For the sixth year in a row, the Fort Mason Center in San Francisco hosted the Good Food Awards: a celebration of America’s most talented, sustainable food producers who represent 13 different categories ranging from beer to chocolate, cheese to fruit preserves. The winners met with buyers, media, and the general public over the weekend in the 30,000 square feet Herbst Pavilion, during which they displayed and sold their award winning food and drinks.
Carlo Petrini, founder of the Slow Food movement, flew in from Italy to San Francisco to deliver the Good Food Awards opening speech, along with renowned chef, activist, and Slow Food Vice President Alice Waters, and organic pioneer Nell Newman during a gala Awards Ceremony.
On the last day of the celebrations, Sunday January 17, Carlo Petrini was joined by Alice Waters and Eugenio Signoroni, editor of several Slow Food guide books for the launch of the innovative Slow Food Planet app. Eugenio is the project manager and content developer. During the presentation he referred to Slow Food Planet as more than a food guide; according to him the app functions as a friend who provides you with the best recommendations to local restaurants and diners, sustainable and environmentally friendly stores, and socially responsible food producers. The application covers hundreds of areas worldwide, and is organized under three categories: Time for Shopping (farmer’s markets, local producers, craft workshops), Time for Me (cafés, tea rooms, pubs, cocktail bars, bookshops, museums, and nature reserves), Time for Eating (restaurants, cafés, bistros, Italian osterie, pizza places, tapas bars). Thrilled and inspired by this handy, ingenious tool, we asked Eugenio Signoroni for further details about it and its features.
Eugenio, what is your experience at Slow Food?
My relation with Slow Food began in October 2004, when I attended their University of Gastronomic Sciences in Pollenzo, which is located near Bra, a city in the Italian North-West region of Piedmont. When I graduated, I started to work for Slow Food’s publishing house, Slow Food Editore. In the beginning I contributed to the guide book “Birre d’Italia” – of which I am currently the curator – afterwards I became the manager of another guide book, “Osterie d’Italia”. I am now responsible for the Slow Food Planet app.
What is Slow Food Planet and where did it stem from?
Slow Food Planet is an Italian and English application for iOS and Android that provides a wide database where enthusiasts can find premium locations to eat, drink, and find quality food, as suggested by the network of Slow Food worldwide. It is a unique tool as it allows users to search and find the best spots, as described by locals, and in accordance with the Slow Food philosophy.
Thanks to this application it is possible to locate restaurants, bars, cafés, tea houses, local producers, and farmer’s markets to name but a few. All suggestions are provided, not anonymously, but by Slow Food members all over the world. It is a trustworthy application that will help users find exactly the spot that suits them. The idea of creating such an application came up a long time ago. In 2001, Slow Food founder Carlo Petrini stated that it was necessary to have a single tool which would include all the information and data gathered all over the world by the association. It took us several years to be in the right conditions and have the proper technology to collect, process, and offer such a vast amount of information. Today Slow Food Planet is real. The application is free as well as one selected city; after the first download users will pay $1.99 for each additional city.
How is Slow Food Planet being developed and updated?
Each area is handled by local Slow Food members. They choose what will be included in the app and what will not be. The members will frequently visit the places they report about. Also, they will keep us updated about unexpected changes or novelties in their area. At the moment, we are covering three areas in the United States: New York, Denver, and San Francisco, but we plan on including 40 new areas by the end of 2016. I can confirm that, by May, we will add Boston, Chicago, Miami, New Hampshire, Vermont, and much more.
On January 17, you were at the Good Food Awards in San Francisco – considered among other things, the city of “Foodies”- to present Slow Food Planet. How do you predict how it will be received by locals?
I believe it will be enthusiastically welcomed. Not only is San Francisco the city of Foodies, but the City has also been very supportive of Slow Food since its inception. I think that it is very important to have such an App on hand that allows people to find their way through a city’s variety of high-quality gastronomic establishments. I’m optimistic of a positive response from the people of San Francisco and I am hopeful for a broader reception throughout the rest of the United States in the not too distant future.
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