Mirboo North Italian Festa 2023 says 'auguri' to traditions

Today the Mirboo North Italian Festa has grown to become one of the most eagerly anticipated events on the Gippsland events calendar, drawing thousands of people to the tiny hilltop village.

The Festa will be celebrated this year on February 12 with delicious, authentic Italian food stalls, outdoor bars, a huge market area, music, singing, dancing, comedy, displays, cooking demonstrations and grape stomping and spaghetti eating competitions.

The highlight of the free event will be the return of crowd favourites - Flag throwers and musicians from Faenza in Italy. This will be the only event in Australia where you will see this unique and spectacular exhibition of internationally acclaimed performers.

As with every year the line-up of authentic Italian food stalls will satisfy even the most demanding tastes, including traditional arancini, handmade gnocchi, salty tasty arrosticini meat skewers, pizza, calamari, spicy BBQ salsicce and the Italian favourite, pasta with all kinds of sauces.

For dolce (Italian for dessert) there will gelato, zeppole, tiramisu, biscotti, cannoli and other sweet treats.

Everything can be washed down with Italian beers, wines or an Aperol Spritz (or two). For those looking for a non-alcoholic beverage, fresh fruit juice, milkshakes and mocktails will be on hand, along with every type of coffee.

Following on from the successful 'Nonna's Secret Recipe' Cookbook, cooking demonstrations will run throughout the day divulging the recipes and secrets of Nonna's kitchen. Learn how to roll pasta, make traditional pizza the way Nonna does, or discover the secret of how Italians make salami.