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Actor Stanley Tucci is urging travellers to add Italy’s lesser-known region of Le Marche to their itineraries after spotlighting it in the second season of his travel and food series. He says the area’s coastline, hill towns and local dishes remain under-explored by international visitors.
Discovering a quiet corner of Italy
Le Marche stretches along about 180km of Adriatic coastline and combines clean beaches with dramatic mountains and well-preserved Renaissance towns. Tourists are still relatively few, which locals and Tucci say helps keep everyday life and traditions intact.
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On camera, Tucci describes the region as “one of the most beautiful and cultured regions of the country, with a cuisine to match, that even now is still ripe for discovery.” He adds that the landscape and communities hold surprises for visitors.
Meals, markets and local specialties
Throughout the episode Tucci visits towns such as Ascoli Piceno to sample aperitivo culture and Macerata to learn an age-old layered pasta made with sweet wine. He also explores the elegant coastal town of Senigallia and the Conero Riviera, where a unique, hand-harvested wild mussel—known locally as moscioli—is celebrated.
At a seaside restaurant called Da Emilia in the Bay of Portonovo, Tucci eats a spaghetti dish made from a recipe first served by the owner’s grandmother, who opened the place in 1929. He highlights how a small, seemingly simple plate can reflect a whole community’s history and resilience.
“It’s exciting to be able to find a really simple dish of mussels, but those mussels are very specific,” Tucci says, noting the importance of where the shellfish grow and how they are prepared.
Putting food at the centre of a story
Season two of the National Geographic and Disney+ series carries Tucci beyond regions he visited in the first run, which aired in 2025. This instalment takes him to five new areas: Naples and Campania, Veneto, Sicily, Sardinia and Le Marche.
Across those episodes he digs into regional controversies and traditions — from the debate over the origin of tiramisu in Veneto to Sardinia’s links between diet and longevity. In Campania, he encounters a Michelin-starred chef serving a theatrical pasta called “spaghettino alle vongole fujute” — a plate that evokes the aroma of clams without using actual clams, thanks to an unconventional cooking method involving sea rocks.
“Now you can’t even conceive of such a thing, and yet, it’s a dish that’s been around probably for centuries,” Tucci reflects on that recipe, adding that food remains his preferred way to learn about a place. He also speaks about Italy’s layered influences, noting how centuries of migration and invasion have shaped regional cuisines and landscapes.
All episodes of Tucci In Italy S2 stream on 12 May on Disney+.
