Over the last five years, Stanley Tucci has become something of an unexpected cultural ambassador for Italy.

It’s a role he fell for but embraced with joyful passion. Before 2020, Tucci was known almost exclusively for his prolific acting career in films such as Headlight, The devil wears PradaAnd Big night. But after a viral video of him making a Negroni (a cocktail made with gin, vermouth and Campari) at home during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns in 2020, Tucci became the internet’s culinary darling. He started posting adorable home cooking videos on his Instagram account, which created a huge buzz among foodies. At this point, it seemed like everyone wanted to watch Stanley Tucci eat.

Tucci’s passion for sharing gastronomic delights with his audience took him to Italy, the homeland of his ancestors. In the CNN original documentary Stanley Tucci: Looking for ItalyIn 18 episodes, Tucci embarked on a journey through the culinary landscape of Italy.

He also highlighted complex cultural and political issues such as immigration, the north-south divide in Italy and climate change, while at the same time connecting them to the country’s gastronomic advantages. This project has reached its end, but Tucci is still looking for ways to highlight authentic narratives about Italian culture.

This search led Tucci on a journey that spanned multiple countries, restaurants and communities around the world. Now he gives us a glimpse into this story. His latest book, What I Ate in a Year (Gallery Books)which will be published on October 15th, tells the story of what his culinary year looked like – and tasted like.

And on November 11, Tucci reveals another food-related exploit: The actor-turned-cooking star will release his third holiday collaboration with S.Pellegrino, this time highlighting his love for his favorite cheeses. Officially known as S.Pellegrino & Stanley Tucci’s Christmas Cheese “Cake” This collaboration is a savory holiday cheese assortment that includes a creamy La Tur, a smooth Mini Brie, a buttery Cave Aged Reserve Cornelia, and a zesty Buonatavola Provolone, all sourced from Murray’s Cheese in New York City, one of his favorite cheese shops into the world.

I spoke with Tucci about how his travels have inspired his latest projects.

This interview has been edited for clarity and space.

Let’s start with some of your travel habits.

Well, first: I overpack because I like having options. Plus, when you live in England, which I do, you never know what the weather will be like. So if we rent a house in the country or Cornwall etc we literally need to bring enough clothing for every season. . . . So you have to pack a lot of stuff.

You’ve traveled extensively over the last year while writing your upcoming book. What I ate in a year. How do you choose where to eat when traveling?

I usually try to ask locals. You can ask the concierge at your hotel, but often you’ll be offered a restaurant owned by a friend or something like that.

Nowadays there are so many (opportunities) with social media and so on. You can find things very quickly. My wife usually does an incredible amount of research before we go anywhere and she has them all picked out and books them. That’s great because I’m the type of guy that goes, “Oh God, I have to go to dinner,” you know, and then I figure it out. . . . But I tend to be more spontaneous, I suppose.

What were the best restaurants you ate at while writing? What I ate in a year?

For me a place like Pommidoro in Rome. . . I (also) love the River Cafe in London.

If I wrote about a restaurant in the book that I didn’t like, I would never name it. I think that would be wrong. That’s not my job. I only mentioned the ones I liked.

How does traveling the world to eat bring you closer to the communities you visit?

Well, I think food is probably the biggest bridge between people. It’s the easiest because we all need and want it, and it breaks down barriers immediately. It creates a place of communication and community. It’s easier to talk to each other over a plate of food or a bottle of wine.

They have combined a lot of smaller and less visited areas of Italy into one huge platform. How do you choose the destinations to highlight in your work?

It’s about the stories. We get a whole bunch of stories from the researchers working on the show.

I’ll (also) say, “Okay, if we want to be in this region, I want to go to this place I once went to and film there because the pasta there or the guy there is really interesting, right.” They prepare a dish there that no one else makes.”

Because of my suggestions and the wonderful researchers we have, we come up with different stories. Sometimes you might have two stories that are really good, but you can’t do both because they’re too similar. . . So you want to change it up a little bit so you don’t think, “Oh, this whole thing is just pasta.”

What little-visited or remote place in Italy would you recommend based on your travels?

I don’t know how uncrowded it is – a lot of people go there in the winter – but I think the Italian Alps and the Dolomites are just some of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been. You get a mix of two distinctly different cultures, namely the Austrian and the Italian. Great food, great people, incredible landscapes. It’s beautiful.

So I hear that cheese is your desert island food, and I need to know: Where in the world is your favorite place to buy cheese?

(Laughs) In New York there’s Murray’s Cheese Shop (and) Citarella.

In London there is the Fromagerie. It’s amazing: many grocery stores (in London) also have a really great cheese selection. The British love cheese.

In France there is Le Bon Marché with walls of cheese.

And in Italy, everywhere! If you go to a supermarket in Italy, you’ll see an incredible number of cheeses, including fresh sheep’s milk ricotta, which is probably one of the greatest things in the world.

I’m always looking for (cheese) wherever I go.

Speaking of cheese, what can people expect from your new collaboration with S.Pellegrino?

I love working with San Pellegrino. They’re really fun. . . . You know, I’ve been drinking San Pellegrino for many years. And then they came to me and said, “Would you be interested in working with us?” And I thought, “Yeah, this is great stuff.”

And I drink it all the time because it tastes really good. It has this saltiness to it that I really love. And then, paired with the cheeses! This is the third year we have put together a food basket of sorts along with a bottle of S. Pellegrino. We talked about cheese this year and came up with this idea and this package.