The other night, I visited the Barilla Restaurant in Herald Square to celebrate pre-Carbonara Day. Carbonara Day was established in Italy last April 6 as a way to hail a particularly delicious pasta that most believe was first made in mid-20th Century Rome as a hearty meal for Italian charcoal workers.

Barilla Restaurants will bring Carbonara Day Month to the States by adding Chef Alfonso Sanna’s signature Pasta alla Carbonara on April 6 to its menus and keeping it until May 6. However, yours truly got got a special sneak peak at this tantalizing menu item along with a special cooking demo by Chef Sanna himself!