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Spanish ‘La Mafia’ restaurants banned after Italian complaint

EU officials ruled that the branding of a Spanish restaurant chain named 'La Mafia' is "contrary to accepted principles of morality", Italian media reported on Thursday.

Spanish 'La Mafia' restaurants banned after Italian complaint
Spain's 'La Mafia' restaurant chain had been going from strength to strength. Photo: Screengrab/YouTube

The Italian government had called for the name to be changed following an investigation by La Repubblica newspaper, but its requests were rejected by the restaurant and Spanish authorities.

Earlier this year authorities said the word “mafia” was now so widely used across the world that it did not necessarily relate to the Italian criminal organization.

The Office of Brands and Design, part of the European Union's Office for Intellectual Property, has now reportedly accepted Italy's complaint about the use of 'mafia' in the brand name, forcing the eateries to change their name.

The news came from Italian farmers' organization Coldiretti on Thursday, which has campaigned for years against the use of the word 'mafia' in brand names.

“Unfortunately the case is not isolated, and all over the world from Mexico to Sharm El Sheikh, there are 'Cosa Nostra' restaurants and pizzerias,” Coldiretti noted.

“The EU must now stop the commercial use of an infamous 'brand', which exploits stereotypes of mafia organizations, oversimplifying and almost normalizing it. This phenomenon has brought pain and grief throughout Italy,” said Coldiretti's president, Roberto Moncalvo.

“Adding insult to injury, as well as the grave damage to image, this is also an economic exploitation of the 'Made in Italy' label. Counterfeiting and falsifying Italian food is an industry which has now exceeded €60 million and has cost Italy 300,000 jobs, according to a Coldiretti analysis.”

'Lots of marketing, few scruples'

The La Mafia chain had been a rare success story during Spain's economic crisis,  growing steadily since opening in 2000. Its full name is “La Mafia se sienta a la mesa” or ' The mafia sits at the table', and its restaurant features pictures and decor inspired by the Italian crime syndicate.

It already has 39 restaurants across Spain and is about to open two more in the Canary Islands.

One of Italy's top writers on organized crime, Attilio Bolzoni, visited two La Mafia eateries in Spain back in 2013, aiming to investigate the success of a business with “a lot of marketing and few scruples”.

“In times of crisis, we are growing,” the firm’s public relations manager Pablo Martínez told the Italian journalist at the time.”We didn't create the name, we just use it.”

Martínez stressed that images of violence were prohibited in the firm's restaurants and that the model was the mafia of the movies, such as The Godfather.

“We apologize to those Italians who feel offended (by the name) but that’s not our intention.”

The article caused an immediate reaction in Italy.

Marco Anzaldi, an MP with Italy’s Democratic Party, called for an official complaint to be lodged, and following an appeal from Sicilian MP Claudio Fava, whose own father was killed by Cosa Nostra, the Sicilian mafia, the Italian government requested that the controversially named Spanish eatery either change its name or be forced to close.

Italy's anti-mafia commission, the Italian Embassy in Madrid and Coldiretti backed the call.

The restaurant chain has yet to make a statement on the EU ruling.

In August 2013, a a Sicilian politician and anti-mafia commissioner lambasted restaurants in Denmark for naming pizzas and sandwiches after a notorious crime gang after stumbling across an Al Capone pizza in Copenhagen.

He said the dishes “exploited the worst stereotypes about southern Italy and criminals”.

READ MORE: 'Europe needs to wake up to the mafia'

 

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FOOD AND DRINK

Do Italians really eat pasta every day?

Pasta is the foundation of Italian cuisine and Italians have a reputation for eating it nearly every day. But is this reality or myth?

Do Italians really eat pasta every day?

Pasta is the cornerstone of Italian cuisine and an essential staple of Italians’ diet, hence the popularity of the adage Toglietemi tutto ma non la pasta! (‘Take everything away from me except pasta’).

But there is a widespread belief among foreign nationals that people in the bel paese eat it every single day of the week. 

Is this reality or myth?

According to a survey from research platform YouGov Italia, ‘only’ 17 percent of Italians eat pasta every day or at least six days a week. 

The majority of Italians (37 percent) consume pasta two to three times a week, while 30 percent say they eat it four to five times a week. 

Finally, 8 percent eat pasta just once a week.

While the survey seems to disprove the claim that Italians generally eat pasta every day (only a minority does), does that mean that they are not as big pasta eaters as we may have originally thought?

Not really. 

Italians are still the leading pasta consumers in the world as the average person in the country eats some 23.1 kilograms of it every year (that’s nearly two kilograms a month).

READ ALSO: Ask an Italian: How do you sauce pasta properly?

For context, people in neighbouring France and Germany only consume 8.3 and 7.9 kg per capita a year, whereas the average American eats about 9 kg every year.

Further, yearly per capita consumption in the UK stands at an average of just 3.5 kg, according to a report from pasta maker Barilla.

So, while they may not have it every day, Italians do eat quite a lot of pasta over the course of a year. 

But how do they never get tired of it? 

One of the main reasons behind Italians’ unbreakable bond with the high-carb food is variety. 

Italians are extremely creative when it comes to pasta and they rarely eat the same dish twice in a row as they like to experiment with a wide range of recipes and sauces.

READ ALSO: Ten golden rules for cooking pasta like an Italian

Further, there are over 350 types of pasta in Italy, which means that you could potentially eat a different pasta shape almost every day of the year.

Another reason why most Italians have pasta multiple times a week is that they tend to eat it in moderation, steering well clear of potential carb overloads. 

While they may have a large, high-calorie pasta dish (for instance, lasagne or pasta al ragù) on weekends or on special occasions, people in the country generally go for lighter recipes and sauces on normal days, with portions generally going from 80 to 120 grams per person.

Also, Italians very rarely eat pasta twice a day, with the majority of people having it for lunch and then opting for a non-carb-based dish in the evening.

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