QUALITALY

DEC. JAN. 2018

VII

workers of the area, but also to

travellers coming to take a train and

tourists, a quick way to enjoy their

meal. “We have transformed our

window – he tells – into a counter

through which customers can choose

and collect the dish without entering

the self service area. The dishes are

prepared and packaged directly in the

window, under the watchful eyes of

those who wait. This is also why we

called this counter Food@Street.”

Food@Street offers includes 3 first

and 3 main courses every day,

8/9 side dishes and salad, mainly

prepared ad hoc for this mode of

administration. “In this visual kitchen

– he continues – the cook pops out

the first dishes, which are then kept

warm in the heated trays during the

service. The same goes for the main

and hot side dishes. Besides him, two

other people work at the “counter”.

One to pack the ordered dish and

hand it to the customer (I often deal

with this personally, because it is a

job that I enjoy) and the other to act

as cashier. Fortunately, by sharing the

self-service spaces we did not have

to face the difficulties of managing

spaces, because we can count on

the equipment, the pantries and the

storage of the main kitchen.”

Another asset of this solution is the

arcade, which is very large and allows

you to wait under shelter, both from

the fierce sun of the Milan summers,

and from torrential rain.

“Those who want can also take

advantage of eating directly in the

street – concludes Marco Serpieri –

but in our case often customers buy

the meal to be eaten, with greater

comfort, in their offices.”

FREQUENT DELIVERIES, IN

VENICE

The location of We Love Italy pasta

to Go, a takeaway place for fresh

pasta, piadine, salads, crepes, is

completely different. Located in

Calle dell’Orso 5529 near Campo

San Bartolomeo, in Venice, which

caters to both tourists and residents

and workers of the lagoon city. In

this restaurant all preferences are

catered for, from pasta to desserts,

which are home-made and cooked

specifically in front of the eyes of

the customers, practically there is

nothing in the window pre-prepared.

Everything is served in convenient

cardboard packages to be used even

when walking, outside among the

city streets. “We have not found

any particular difficulties in the

management of ingredients compared

to a traditional restaurant – says the

proprietor, Sandro Malerba – also

because having an actual restaurant

we have negative and positive

refrigerators, as well as a dedicated

warehouse for the room-temperature

merchandise.”

The are common difficulties for all

Venetian catering activities. “The

storage of goods in Venice is very

rare because of the lack of dedicated

spaces - Malerba explains - therefore

we make use of at least two deliveries

per week from our suppliers.

Standard catering formats are still

very good for our business.”

ATTENTION TO SHELF LIFE

Fixed activities, therefore seem

to have no particular difficulty in

managing takeaway, although it’s

another thing for those who move,

with their own activity, from one

square to another. This is the case

for Golosia, which goes around Italy

with its own stand bringing with it

the typical flavours of Parma cuisine:

fresh pasta, the delicious fillings

based, among other things, upon

Parma ham and Parmesan Cheese.

“Our stand is very versatile – says

Edoardo Craviari, chef and creator

of the initiative – and can expand

from a length of 4.50 to 16.50 meters.

The problem is that the stall costs

(the occupancy tax of public land)

are very high and can arrive at 1,000

euros for a weekend for a space of 4.5

meters, if not over in the

most prestigious town squares such

as the trendiest areas of Milan. The

spaces cost us between 5,000 and

6,000 euros per month and this

affects the price of our dishes.”

Depending on the location and the

occasion, Golosia proposes ready-

made meals or sells fresh pasta to

cook or store at home. The process

is the same: in the premises of

Salsomaggiore Terme the doughs

for the fresh pasta are prepared,

the fillings and the sauces that are

placed vacuum-packed and labelled

so as to have the expiry date visible.

Everything is stored and transported

at a controlled temperature at the

place where the stand is located.

“At the time of the order – explains

Craviari – we roll out the dough,

add the filling, cook it and flavour

it with the seasoning in a large

induction wok, all under the eyes of

customers, who watch their order

prepared. Relying on our own kitchen

and warehouse, we have no major

problems in the supply and storage

of the goods. Our stand is equipped

with a refrigerated showcase, where

we store fresh products. We keep the

shelf life under strict control.

And if necessary, when – in the case

of long stays away from the premises

– we rearrange the finished semi-

completed products and send back

the goods close to expiry and replace

them with fresh

products. On average, a plate of

tortellini consumed as street food

costs about 10 euros, while the

takeaway pasta can vary between

2 and 4 euros for a serving of 4

ounces.”’

THIRD PARTY STORAGE

Another solution is the one adopted

by Aperballe, a Piaggio Ape van, set

up as a vendor of fried food. “Our

Ape – explains Luca Luxardo – is

located in Bonassola (Sp), right in

front of our Enoballe wine store. We

also have a restaurant (Perballe) and

a stand for the preparation of granite

(slushees) in the summer period

(Graniballe). All in the centre of

Bonassola. That’s why we can rely on

the restaurant’s kitchen. When we go

“Away” by moving the vehicle to other

locations, we make agreements with