QUALITALY_125

OCT. NOV. 2021 VII WHAT HAPPENED DURING THE MONTHS OF THE PANDEMIC? That period was very difficult! The youngsters lost their daily routine and being engaged in an activity. This forced stop wasn’t easy. I remember that one of our pizza makers called me saying that he had worked so hard to learn how to make dough and Covid was destroying everything. From this statement, however, I was inspired to give them a chance to resume their activities and, at the same time, continue to raise awareness of the project. PizzAut Truck Food was born! So, even during the pandemic, we took orders from apartment buildings, for example, and went to prepare pizzas with immediate delivery... The pizzeria delivered directly to home. Obviously in compliance with safety regulations. WAS THERE A PARTICULAR EPISODE IN THIS PERIOD OF COVID? At the end of July, we all went together to Piazza Montecitorio and made pizzas for the government. Conte ate the DPCM pizza, invented for the occasion with white scamorza cheese, mortadella DOP and pistachios, and said that it was the best DPCM ever made in Italy. THERE MUST HAVE BEEN A LOT OF DIFFICULTIES... All those that concern bureaucracy as well as the additional ones for a project never tried before and completely new. It should be added that out of 11 employees, 9 are autistic and that it is the only restaurant in Europe to be managed and work in this way. I must add that several people discouraged us, saying that it would never be successful and would never work. On the other hand, the restaurant industry responded very well and gave us the opportunity to take an alternative route, demonstrating how a leading sector of our country can be an opportunity for many people who are almost always excluded. WHAT ARE YOUR PIZZAS? The menu is varied and made by the staff themselves, who, according to their specific characteristics, have been directed to different roles... Of course, at the beginning it was difficult to make people understand and accept some basic aspects, from the preparation of the dough to the service, but the result arrived and today our menu consists of GourmAut Pizzas and Special Pizzas, as well as appetizers and fried delicacies. HOW WILL PIZZAUT EVOLVE? We are working to open, in addition to the restaurant in Cassina de’ Pecchi, a new place in Monza, where at least 20 autistic youngsters could work, considering that in the midst of the pandemic we hired them on a permanent basis. The broader objective is to open other premises and start a franchise, the first social catering chain in the world. PizzAut - Via Don Verderio 1, Cassina de’ Pecchi (MI) ____________________________________ BOX Social catering In Italy there are other examples of catering of this kind, including bars and pastry shops. In the city of Trani we can mention La locanda del giullare (The Jester’s Inn), the result of work involving the Jobel Centre’s Cooperative for Social Development and Solidarity, which is committed to caring for the frail and promoting a culture of inclusion, including courses related to cooking with workshops and small training schools with chefs, pizza makers and pastry chefs. In short, the aim of La locanda del giullare is to include people with disabilities or who live in vulnerable conditions in the workforce, develop quality catering and focus on social food, promoting a culture that is able to go beyond apparent limits. This project, which is still in progress, will be a restaurant with about 50 seats and equipped with large spaces suitable for organizing events, shows and meetings. From the point of view of personnel, it will include: 1 cook, 2 assistant cooks, 1 dishwasher, 3 waiting staff, 1 receptionist and 1 event organizer/cultural animator. The training will be carried out partly in collaboration with the Hotelier Institute “Aldo Moro” of Trani. www.associazionepromosocialetraniwee- blycom.weebly.com ____________________________________ BOX Social start-ups become a bill After the meeting between Nico Acampora (founder of PizzAut) and the Minister of Labour Andrea Orlando, the bill to support start-ups with social purposes, thanks to a part of public funds, is taking shape. After the meeting between Nico Acampora (founder of PizzAut) and the Minister of Labour Andrea Orlando, the bill to support start-ups with social purposes, thanks to a part of public funds, is taking shape. Starting from the success and excellence of PizzAut, the proposal expands towards social projects active in supporting, on the part of the State, all initiatives aimed at the inclusion of people with disabilities, especially autism. It is important to specify that the draft document states that the qualification of social start-up is such “when the company employs for a period of not less than one year, as employees or collaborators in any capacity, in a proportion equal to or greater than two-thirds of the total workforce, workers with autism spectrum disorder”. ____________________________________