The northern Italian family behind Pasta Sisters, in partnership with the Helms Design District, is bringing the Italian summer tradition of Ferragosto to life, right here in SoCal, on Saturday, August 15 from 1 to 6 p.m.

Ferragosto is Italy’s most beloved summer holiday, a day of family, friends, food, music, and community (sort of akin to Fourth of July celebrations in the States). On this summer day, the Helms Design District will transform into an Italian-inspired piazza filled with live music, seasonal food and drink, artisan demonstrations, family activities & games, and more.

Experiences to expect include but are not limited to:

Live music + DJ spinning

Booths along Helms Ave. featuring Italian food, drink, and other fun like…

Pasta Sisters offering tortellino rolling lessons, showcasing the specific technique for making authentic Italian tortellini

Non-profit Orto Farms hosting a farmers’ market-style produce stand featuring unique heirloom Italian varietals, DOP-certified varietals and other Italian origin produce. They are an incredible organization all around and so excited to have farmer Andrew Raffaele on board!

Beer garden from Father’s Office plus specialty cocktails on offer.

Fondazione Italia (the nonprofit Italian language school) hosting family friendly activities for kids, like arts & crafts (pasta jewelry making and summer pinwheels), a dance-a-long in Italian, and Italian story time at the event.

Caffe Luxxe bringing their artisanal, fresh roasted small batch coffee to the celebration via their “esspresSUV” pop-up espresso bar.

Cheese/salumi/olive oil tastings from Sogno Toscano.

Dolcenero gelato (winner of the prestigious Marchio Q Award of lauded Italian businesses around the world).

Mongibello blood orange juice (from oranges grown along the volcanic soil of Mt. Etna!)

And more!!

Photo Booth, a Spin-to-Win Wheel with prizes throughout the day + tenants across the Helms Design District campus will be offering specials inspired by the holiday — watch @pasta_sisters and @helmsdesigndistrict for the latest updates.