Category: Featured Speaker

We are thrilled to announce that Francesco Lupo, AKA the “Prosciutto Whisperer,” will be leading a Prosciutto di Parma seminar at Taste of Italy New Orleans on Tuesday, March 31!

Click here to register for the seminar and grand tasting.

Don’t miss this unique opportunity to taste with the leading Prosciutto di Parma in the U.S.!

About Francesco:

Francesco Lupo has been a driving force in the specialty food and restaurant business in New York City for 30 years. Born and schooled in Italy, his love of food and appreciation for taste, tradition and terroir began at an early age. He started his career in the food industry in the U.S. in 1986 as Food and Beverage Director for the restaurant group Cucina Regionale, NYC, where he managed every aspect of the business of five restaurants for ten years. Francesco prides himself in the fact that during the time he was in charge of purchasing food for Cucina Regionale, he placed orders in person at the fresh market, choosing only the finest ingredient available–never ordering by phone.

In 1996, Francesco was asked by Giorgio De Luca to join Dean & DeLuca, the international purveyor of gourmet foods, as their Italian food and beverage specialist. Starting as department manager, he quickly rose to general manager, involved in product sourcing, employee training and customer and public relations. With his in-depth knowledge of specialty foods, particularly European imports, Francesco was later named Director of Perishable Specialties for the Dean & DeLuca, overseeing the expanding catalogue division. He traveled the country training employees and managers about the broad array of Dean & DeLuca’s product offerings and how to provide the world class customer service for which the company is renown.

Since 2001, Francesco has been an independent marketing consultant to importers and distributors of specialty foods, with emphasis on the Italian food import business. He has worked most recently with premiere food distributors such as Chef’s Warehouse and Di Carlo Foods. Francesco also serves as a consultant for the Consorzio del Prosciutto di Parma, coordinating retail promotions, conducting training for deli managers, chefs and at professional culinary schools. Francesco incorporates the principles and hallmarks of the Italian culinary culture and brings his enormous energy and profound knowledge to everything he does. In 2010 he was the recipient of the Italian Trade Commission’s Golden Achievement award in recognition of his commitment to educating Americans about authentic Italian products and cuisine.

Mixologist Laura Bellucci will be leading a “Grappa Based Cocktails” seminar on Tuesday, March 31 (2:30 p.m.) at Taste of Italy New Orleans. Sponsored by Hello Grappa.

Fascinated with the history of New Orleans and Absinthe, the famed green elixir, Laura Bellucci began developing the concept for her mixology program at Belle Epoque (New Orleans) in 2018. She researched the history of the building and developed a cocktail menu structured to tell the history of absinthe in Europe and New Orleans, as well as the history of The Old Absinthe House, which dates back to 1806. She collected certified historic accounts of the building to compile a complete history of the establishment and worked to have the historic marble water-drip absinthe fountains restored. Laura partnered with Sylvia Thompson Dias in developing the aesthetics of the bar, consulting with architects and a design team to create an enchanting experience that transports guests to a different time and place. She is passionate about the preservation of historic bars across America. Laura’s drinks have been featured on the websites of USA Today, Forbes, Saveur, Liquor.com, Thrillist, Maxim, The Food Network, Supercall, Marie Claire and many more.