What does Eataly stand for?
Eataly is a simple idea. We want to put together under one roof three experiences: eat, shop, and learn. We want to bring quality to people in a casual environment. Today, that might sound normal. But back in 2002, when my father [Oscar] started designing Eataly, it wasn’t at all. Quality food was thought too upscale, too posh. There were few cultural companies with 100% their own ingredients. People must understand that what goes inside their body is more important than what stays on the outside. Whether they shop at Eataly or somewhere else, they should care. You should never settle on quality. Ever. Amid all these social media, photos, and food porn, the aesthetics of a dish, we’re saying "go deeper."

How do you source ingredients?
Our mentor was the founder of the Slow Food movement in Italy, Carlo Petrini, who was a close friend of my father. His motto on food was: good, clean, and fair, the last of which, I hope, will be the next trend in food. That involves how we treat and pay vendors, for example. That’s our philosophy on food. The stores are like siblings. They share the same values, but develop their own personalities. We apply those three rules locally, offering different meat, fish, and so on. The community understands we’re working with them and bring value to the table. It’s fun because you get to know people, which is what life is all about.