Bella Vita and La Scala Restaurant have teamed up for a one-off Italian cooking experience and to bring more tourists to Griffith

The 'Joy of Italian Cooking' experience will give Griffith residents and out-of-towners the chance to witness pizza cooking and gelato making demonstrations at La Scala, as well as an Italian lunch.

The experience, which will take place on Monday August 22 as part of the Griffith Italian Week, was coordinated by Bella Vita owner Robyn Turner and La Scala manager Luca Vico, who have previous experience working together in hospitality.

Ms Turner said it was vital to attract more people to Griffith, particularly after two difficult years.

"There are people in Griffith doing extraordinary things and I think we should showcase it," she said. "It's important to show that we're not just another town, we're a pretty cool town that has something great to offer."

While bringing more people to Griffith was necessary, Ms Turner also said keeping them here with engaging experiences was just as important.

"These events aren't just important, they're essential. There's no point bringing people to town and them saying 'That was a boring trip'," she said.

"You want people to say they had a fabulous time and then go tell their mates, who also come and say they had a fabulous time. Word of mouth is the best recommendation."

Ms Turner also applauded Griffith on its recent efforts to attract more tourism in ways she said had been "proactive".

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"People are changing the way they do business in Griffith and there's a lot more people offering different events and services," she said.

"We've always had the bones in Griffith, but we've taken it to the next level."

La Scala's Luca Vico agreed it was important to help Griffith tourism get back on its feet after two years of COVID-19 restrictions.

He said people are now readier than ever to explore what Australia has to offer, particularly regional areas.

"There's a lot less people travelling overseas and people are more interested to see what they have in their own backyard," he said.

"We wanted to help local tourism and let people know we have strong Italian heritage here in Griffith."

Mr Vico said those attending 'Joys of Italian Cooking' will be treated to a unique, traditional pizza making demonstration at the family-owned restaurant.

"They're probably used to a lot of newer-aged restaurants in the cities, and not something that's so original," he said.

"We haven't changed much since we opened here. The decor's the same, the recipes are the same and the menu is the same. They're going to get that true Italian experience."

Tickets for 'Joy of Italian Cooking' is available via the Bella Vita Tours website.

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