Two-day programme

Monday, 25 April:

- Pan pizza

- Long pizza

- Classic pizza using a rolling pin

- Four handed pizza

- Mystery box

- Freestyle (individual)

- Freestyle (team)

Tuesday, 26 April:

- Classic pizza

- Neapolitan pizza

- Pizza by the metre

- Freestyle (individual)

- Freestyle (team) 

At the end of the day on Tuesday, 26 April, the 2022 WORLD CHAMPIONS will be announced, one for each category.

Innovative new SPECIAL PRIZES will also be announced:

•Best Woman Pizza Chef: the woman with the highest score in one of the competitions (excluding pizza acrobatics) will be awarded a special prize;

• Up-and-coming pizzaiolo: this title will be awarded to the pizza maker under 30 with the highest overall score in any of the competitions (excluding pizza acrobatics);

• King of Roman Pizza: this prize will be awarded to the pizza maker who, in the three Roman-specialty pizza competitions (pan, long, and round with a rolling pin), gets the best overall score (totalling their points from the three competitions).

But the surprises don't end there! The pizzaiolo at the top of the podium for the pan, long, by the metre, duo collab, surprise, classic, Neapolitan and round-with-a-rolling-pin categories (i.e., each new world champion for each category) will have the right to enter the final of Master Pizza Champion, the first and only televised talent show dedicated to pizza, in its 7th edition for 2022.

Giovanni began working in the kitchen in 1994, alongside his mother Nadia and grandmother Bruna; Alberto started his career in the dining room in 2000, alongside his father Antonio. With a degree in Culinary Science and Technology, Giovanni has brought the precision of molecular gastronomy to the kitchen, combining creativity and rigour in the characteristic menu of Il Pescatore. In 2010 he married Valentina, and in 2014 their son Lorenzo was born. Holding a degree in economics, Alberto has brought his broad knowledge of wine-making and international business management to the restaurant.   

Today, Giovanni and Alberto are the cornerstones of Dal Pescatore. They are a generation which has soaked up the recipes, flavours and atmosphere of the restaurant since childhood, able to appreciate and share the daily efforts of their parents and grandparents. Firmly rooted in the extensive experience of previous generations, but with the freshness of youth and new ideas, they enthusiastically lead this renowned gastronomic adventure in the heart of the Po Valley, ensuring the continuity of a family-run business.

To their solid academic training they have added constant and direct knowledge of the great masters of world cuisine.  

Credits: Roberta Vagliani

Valentina, who has a degree in Culinary Science and Technology, now runs the family farm where bees and free-range animals (cattle and chickens) are raised, and where fruit, vegetables and herbs are grown.
The aim is to guarantee the absolute quality and freshness of the dishes served to guests who come to Runate from all over the world. Gastronomic guides, newspapers and the press have been and continue to be instrumental in presenting the Dal Pescatore name and the value it offers. 

The awarding of the first Michelin star in 1982, followed by the second in 1988 and the third in 1996, has ensured international recognition and appreciation. 

Meeting colleagues and belonging to associations (Le Soste since 1982, Relais & Châteaux since 1990, Les Grandes Tables du Monde since 1992) keeps their passion for the profession and love for the region alive and up to date.  

Each generation has worked with dedication and determination to make the restaurant contemporary through the values of local Italian culture. The esteem of the guests, the dedication of the staff, the quality of the products and services provided by farmers, breeders, fishermen and all other suppliers have made and continue to make the Dal Pescatore dream come true. And the story continues... 

• The cocktail you're most proud of?

My Breakfast Martini, now recognized as a modern classic.

• The secret to a perfect cocktail? 

Presentation, aroma and taste. The perfect journey.

• What would you recommend to a young person who wants to become a bartender? 

To understand that the bar is a theatre, a place to show off your skill and talent to an audience and to strive to become an artist at your work. Not only creating a wonderful drink, you must remember to make all your guests feel special, it is called hospitality for a reason.

• What do you think about Brexit? Did Brexit change the cocktail industry and the bartender's activity?

Absolutely, one of the greatest pleasures as a bartender is to travel the world and experience new cultures, it helps us to develop and share ideas and become better bartenders. We are now experiencing a terrible shortage of talent here in the UK because of Brexit. I have never had difficulty to find talented staff in the past, but now so many venues are struggling to maintain opening hours due to staff shortages.

• Let's talk about the last 2 years. Which problems has covid caused to the sector? How people behave in pubs? Has the role of the bartender changed in any way?

Covid has caused tremendous problems in the sector, it has caused a great deal of uncertainty, staffing problems and financial pressures and obvious fear that you can be infected with the virus.

