05 Sep Please The Palate Pick of the Week: Eataly USA Celebrates 10 Years with La Grande Sfogliata

Since lockdown due to Coronavirus, Eataly has been one of the only markets I have shopped at regularly. They have made safety their highest priority, requiring masks and handing out gloves to everyone since day one. Every couple of weeks, I head to Eataly to purchase fresh pasta, olive oils, cheeses and other items that might catch my fancy. This week marked Eataly’s 10 year anniversary in the United States. In honor of this celebration, ten Eataly locations around the world participated in a global virtual event. I am so thankful to have an Eataly near my home and their 10th anniversary and global virtual event is the Please the Palate pick of the week. The very first Eataly opened its doors in Torino, Italy in 2007. On August 31, 2010, Eataly NYC Flatiron, the flagship store in the US, opened. Today, Eataly has now opened in over 40 cities around the world. On Monday, August 31st, the pasta makers (pastai) from five U.S. locations paired up with pastai from Eataly locations worldwide on Instagram Live to roll sheet after sheet of fresh pasta. Eataly NYC Flatiron partnered with Eataly Torino; Eataly NYC Downtown partnered with Eataly Milano; Eataly Chicago partnered with Eataly Dubai; Eataly Boston partnered with Eataly Stockholm; Eataly Los Angeles partnered with Eataly Istanbul. The goal was to virtually create the longest sfoglia (pasta sheet) in the world. On each of the U.S. Eataly locations Instagram pages, the partnered pastai rolled their pasta dough together while sharing stories, methods,recipes and tips. Sfoglia (pasta sheet), pronounced “sfoh-lee-ah”, is traditionally rolled by hand with a long wooden rolling pin. The reputation of a skilled pastaio (pasta maker) is often determined by their consistent, even-handed sheets of dough rolled to perfect thinness. In fact, pasta making wisdom states that you should be able to read a newspaper through the dough when held up to the light. Once the pastai kneaded, rolled and shaped their pasta sheets, they cut the dough into long, golden strands of tagliatelle to make tagliatelle alla bolognese. All together with 10 stores they created 50 feet of sfoglia! Happy Anniversary Eataly USA!