Bigoli pasta with wild spinach and slow cooked Piedmonte beef cheeks is another hearty and rich dish, as warming as a fine Italian wool coat. Perhaps the bard got it the wrong way round and it’s actually food that is the music of love? As Roundhay’s infamous Flying Pizza Italian restaurant prepares to celebrate it’s 40th birthday later this year, celebrity Chef and Author Aldo Zilli cooked up a summer feast combining the best of Yorkshire and Italian summer seasonal produce. There is a strong link between Shakespeare and Italy, with many of his most famous plays being set in the country; the tragic love story of Romeo and Juliet, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Julius Caesar and The Merchant of Venice, to name a few. So it didn’t take much persuasion to get San Carlo’s Executive development chef, Filippo Pagani, who hails from Venice, on board with the idea of showcasing some special native dishes. Take what we Brits refer to as Crisps. Or what the Yanks, in their never-ending state of terminal food confusion, call Potato Chips. Commenting on the prized truffle, Aldo Zilli said: “Many have tried to describe the aroma and taste of the white truffle – the Romans believed it was an aphrodisiac, maybe it is, it’s intense and earthy and the smell of it can fill a room, but you have to experience it yourself as there’s nothing like it.”

It was one of the first Italian restaurants to open in the city and was a regular haunt for footballers, television stars and politicians. The tables are all white linen and nothing seems to have been left to chance when it comes to the set up. The crowd is very much a mixture of business folk, people out for a celebratory lunch (anniversaries, birthdays and graduations) with pretty much everybody in the room well-dressed. There are over twenty thousand items in Bell Italia’s assortment from famous Italian food brands. Each day, Bell Italia serves over a thousand wholesalers, retailers, importers, and restaurateurs around the world. Bell Italia has been operating on the market with passion, seriousness, and commitment since 2010. Favourite dishes of the tasting, though, was Prosciutto-like cured lamb sliced thin and served with mint, tomatoes and pistachios.In 1970, the company adopted the name San Carlo Gruppo Alimentare and moved its head office to via Turati. So have San Carlo taken a bold step forward with Highlander Venison, Smoked Salmon, or Arbroath Smokie crisps ? Those who crave heartier fayre to match the onset of autumn will need to rush over to experience ultimate Italian comfort food like Gnocchi coated with butter, sage and Monte Veronese cheese, a cow’s milk cheese which San Carlo had flown over especially. The gnocchi is served here in an edible cheese and breadcrumb basket. owe. On any given night you'll find plenty of City or United players hanging out there with recent arrivals Jose Mourinho and Paul Pogba already big fans. As it happens, the Scottish factory was closed in 2013, with all production transferred to Italy. This is why you rarely find Highlander crisps in Scotland any more… Reply

Obviously any one of San Carlo’s venues can be enjoyed at any time, but those with a poetic soul who fancy the chance to experience a similar diet to their favourite Shakespearean character, have until Sunday 9th October to head towards San Carlo Bottega in Selfridges to fully immerse themselves at the point where food meets culture. Martello said the family business now comprises 18 restaurants but Flying Pizza is the one that is closest to his heart. He said: “I have been coming to Flying Pizza since I was 10 – we would come as customers every Sunday. “Because we have grown up here it is quite personal to us.” Because the idea that an Italian company was making a crisp called Highlander Caledonian Tomato would prove so irresistible to the Scottish sense of humour, that if San Carlo exported their entire annual production to Glasgow, they’d be an overnight sensation. Bell Italia is the wholesaler that brings the best of made in Italy to the whole world. Over 20 thousand products of the best brands are available on our price list at super affordable prices. We also offer our partners constant support concerning the necessary certifications, relabelling, and logistics. There are many good reasons why wholesalers, retailers and importers from all over the world choose Bell Italia every day. You can see why the rich and the famous like to come here and eat. The room is absolutely buzzing in a way that not many other restaurants achieve. The food is spectacular, over the top and all served with panache and theatre. You feel good about yourself while sitting here and being taken care of.But is it any good? Or is it all just style over substance? We headed along for a spot of lunch to find out... So these crisps are made with fresh, ripe, juicy Scottish tomatoes from the sun-kissed hills, glens and mountains ? In 1940, Mr Vitaloni moved to Greco, to start production on a larger scale, with the company changing its name into "San Carlo... le patatine".

It was ‘the’ place to be seen and guests even asked to be seated in the window so they were sure to be spotted. San Carlo has brought quality, originality, and style to the world of Italian crisps. It’s the largest Italian chips brand in the sector, and it’s always launching new lines of products to suit the consumers’ tastes. San Carlo has also introduced innovative production technologies, to obtain light, crispy and gluten-free potato chips. Filippo told us: “For me, the best cooking combines great simplicity with great taste and for an Italian, eating seasonally is a way of life, it means you’re eating fresh ingredients at the height of their flavour. In June and July, asparagus, peas, broad beans, peaches and lemons come into their own. Our new dishes celebrate the best of the new season’s produce using dishes from Florence, Cortina, Venice and Abruzzo.”The famous crisp brand, which is part of the historic Italian group Unichips has recently signed an agreement with Ferrero for the distribution through a new commercial channel, that is “outside of the home”: kiosks, bars, retailers, and vending machines. By doing so the company has strengthened its position in the market, which was already solid in the field of large-scale distribution thanks to a wide variety of products that can satisfy the tastes of any consumer. Discover it here. San Carlo crisps With Bell Italia the best of Italy reaches every country in the world AUTHENTIC is a word much abused. Seasonal, too. And Italian restaurants that pay true attention to regionality are few and far between. Glossy San Carlo Cicchetti has never stayed tied for long to its name, a homage to Venetian gondoliers’ favourite small plates but in exec development chef Filipp hite truffle, so highly prized it’s known as the king of the culinary world. The edible buried treasure was discovered by professional truffle hunters in the national park of the Abruzzo region using specially trained dogs. It’s one of the world’s truly great cuisines. But perhaps the stellar heights achieved by a perfect Spaghetti alla Carbonara; or Ossobucco; or Bistecca alla Fiorentina can begin to explain why, in a kind of strange inverse ratio, Italian junk food is…well…junk.