Gustolab International

My experiences working with Gustolab have been overwhelmingly positive. I appreciate all the personalized attention the director and staff at Gustolab invest to meet all the educational goals of my program. The experiences, field trips, lectures and meals that Gustolab organizes for our Study Abroad program is one of the highlights of our program in Italy.

What an amazing experience to be at the Gustolab Institute in Rome, Italy! Food and culture take on such a different meaning when brought to life in tangible experiences. Students in the program not only see, taste, smell, touch and learn about food on an individual level but also through a more global lens in which cultural perspectives past and present shape and influence food consumption. From the sun warmed fresh cherries plucked from a tree overlooking a 15th century farmhouse surrounded by fields of artichoke to the creamy white mozzarella produced from pampered buffalo that are massaged and listen to Mozart, each course, activity and excursion is designed to feed not only the stomach but also the mind and soul. As a graduate student and someone who has experienced food-related programs in Paris and Florence I would highly recommend this wonderful opportunity.

…from the inception, delivery, and conclusion of each program, the Gustolab Institute provides exceptional academic and professional service assuring that each student comes away with a strong sense of Italian food history and culture. As the Gustolab Institute evolves, the program strengthens – it is simply, an amazing experience for students.

Gustolab Institute Summer Program… It was a multi-cultural, first-hand educational experience that allowed students not only to learn about one of the world’s most successful national food branding cases, but also to delve into local food culture and come into direct contact with Italian celebrity chefs, food producers, consumers, business owners, as well as food media producers, journalists, scholars and professionals.

Last summer, our students were led by Gustolab Institute through an unforgettable tour of ancient Rome. Thank you for the experience! Our students were also thrilled to learn about slow-food and nutrition, the art of wine-tasting and the secrets of making a perfect pizza!

The Gustolab experience for my students proved to be essential in their discovering the Italian way with food and wine and the history behind the rituals and mores of eating and drinking in Italy. The field trips outside of Rome, the various lectures, and the walks around Rome helped orient students early and often to their four-month home away from home. I cannot imagine taking a group of students to Rome without their taking a course from the Gustolab. Food studies equals Italian cultural studies.

While there are other food and culture programs available, Gustolab sets itself apart by offering a unique credit-based curriculum that invites students to experience Italy from an insider’s perspective. Courses and excursions are thoughtfully planned, including trips to family-run organic farms, fisheries and vineyards that represent both the past and the future of Italy’s food culture. This is indeed a rare opportunity — one that many of us wish we could have had ourselves when we were students!

The well-orchestrated Gustolab experience provided an outstanding opportunity for our nutrition and dietetic students to enhance their knowledge of food and nutrition in the backdrop of the Mediterranean, an environment rich in culture and tradition. From the excursions to regional farms highlighting traditional and sustainable harvesting and production, to the table of local artisans committed to quality cuisine, students were immersed in the heritage of the region. Lectures complemented the field experience and enhanced the students’ knowledge of the health benefits of the Mediterranean diet, the international slow food movement, and the importance of sustainable agriculture. The warmth, passion, and enthusiasm of the Gustolab family was evinced at every turn providing a highly engaging experience. Fresh and exceptional in all regards.

The Gustolab Institute’s educational program together with our excursions to food producers allowed my students to expand their knowledge of the cultural connection to food in Italy and how sustainability can be applied to individuals and food systems.

Gustolab Institute is a terrific partner in developing interactive educational programs for students of Italian food culture. I enjoyed working with the staff, and from student evaluations, I know that they learned a lot from the programs that Gustolab Institute prepared for us

Gustolab offers a wide range of theoretical and practical courses concerning all aspects of food studies to meet all kinds of requirements in a warm relaxed atmosphere.

…that Gustolab provides a tremendous opportunity for students to get hands on research experience and provides a good deal of structure when needed, as in this case, but allows students to be creative in what they produce from their work…

During the 2017 spring break at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, I had the amazing opportunity of being the faculty chaperone of a group of 10 undergraduate students from the College of Business on a trip to Rome. The purpose of the trip was for the students to learn about the business and culture of food in Rome and within the Lazio region. Our trip was very engaging, informative and enlightening thanks to the experts at Gustolab Institute. Gustolab arranged for the students to engage with food professionals of sorts such as farmer’s market owners, slow-food movement farm owners, wine producers, food service providers, restaurant owners, food journalist and much more. In addition, the students were able to receive talks about food and social marketing. There was a guide/translator from the Gustolab Institute team with us and we also had the opportunity to explore historical and iconic sites within Rome. I found the Gustolab team members to be extremely professional, polite, very knowledgeable, easy to work with, fun to be around and extremely passionate about the study of food! To the team at Gustolab Institute: A HUGE THANK YOU to you all for providing an excellent, unique and truly immersive experience for our group – one that our group will never forget. Looking forward to grabbing an espresso and cornetto with you and another group of students again!

From May 18-28 myself and another professor had 15 students from the United States on a Study Abroad trip in Italy. We were studying food branding and culture in Italy and worked closely with the Gustolab Institute in developing and implementing the program. Simply put, the staff and services at Gustolab Institute were outstanding. All the details of the program were clearly laid out and communicated. We had no problems with accommodations, travel, or presenters. The staff at Gustolab,.. are due high praise for this experience….did an amazing job of not only meeting our needs, but anticipating them and making adjustments to problems and challenges sometimes before we even knew they had arisen. In any experience like this I think the real question is “Would you work with Gustolab again?” Yes. Without any hesitation I would eagerly and happily work with Gustolab again to develop a program in Italy.

Gustolab Institute, the experts on Italian culture and food, profound knowledge and passion! The people from Gustolab Institute are capable to motivate and help students to learn on the Italian culture and to experience it by themselves.