olive oil and vinegar and two tickets to Casa Barilla (a $10 value).

To help New Yorkers in need share the table, for every dinner kit distributed, Barilla will donate $1 to the Food Bank For New York City.  Current plans call for the distribution of 20,000 dinner kits to commuters throughout the week, which will, in turn, help provide 100,000 meals to New Yorkers in need.

Commuters will be able to track the Barilla pasta truck all week on Twitter (@BarillaUS) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/BarillaUS).

Additionally commuters, or those who cannot join us in New York City, can amplify the donation nationally by uploading and tagging their own photo on the Barilla US Facebook page and pledging to share the table with their own families and friends. For every photo uploaded, Barilla will donate $1 to Feeding America (up to $80,000), the nation's leading domestic hunger-relief charity, and the national partner to the Food Bank For New York City.

The Road to Casa Barilla:  August 23 – September 12

On Tuesday, August 23, Barilla will rev up its engines for the race to Casa Barilla! Five Barilla-branded FIAT cars will zip all over the five boroughs visiting unknown Italian treasures around the city, stopping at gelato shops, Italian-style pizzerias and even Italian-influenced parks and green spaces. Drivers and brand ambassadors will hand out free tickets for entry into Casa Barilla to everyone who stops by, and the first five New Yorkers who check in with a Barilla car's location via FourSquare at select locations will win two VIP vouchers to Andrea Bocelli Live in Central Park, to be redeemed for tickets inside Casa Barilla by noon on Wednesday, September 14.

Casa Barilla: September 13 – 16

The culmination of Barilla's Summer of Italy is Casa Barilla, a four-day celebration of Italian culture and cuisine in Central Park's Rumsey Playfield. New Yorkers can bring their families and friends along to taste, learn, cook, play and share during authentic Italian cooking classes, sampling stations, chef workshops and a dedicated play area for children called the Piccolini Playground. Here, children can make dried pasta necklaces and roll out their own pasta dough.

A number of renowned chefs, food and television personalities are scheduled to appear at Casa Barilla, including:

• Chef Massimo Bottura, awarded 'Chef of the Year' in January 2011 by Academie Internationale de la Gastronomie
• Chef Scott Conant, of New York City's Scarpetta restaurant  
• Chef Sara Jenkins, of New York City's Porchetta and Porsena restaurants
• Ellie Krieger, New York Times bestselling author, nutritionist and Food Network star
• Chef Giuseppe Morisco, of FOX's "MasterChef" series
• Thom Filicia, interior designer and TV star

Barilla Executive Chef Lorenzo Boni will also be on hand, as well as talented Academia Barilla chefs from Parma, Italy.  Consumers can sign up for classes and workshops in advance by visiting www.ShareTheTable.com/SummerOfItaly.

Additionally, New Yorkers will have the opportunity to show off their cooking skills at the first-ever Casa Barilla Invitational: An Authentic Italian Culinary Challenge taking place on Tuesday, September 13 and Friday, September 16. Local cooks with a passion for the culinary arts can sign up online to compete for a NYC Culinary Adventure Package.

Finally, no Barilla event would be complete without extensive sampling: guests will be treated to hot and cold pasta dishes, specialty items from Academia Barilla and more. The entry fee for Casa Barilla is $5 for adults and free for children. 100 percent of all entry fees will benefit the Food Bank For New York City.

Main Sponsor of Andrea Bocelli Live in Central Park: September 15

Barilla is also the main sponsor of a scheduled performance by beloved Italian tenor, Andrea Bocelli, on Central Park's Great Lawn the evening of Thursday, September 15. For the first time in Central Park concert history, Barilla will be the exclusive food provider for concert-goers, creating a cultural and culinary experience inspired by the cuisine of Italy and a unique opportunity for New Yorkers to share the table under the stars during the performance.

The Barilla menu, created by Chef Boni, will include a number of pasta dishes, including farfalle pasta with tomato-basil sauce and summer vegetable lasagne, as well as grilled Panini sandwiches, cold vegetable and legume soup, and more. Food will be available for purchase and 25 percent of proceeds will go the Food Bank For New York City to help all New Yorkers share the table.

For more details and updates about Barilla's Summer of Italy, including Casa Barilla and other event dates, please visit: www.ShareTheTable.com/SummerOfItaly.

About the Barilla Group

Barilla, originally established in 1877 as a bread and pasta shop in Parma, Italy, ranks as one of today's top Italian food groups. Barilla is a leader in the global pasta business, the pasta sauces business in continental Europe, the bakery products business in Italy and the crispbread business in Scandinavia.

Barilla owns 43 production sites (13 in Italy and 30 outside Italy) and exports to more than 100 countries. Every year, about 2,500,000 tons of food products are featured on dining tables all over the world under the brands of Barilla, Mulino Bianco, Voiello, Pavesi, Alixir, Academia Barilla, Wasa, Harry's (France and Russia), Lieken Urkorn and Golden Toast (Germany), Misko (Greece), Filiz (Turkey) and Yemina and Vesta (Mexico).

Barilla has become one of the world's most esteemed food companies and is recognized globally as a symbol of Italian know-how by upholding its longstanding traditional principles and values, considering employees a fundamental asset and developing leading-edge production systems.

For more information, please visit: www.barillagroup.com and www.BarillaUS.com.

About the 2012 FIAT 500

With beautiful Italian styling, timeless functionality, fuel efficiency and innovative technology – the same attributes that made the original version an icon – the 2012 FIAT 500 is relevant for an entirely new generation of drivers.

The 2012 FIAT 500 offers high levels of safety, fuel economy, quality and advanced technology. With its city-friendly four-passenger size, engaging driving dynamics, all-new fuel-efficient 1.4-liter MultiAir® engine with eco:Drive™ Application, state-of-the-art TomTom® Navigation with BLUE&ME™ Handsfree Communication technology and seven standard air bags, the new FIAT 500 offers a unique driving and ownership experience. This package is further enhanced with new quality and refinement adaptations for the U.S. market, including an all-new six-speed automatic transmission.

The reintroduction of the FIAT brand in North America is led by the modern generation of the Fiat 500, now joined by the Fiat 500 Cabrio. To learn more, visit: www.fiatusa.com

About The Food Bank For New York City

Food Bank For New York City has spent 28 years as the city's major hunger-relief organization working to end food poverty throughout the five boroughs. As the city's hub for integrated food poverty assistance, the Food Bank tackles the hunger issue on three fronts — food distribution, income support and nutrition education — all strategically guided by the organization's research.

Through its network of approximately 1,000 community-based member programs citywide, the Food Bank helps provide 400,000 free meals a day for New Yorkers in need. The Food Bank's hands-on nutrition education program in the public schools reaches thousands of children, teens and adults.

Income support services including food stamps, free tax assistance for the working poor and the Earned Income Tax Credit put millions of dollars back in the pockets of low-income New Yorkers, helping them to achieve greater dignity and independence.  To learn more, visit: www.foodbanknyc.org.

About Feeding America (Formerly America's Second Harvest – The Nation's Food Bank Network)

Feeding America provides individuals and families facing hunger with the fuel to survive and even thrive. As the nation's leading domestic hunger-relief charity, our network members supply food to more than 25 million Americans each year, including 9 million children and 3 million seniors. Serving the entire United States, more than 200 member food banks operate 63,000 agencies that address hunger through emergency food assistance and programs. For more information on how you can fight hunger in your community and across the country, visit www.feedingamerica.org.

SOURCE Barilla