- The Greek National Tourism Organization (GNTO) Italy branch partnered with Aldemar Resorts to bring the 16th annual Sympossio gourmet roadshow to Italy.
- High-profile interactive culinary events were staged at Studio Food 33 in Turin and the Food Genius Academy in Milan.
- The 2026 tour bypassed heavy commercial resort menus to spotlight Greek Monastic Cuisine, focusing on centuries-old, plant-centric dietary traditions.
- Italian tour operators, food journalists, and trade writers prepared a three-course menu highlighting pure raw ingredients, culminating in traditional loukoumades.
For centuries, Greek monastic cuisine has been dictated by a profound respect for the earth, the changing of the seasons, and a strict adherence to fasting calendars that naturally birthed one of the world’s oldest, most sophisticated plant-centric culinary traditions. It is a cuisine built on what can be gathered, pressed, or pulled from local soil: horta (wild greens), ancient grains and pulses, hand-harvested herbs, and thick, unrefined olive oil.
This deep culinary heritage recently took center stage in northern Italy, challenging the country’s most demanding food critics to view Greek gastronomy far beyond the standard coastal tavern tropes.
The Interactive Sympossio Roadshow
The experiential journey was orchestrated under the banner of Sympossio Greek Gourmet Touring, a highly successful international cultural roadshow developed by Aldemar Resorts. Operating in close coordination with the Italy office of the Greek National Tourism Organization (GNTO), the initiative targeted major northern Italian culinary hubs to stimulate high-value gastronomic tourism.
The tour deployed interactive, live-cooking workshops where participants did not merely watch a demonstration, but stepped behind the counters to handle the ingredients themselves:
- The Turin Session: Launched on May 19, 2026, hosted at the interactive culinary space Studio Food 33.
- The Milan Session: Concluded on May 21, 2026, held within the prestigious Food Genius Academy.
The events were introduced by Kyriaki Boulasidou, Director of the GNTO Italy Office, and Mandy Kalliontzi, Sales Director of Aldemar Resorts, who framed the initiative not as a marketing presentation, but as a bridge of shared Mediterranean values. The culinary logistics and flight connections tying the regions together were structurally backed by Aegean Airlines.
From Sacred Gardens to the Italian Plate
Under the step-by-step guidance of Aldemar’s executive chefs, including head chef George Chatzopoulos, Italian tour operators, travel journalists, and prominent food reporters prepared a curated three-course monastic menu.
The dishes relied heavily on authentic geographic indicators—focusing on the pure, unadulterated textures of Greek legumes, wild mountain herbs, and regional olive varieties. The interactive masterclasses demonstrated how monastic kitchens utilize slow-cooking techniques and precise herb combinations to extract intense flavors without relying on animal fats or complex processing.
The communal dinners concluded on a celebratory note, balancing the austere simplicity of the main menu with golden, crispy loukoumades (traditional Greek honey puffs) served alongside fresh ice cream.
