Zucchini Flower Festival

A festival dedicated to the zucchini flower

In the heart of summer, when the heat drives the inhabitants of Rome toward the cooler hills of the Tuscia, the village of Canale Monterano transforms into a large open-air restaurant. The Zucchini Flower Festival has become a fixed appointment in mid-August: for three evenings, the community celebrates a humble and delicate ingredient, the zucchini flower, which becomes the true star of the table here.

Organized by the Pro Loco of Canale Monterano with the patronage of the Municipality, the event takes place in Piazza del Campo, in the town center, where food stalls open their doors around 7:30 PM each evening.

What to eat

The menu revolves entirely around the zucchini flower, offered in dozens of preparations from the Lazio peasant cuisine. Among the most requested dishes of recent editions:

• Tortiglioni with carbonara and zucchini flowers, the festival's signature dish;
• Mixed fried platter with stuffed zucchini flowers, mozzarella, anchovies, and seasonal vegetables;
• Campagnola-style pasta, zucchini parmigiana, and crostini;
• Grilled meats, salads, and french fries for those looking for the most classic flavors of a village feast.

All accompanied by local wines from the hills and a frank, convivial atmosphere—the kind found at provincial festivals where you sit at long, shared tables.

Music and evenings

Alongside the stalls, the program features live music every evening: concerts, tribute bands playing the greatest names in Italian pop music, and dance nights that keep the square buzzing until late at night. It is the classic model of a summer festival, where good food and popular entertainment go hand in hand.

The "10 Days of Celebration" and the Corsa del Bigonzo

The Zucchini Flower Festival is part of the broader calendar of August festivities in Canale Monterano, the so-called "10 days of celebration" that involve the town's districts and culminate at the end of August in the Corsa del Bigonzo: a popular competition between the districts linked to the patron saints San Bartolomeo and Santa Calepodia. Attending the festival therefore means immersing yourself in one of the village's most deeply felt identity traditions.

Canale Monterano and the Roman Tuscia

Located in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, on the border between the Lake Bracciano area and the Viterbo Tuscia, Canale Monterano is famous above all for the evocative ruins of Ancient Monterano, the abandoned city with the Bernini fountain that has served as a backdrop for numerous films. A trip to the festival is the ideal opportunity to discover this little-known corner of Lazio, amidst nature, history, and excellent traditional cuisine.