TORONTO – It’s June, the Italian month in Canada, and the events dedicated to the Heritage of “Belpaese” continue in Toronto. This weekend will be the turn of “Taste of Little Italy”: on Friday 14th, Saturday 15th and Sunday 16th, the area of ​​College Street between Bathurst Street and Shaw Street (historically, the Italian quarter in Toronto), will host a series of events including music, shows and food stands to celebrate the large Italian community and the excellence of Made in Italy. 

This time, the event coincides with the Year of Italian Roots in the World, dedicated to welcoming Italian descendants in their territories of origin, their “ancestral lands”: therefore, Italea will also have its own space. Italea is the program for promoting “roots tourism”, launched by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation within the PNRR project and financed by NextGenerationEU for the period 2022-2025. In this occasion, the participation of the Italian regions of Basilicata, Lazio and Molise as well as the Italian groups of Abruzzo, Calabria, Friuli, Lazio and Molise are expected.

The Italea’s mission will start on Friday 14th, at the Fairmont Royal York in Toronto where meetings are scheduled between Italian and Canadian companies and organizations active in the tourism field and the official presentation of the Italy project to the press. Furthermore, starting from 7pm, the great party of “Taste of Little Italy” will also start on College Street, with live music in several points of the area.

Therefore, on Saturday at 11 am the Italea exhibition area will open in College Street, between Bathurst Street and Palmerston Avenue, again as part of “Taste of Little Italy” where the events with live music will continue, from morning to evening, both Saturday and Sunday, along with other initiatives celebrating Italian traditions, culture, and cuisine, organized by Chin Radio / Tv International.

Various craft workshops, cooking shows, tastings and musical performances, will be held within the Italian stands and the stands of the Italian regions.

There are many specific events at the Italea exhibition area: let’s see some of them. On Saturday 15th, after the inauguration of the area, the “Pizza Masterclass”: a journey into the world of pizza with the Scuola Pizzaioli to learn about the preparation process of this tasty Italian specialty. Then, an event promoted by EvoSchool, dedicated to the olive and oil sector with the presentation and tasting of olive oil. Finally, the first stage of the Tiramisu World Cup: the cooking competition dedicated to non-professionals who challenge each other to prepare their best Tiramisu. 

On Sunday 16th, in addition to a second appointment with the Evoschool, there will be space for music and traditions with the dancer Lucia Scarabino and her Tarantella Experience. Finally, the Tiramisu Masterclass and the Pizza Italea Trophy. The Molise folk group Zig-Zaghini and the Lazio group La Tosca Opera will also take to the stage on both Saturday and Sunday.

Info about “Taste of Little Italy”: https://tolittleitaly.com; here below, the flyer of the festival and the notice of road closure