Sagra de lo Ciammaruchiello Festival

One of the oldest festivals in Campania

On the eve of Ferragosto, the small municipality of Buonalbergo, in the province of Benevento, comes alive for one of the longest-running gastronomic events in Campania and the entire South: the Sagra de lo Ciammaruchiello, held every year on August 13th and 14th in Piazza Garibaldi. In 2026, the Pro Loco Buonalbergo APS celebrates its fifty-third edition: over half a century of continuity that has transformed a local village feast into an event known throughout the Sannio region and well beyond. The village has just over 1,500 inhabitants, but during the two evenings of the festival, it welcomes around 2,500 visitors.

The ciammaruchiello, the absolute star

The ciammaruchiello (plural ciammarruchielli) is the small land snail native to the countryside of Buonalbergo. It is not a farmed product nor a supermarket ingredient: in the month leading up to the festival, groups of local youth and elders gather them by hand in the fields around the village, following a collective ritual that is already part of the festival experience. The motto chosen by the Pro Loco captures it with dialectal irony—«se sorchia, se struscia, se striscia»—playing on how the snail is eaten and how it moves. In the days before the opening, the women of the village hand-prepare the cecatielli, the local cavatelli pasta served at the tables.

The secret recipe and the scent of nepeta

The secret to the festival's kitchen is nepeta, a wild aromatic herb from the mint family that grows in the fields around Buonalbergo and gives the snails an unmistakable scent. The recipe, passed down through editions, is kept secret: the ciammarruchielli are served in sauce, piping hot, and are eaten by sucking them directly from the shell. All ingredients used at the stands are locally sourced, from garden vegetables to local wine: this radical choice of a short supply chain, combined with entirely volunteer-based management, has earned the event its reputation.

The menu for the two evenings

Alongside the signature dish, the Pro Loco kitchen offers a journey through Sannio flavors:

• ciammarruchielli in sauce with nepeta, the dish that gives the festival its name;
• cecatielli (cavatelli) handmade, served with snail sauce;
• montanara, fried pizza topped with tomato, fiordilatte, parmesan, and basil;
• sausage sandwiches and other rustic panini;
• traditional fried foods;
• local wine and typical Sannio products.

The 'Sagra di Qualità' mark

In 2019, the Pro Loco of Buonalbergo was received in Rome at Palazzo Madama, seat of the Senate of the Republic, for the conferment of the 'Sagra di Qualità' mark by UNPLI, the National Union of Pro Loco of Italy. This recognition is awarded to a limited number of Italian events and rewards precise criteria: product authenticity, local tradition roots, management transparency, and service quality. For a village of this size, it is a significant achievement that the community proudly highlights in every press release.

Buonalbergo, the village on the Via Appia Traiana

Those arriving for the festival discover a village perched on the slopes of Monte San Silvestro, about twenty-five kilometers from Benevento, with a territory rising from 222 to 863 meters above sea level. Buonalbergo is an ancient crossroads: the Via Appia Traiana passed through here, now showcased by the ViATor museum inaugurated in the village, and the area is also crossed by the Via Francigena del Sud. In the 11th century, Gerardo of Buonalbergo was the first Norman lord of the place and supported the rise of Robert Guiscard, of whom—according to tradition—he coined the famous nickname. A historical context that gives the festival a far from trivial backdrop.

The atmosphere

The festival is anything but a manufactured event: you eat at long outdoor tables, live music accompanies both evenings, and from the entrance of the village to Piazza Garibaldi, the path is marked by painted snails guiding visitors to the stands. It is one of the best opportunities to understand how summer is experienced in the inland towns of the Benevento province: few signs, plenty of community cooking, and a dish you won't find almost anywhere else in Italy.