He retains classical taste, which today becomes the springboard to look elsewhere, precisely in Italy, precisely in Rome, for fulfillment. Rome is not only vegetable gardens and Romanity, but also all that is cosmopolitan that moves within it: the foreign ingredient is Romanized by the great availability of dierent worlds and colors. In Rome you can find everything from all over the world, and if an exotic ingredient appears in the kitchen of ZIA it is because it was available in the market alongside Roman broccoli or baby artichokes. Antonio is comfortable with a cuisine of subtraction, which aims at the essence obtained with an ever deeper, tenacious and insatiable search, with a connection between essentiality and depth.
In the dishes three ingredients, sometimes two: not only of great quality but also refined to explore in-depth nuances. With the right timing, without a forceful stretch, and with a smile on his face, he unites everyone in the ZIA brigade, a team that wants to achieve great goals.

In 2019, Cutraro earned his first major recognition by winning the World Pizzaiuolo Championship in Naples, the validation that all pizza makers dream of.
Finally, he felt the need to put himself out there: a month before the pandemic began, he opened Da Peppe - Pizza e Cucina Italiana in Paris. Le Parisien even published an article about it, titled: 'The world pizza champion is called Peppe and he's here!'. Cutraro didn't stop during the subsequent lockdowns, and the publisher Marabout suggested he write a book. Pizzas Napolitaines: 50 Recettes du Champion du Monde de la Pizza has since sold 30,000, copies becoming an example to the industry. 

‘In France, Neapolitan pizza was relatively unknown’, Cutraro explained. 'The French understanding of pizza was shaped by international chains. When they discovered the type of pizza we made, they literally went crazy. The French love to eat as much as we do and they are all great connoisseurs of products, just like us Neapolitans’.

Cutraro is down to earth, someone who has never forgotten his roots in the Quartieri Spagnoli of Naples: ‘The only downside is that I spend very little time with my mother, who lives alone. But she’s proud of me, she’s happy with the path I have chosen and she’s always encouraged me to travel and to experience the world’. Today, his restaurant employs about 15 people between the dining room, pizza oven and kitchen. Made using the direct dough method and risen for 24 hours, his pizza has a slightly more pronounced crust than the traditional Neapolitan version. Fior di latte, instead of buffalo mozzarella, is also more traditional. Cutraro is therefore a true example of what pizza can represent for many young people: the pride of a job well done, one that’s rewarding economically and personally. His story is one of many that has spread around the world from the heart of Naples, an inexhaustible source of vital energy.

For him, confectionery is a mission to make someone's day. The taste of something sweet is a basic desire of the metabolism, an innate need, necessary for the body.

To meet that need, the pastry industry is undergoing major changes. Over the years, sugars and fats have been reduced, and only high-quality ingredients are to be used. Which is how Biasetto manages to promote a healthy diet, dismantling the cliché that 'sugar = unhealthy'.

However, to make his mission a success, customer expectations must be met.

This is why the work he does is all-encompassing, why he constantly collaborates with medical consultants, nutritionists, chemists and researchers, and even artists, amateur bakers and gourmands.

According to Biasetto, perfect cakes and pastries have exciting, innovative aesthetics while remaining elegant.

Balanced yet well-defined aromas and calibrated flavours work with textures to make each pastry even more enjoyable. If a confection is imprinted in the customer's memory, the mission is complete.

The first step in creating any recipe is to find the right ingredients.

To guarantee excellent quality, Biasetto works directly with producers to ensure a solid supply chain and seeks balanced, delicious and winning combinations that are sure to delight.

Finding the best production systems to make the process sustainable and repeatable has also been essential.

His watchword? Ground-breaking craftsmanship: Biasetto works with state-of-the-art equipment, without losing sight of what human hands can do. When communicating, Biasetto upholds clear relationships based on sharing, believing that dialogue is the best stimulus for continued growth.

Aware of how limited his vision is compared to the expectations of others, Biasetto believes that listening to clients is essential. Over the years, he has invested in structured customer service as a way to encourage and handle feedback and perfect the products he offers, aiming for continuous improvement.

This allows Biasetto and his staff to stay true to their values while remaining at the forefront of international trends.

The restaurant who reaches the highest score wins the title of "Best Little Big Italy restaurant", while the expat who chose it wins a bonus card valid for one year to eat for free in their favorite restaurant are identified who each select a city restaurant of Italian cuisine managed in turn by Italians. 

Moreover, Panella hosted in prime time on the Italian TV channel NOVE the show Riaccendiamo i fuochi.

In these five episodes, Francesco Panella went to the rescue of restaurateurs and entrepreneurs, specifically owners of family-run activities, who were hit by the economic crisis due to the Covid-19 emergencies and needed help.

Francesco Panella made his experience available to these entrepreneurs in order to fix their business models and helped them to understand how to deal with our new reality.

An eclectic entrepreneur, Francesco Panella has been also involved in other projects during the pandemic period.

First of all, he created the first anti-Covid restaurant.

This idea saw Panella bringing together professors, scientists, engineers, creatives, alongside Costa Group, to find a series of practical solutions on how to store and serve food, make the customer feel protected, but above all on how to transform and adapt the restaurant environment to health needs.

