Food and Drink Matters is proud to announce that Emilia’s Crafted Pasta has been chosen as our Industry Company of the Month.
Emilia’s Crafted Pasta was established in 2016. Founder Andrew Macleod created the company with the vision of bringing fresh authentic pasta to the UK. Highlighting the traditional way pasta is produced and eaten in Italy and challenging the idea of pasta as an afterthought.
Now, almost nine years later, Emilia’s Crafted Pasta has grown to five restaurant locations in the capital and a new retail line which promises to bring the famous Emilia’s experience to homes across the country.
Emilia’s Crafted Pasta was born from Andrew’s frustration at the poor quality of pasta dishes typically served in the UK,
“I was very disappointed with how pasta was done. It was never fresh. It was usually microwaved or frozen with pre-packed sauces, additives and preservatives. So, I was on a mission to bring proper Italian pasta to London.”
This frustration led to a core ethos Emilia’s follows to this day. The company prides itself on preparing fresh pasta daily, made every morning and cooked with a respect for the tradition and techniques passed down by generations of cooks.
The company’s restaurants are just one part of the business though. In January 2025, Emilia’s launched its premium pasta retail line into retail. This new product line aims to bring authentic, high quality Italian pasta into consumer’s homes. Taking the award-winning Emilia’s pasta experiences out of the restaurant and into the home kitchen.
Emilia’s retail products are made exclusively from 100% Italian durum wheat and pure mountain water sourced the Lattari mountains – key elements that contribute to its P.G.I (Protected Geographical Indication) certification. This European designation ensures the pasta is authentically produced in its region of origin and meets strict quality and tradition standards, all while upholding sustainable practices.
The company has very strict rules on production too. Most supermarket pastas are what’s known as oven dried; but Emilia’s pasta is naturally dried for between 9 to 18 hours. This ensures the nutrition is not burned but preserved. Combining these elements, Emilia’s goes as close as possible to the natural process; which in turn creates a superior product overall.
Emilia’s retail products remain authentic not only in production but also in variety. Including products like rigatoni, a slightly curved, tubular-shaped pasta with square ends, originating from Rome. Bucatini, a thick spaghetti-like pasta with a hole running through; and casarecce, a short, twisted pasta shape with its origins in Sicily. The company also packs its pasta in 100% recyclable, paper-made material with no plastic window.
After serving over one million bowls of pasta in its restaurants, Emilia’s shift into retail is a conscious decision to take that accumulated knowledge and apply it to the retail space. We asked Andrew what this shift meant for the future of the company, “We want to take all we have learnt from the restaurants and bring retail products to market that we’re proud of, that align with the values of Emilia. We want to re-create Emilia’s experience at home. In our restaurants, everything is made fresh daily, with natural ingredients and no additives or preservatives. So, we wanted to give people that in their homes. I think that resonates with consumers because that’s how Italian pasta should be done. That’s how they do it in Italy.”
For more on Emilia’s Crafted Pasta, see below:
www.emiliaspasta.com
www.instagram.com/emiliaspasta
www.tiktok.com/@emiliascraftedpasta
To order our pasta retail products online, please visit: www.emiliaspasta.com/pastashop