About me - Sapori d'Ithalia

About me

Chef Thalia

My roots are Mediterranean but my passion for food is global. I was born in Croatia but I moved to Italy when I was a child. In Italy, I grew up in Veneto region and I lived for in many different cities of Italy, such as Venice, Bolzano, Pesaro and around some of the smallest villages between Veneto and Friuli.

With all of those travel experiences, my heart belongs to Venice where I lived for five years during my university studies. Venice is a unique beauty, a magical city that breathes history and art in every corner. Bacari, cicheti, fritelle, and Aperol spritz were my favorite Venetian culinary experiences and all influenced my passion for cooking.

Good food, good wine, people, traveling, dancing and fashion are my biggest passions. I started cooking when I was very young because homemade meals were the best and the most affordable for my family. My mom and my grandma have always involved me in making homemade pasta, bread, and cakes. At some point I was the main cook in my house, even when we had guests for dinners or parties.

While I moved from home when I was only 14 years old attending the ballet academy, I continued to practice my cooking abilities each day because cooking was my relaxing time during the non-stop busy days.

Still, my love for traditional Italian food grew bigger as I started traveling around Italy after completing my master’s degree. In every place I went my first thought was: “what typical dishes can I eat here?” Once I was back, I always wanted to taste again the local recipes I had at home. But the best part of cooking for me is sharing the meal. My husband is the first that I like to surprise with my dishes and the hardest one to please, too, because he has a vegetarian, almost vegan, and gluten-free diet. May healthy lifestyle as well as my husband’s diet is the main reason why I always have an alternative version of the traditional dish that I cook. I also love sharing my passion for cooking with my friends, organize dinners, aperitivi and events. I love being involved in events because I am naturally a planning and organized person. This is the reason why I took “The Wedding and Event Planning Business School” online course in Italy.

I moved to Charlotte, North Carolina in June 2019 because of my husband’s job and I have continued to cultivate my passions. That led to opening my own business, “Sapori d’Ithalia”, which was born at the beginning of 2021. The purpose of my Dinner Parties Service is to keep alive the authentic Italian culinary tradition. I love to respect this tradition, but I am completely open to find alternatives for those who have special diet restrictions and to customize the menu according to needs and desires.

My dream is to make you live a 360-degree Italian culinary experience in the comfort of your home, giving you the possibility to explore different menus based on some of the most famous Italian cities. I also have a master’s degree in chemistry for Restauration of Art, so I’ll be glad to also entertain you with an historic and artistic background of the cities of each single menu.

Something about me: my favorite time of the day is definitely the APERITIVO, while Italian Americans will know it as “Happy Hour”. This is a special moment for me and my husband every single day, and I cannot wait to share this uniquely Italian tradition with you!

I recently added to my professional affiliations joining the United States Personal Chef Association (USPCA).

I look forward to meeting with you to let you savor the true taste of Italy in the comfort of your home. Call me today to schedule an appointment and decide in which Italian city to travel to and taste the SAPORI. CIAO!

"All life is an experiment"