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Magnifico Team

Here is the Magnifico team!


Alessio Gambino, Founder and CEO

I am the founder and CEO of Magnifico Food. I was born and raised in Rome, the capital and the Eternal City. I have a special connection with the US because my beloved nonna, my grandmother, was born in New York City. Today, my passion and my mission are to strengthen the bond between our glorious countries through the Italian gastronomic excellences. When I first envisioned Magnifico, I imagined it just the way it is today: a platform for organic and artisanal products, 100% made in Italy, supported by a vibrant storytelling section with recipes, fun facts and cultural highlights. I strongly believe that our consumers will enjoy being educated about what they eat and buy, who makes their food, and where it comes from.
  • Favorite dish: Lasagna al forno! A great classic of the Italian cuisine.
  • Recipe that you love to cook: My signature dish is “spaghetti con le vongole” (clams). My secret? EVO, anchovies and white wine!
  • Recipe that brings back more memories: Again, lasagna. A wonderful memory from my childhood.
  • Recipe from hometown: Amatriciana, a typical Roman pasta (bucatini or mezze maniche) with guanciale, pecorino and tomato.
  • Red wine or white: Definitely red.
  • Long or short pasta: Long, always and forever.
  • What you love more about Italians: The long Italian tradition of reinventing ourselves, facing difficulties and challenges.
  • Favorite city: Ponza, a magic island in the Mediterranean close to Rome.

Morvarid Mahmoodabadi, Digital Media Manager

Ciao! I’m Morvarid, I was born and raised in Tehran, the capital of Iran. I always loved Italy, especially Rome, So when I graduated from the University of Tehran I decided to go to Rome and I finished my Master of International Relations at the University “La Sapienza”. After the university, I decided to return to my country but I found my Italian AMORE. At Magnifico as a digital media manager, my job duties include creating visual text and imagery concepts and posting content on social media!
  • Favorite dish: Spaghetti con le vongole (clams).
  • Recipe that you love to cook: Meatballs in tomato sauce.
  • Recipe that brings back more memories: Pizza, every time I eat pizza I remember the taste of the first REAL Italian pizza that I ate in Italy.
  • Recipe from hometown: Pasta alla Carbonara.
  • Red wine or white: White wine.
  • Long or short pasta: Long pasta.
  • What you love more about Italians: Hand gestures are one of the things I love about Italians. No conversation is complete without them!
  • Favorite city: Rome & Sicily.

Lorenzo Franchini, Research & Insights Manager

Ciao, I am Lorenzo, global Roman, a degree at La Sapienza University in Cultural Anthropology, researched and worked in the 5 continents. Food consumption and cultural inclinations are incredibly connected. Through qualitative and quantitative methods, I detect precious insights to offer to my team.
  • Favorite dish: A true lover of "pizza al taglio" and gelato to the point that I had a big gelato place in Milan in one of my several lives.
  • Recipe that you love to cook: I love to cook pasta with any kind of fish, purchased by a local market.
  • Recipe that brings back more memories: Hand-made gnocchi by grandma have a special place in my heart and remind me of cheerful moments with her.
  • Recipe from hometown: Come and taste the infinite variety of pizza dough freshly baked by authentic artisans.
  • Red wine or white: Red or white, I appreciate wine in the company.
  • Long or short pasta: Liscia or rigata, I love it all.
  • What you love more about Italians: Italians crack me up for their distant national pride, but please come and share a meal with us: you will taste our sense of belonging around a laden table.
  • Favorite city:  Breakfast in Naples, lunch in Rome and dinner in Milan.

Federico Milone, Online Advertising Manager

Ciao! My name is Federico, I am 25 years old and I come from Grosseto, a little town in South Tuscany. I am a marketing and internationalization technician and in Magnifico I deal with online advertising in search engine and social media.
  • Favorite dish: Eggplant parmigiana.
  • Recipe that you love to cook: I love make pizza in the weekends.
  • Recipe that brings back more memories: Pasta with sauce and meatballs, just like the Disney movie “Lady and the Tramp”.
  • Recipe from hometown: Tortelloni maremmani, typical stuffed pasta served with wild boar ragù.
  • Red or white wine: Red for sure.
  • Long or short pasta: Definitely both!
  • What you love more about Italians: The relationship italians have with both food and regional traditions.
  • Favorite city: I may be biased, but the city I like the most is Florence.

Donatella Mulvoni and Manuela Cavalieri, Press Office in USA

Ciao! We are Donatella (the brunette) and Manuela (the red one). We know each other for long time, since we came to the United States. It was 2009 and we were working for the same newspaper. We are from Sardinia (the most beautiful island in the all world!) and Campania, the region of the Amalfi Coast, a magic land. In 2014 we chose to work together and since then, work-wise, we are a symbiosis. Divided between New York City and Washington D.C., we write for newspapers and work on different communication projects. Magnificofood.com is like a big family for us. We take care of the blog community and the press office. So please keep buying delicious food, but also don’t forget to read us!
  • Favorite dish: Fried calamari and lasagna (D); Campanian buffalo mozzarella cheese (M).
  • Recipe that you love to cook: Seafood risotto (D); Paccheri pasta with spicy ‘nduja (M).
  • Recipe that brings back more memories: Spaghetti with egg cream sauce (D); Eggplant parmigiana (M).
  • Recipe from hometown: Malloreddus (Sardinian gnocchi) with meat sauce (D); Pasta with black-eyed beans from her hometown (M).
  • Red or white wine: Mostly white (D); Red (M).
  • Long or short pasta: Short, no doubts (D); Medium short (M).
  • What you love more about Italians: Flexibility when facing all the challenges (D); Lively spirit and creativity (M).
  • Favorite city: The centuries-old medieval Tuscan Borghi villages around Florence (D); Vietri sul Mare in Salerno (M).