The result has been an integrated plan of innovative actions, starting from cooking and storing food, with the idea, for example, of "hot" refrigerators, which, once the bacterial load has been eliminated, allow to secure up food for 40 hours.

Together with a company in Padua, Panella also developed solutions to reduce the risk of contamination with removable pliers for plates and pots, lids to secure the dishes and antibacterial pans that serve as plates, made of copper or ceramic. 

Panella is also a food writer and in 2020 he wrote for Newton Compton, Forse non tutti sanno che in America. 
In common perception, America is a symbol of progress and modernity but also of junk food. Francesco Panella in this book told the stories of chefs, farmers, producers, food entrepreneurs, visionary characters who, since the nineteenth century, helped to welcome and revisit gastronomic traditions of the colonists as well as populations already rooted in the territory.

This book is an exciting tour, full of personal anecdotes, from the north-east of the United States, passing through the Midwest, the South and arriving to the west, the largest area of the country, composed of very different landscapes and characteristic cuisine, strongly inspired by pioneers and attentive to the theme of sustainability.

In 2021, Francesco wrote with this brother Simone 100 anni di cucina romana nelle ricette e nella storia dell’Antica Pesa, the recipe book of the Panella family, which celebrates 100 years of activity of the Antica Pesa restaurant.

This is not only the history of love and passion of the Panella family for food and for their work, but also tells the evolution of the city of Rome over the last 100 years. The Antica Pesa is therefore not just a simple restaurant, but a bulwark of our food and wine culture and a special place that represents our capital and its traditions. Among the receipes, we find the most iconic Roman dishes such as gricia, carbonara, coda alla vaccinara, or cacio e pepe.

This book shows how Antica Pesa represents the past, the present, but also and above all the future of Roman cousine. Antica Pesa has been and still is the home of well-known Italian and international politicians, writers, actors, singers and directors. For example, in the 80s, the Italian President of the Republic, Sandro Pertini celebrated at Antica Pesa his 90th birthday and called the restaurant his home.

Civitiello’s desire to prove himself led to an important milestone: winning the 12th World Pizzaiuolo Championship (the Caputo Trophy) in 2013. This victory marked the beginning of his collaboration with the event’s namesake, Caputo, the famed flour mill in Naples.

Thanks to that experience and various collaborations over the years, Civitello has learned that it is important not just to know how to do his job as a pizza chef, but to understand every hidden detail about its ingredients and the best way to use them.
Civitiello has travelled to many cities around the world to continuously hone his craft, visiting Europe, Asia and South America, where he has met incredible people and learned about different cultures.

After years in the industry, Civitiello has realised that the secret to success is to never feel like you have ‘arrived’. Day after day, Civitiello seizes every opportunity to learn something new, approaching his work with the same enthusiasm as his first day at the pizzeria.

PASSION. It comes fur sure from the passion of 4 generations in Andrea Tortora’s family. He was born into a family of pastry chefs, so he always knew he wanted to be a pastry chef. Andrea has worked in the kitchens of the most emblazoned kitchens from an early age, and this experience made him understand how important equilibrium is in a kitchen and how delicate is the connection of obedience and freedom, which is the key to creativity. 

TRADITIONS. The roots are in the tradition: to come from a family like Andrea’s one, created in him a connection to tradition which he has never felt to be a burden, as a matter of fact he always thought of it as an opportunity, to completely change and therefore to dare. He added international experiences in some of the best restaurants including Ledoyen in Paris, Waterside Inn in Bray and Ristorante Zafferano in Singapore, to finish in Niederlkofler’s Sant Hubertus in the Dolomites. 

PEOPLE. All of them were fundamental to Andrea’s journey. He always enjoys talking about EXPERIENCE because through travelling and understanding things and meeting people outside our circle we can gain a wealth of experience that becomes KNOWLEDGE. 

SIMPLICITY. 

Simple, clear, clean. Andrea believes that a dish becomes perfect not when there is nothing more to add but when there is nothing more to remove. He strongly believes that less is better.

AT style foresees precision and discipline, and the technique must enhance the taste and the

raw products.

If we ask him to tell us about a product, he, with dreamy eyes, tells us about his latest addition to the Easter2022 Collection, the PandUovo, the new leavened Easter product by Andrea Tortora with the registered trademark.
In 2018 Andrea Tortora had an intuition to create an ornamental patent for a leavened product in the shape of half an egg.

It is a leavened product that rigorously follows the traditions in the choice of ingredients and production but with a modern look towards the shape where the product in the shape of half an egg takes the place of the traditional dove.
The creation of a new unique mould of its kind, was the fruit of a pencil drawing, and the help of Marco D’Andolfi and our very own mould maker in Verona, for the reproduction of moulds in the latest technological contemporary materials where the memories of the past are brought to life in the present.