I knew I could count on Melograno Alimentari in Holland Park for the very best Italian meats, cheeses and pasta and Andreas Fine Fruit & Vegetables in Chiswick for the highest quality Italian tomatoes, organic lemons and basil. It was reassuring to learn the chef had packed his own prized guanciale (cured pig’s jows), extra virgin olive oil, dry spices, two hard cheeses and home-grown herbs and tomatoes in his hand luggage.

What I failed to grasp is that “straightforward” is not an Italian word.

Just deciding upon the right spaghetti shape was a nightmare that quickly descended into Italian farce (read more). Much worse, Dandini’s shopping list overlooked one key ingredient:

A sous-chef.

The day before the dinner Dandini’s good friend and right-hand man Mahesh, a Bangladeshi national, was stopped at Gatwick passport control and, after hours of interrogation and delay, sent back to Rome. Dandini rode the airport minicab to Central London accompanied only by his salumeria-in-a-suitcase and growing anxieties. Within 28 hours he would be preparing a dinner, alone, in the unfamiliar kitchen of Andrew’s, an old Gray’s Inn greasy spoon, for 80 strangers.

I put out an urgent call for a replacement sous-chef and Giorgio Locatelli – a name so big even Dandini’s eyes widened when he heard it – saved the day. Ivan Icra Salicru, Locatelli’s secondo, emailed to say he’d spoken to Salvo and that the trusted “rock-and-roller” at Locanda Locatelli would be happy to fill in for Mahesh.

“Happy” is perhaps too strong a word. When, to use his full name, Salvatore Sardo showed up at Andrew’s 90 minutes before showtime he asked me two questions: ‘Where am I?’ and ‘Why am I here?’ Apparently he had not volunteered for the assignment. No, Salvo was planning to spend his night off watching Italian football when he got a text from his boss to be at 160 Gray’s Inn Road at 5pm.

Salvo (above left) was a fitting name for a substitute secondo who saved all. He was an ace under pressure in the kitchen, picking up even the most subtle cues from Dandini and lifting the Roman’s spirits at moments of frustration and, yes, panic. Thanks to this rock-and-roller 80 Londoners got to know the spaghetti alla matriciana regarded by Katie Parla, the journalist/blogger behind the definitive Rome for Foodies dining app, as the best in Rome. Its superiority reflected the cooking philosophy of Rome’s Pope of Pasta as well as fourth-generation restaurateur (L’Arcangelo – via Giuseppe Giaocchinio Belli, 59, Rome) and author of the cookbook Memoria a Mozzichi – “Memory and Small Bites”:

For me food is connected to the memories and aromas of my territory. The quality of the outcome is completely linked to the quality of the raw ingredients. I use pasta extruded through bronze die and cooked al dente, a rather dry guanciale, Pecorino Romano of the highest quality, and, ideally, tomatoes from my mother’s garden. Cooking is about ingredients, not technique.

–  Arcangelo Dandini

In the age of triple ristrettos and double-shot flat whites the once beloved cappuccino has hit bottom, dismissed by coffee geeks as all froth and no substance. With the failure of Italy, espresso’s spiritual home, to catch onto the third wave of higher quality coffee it has sometimes seemed as if all of the trad capp’s once beloved bubbles have been popped.

Reviving the traditional cappuccino with quality espresso from the UK’s best roasters seemed like a stretch, figuratively and, given the milk texturing techniques, literally. That’s why in planning the 29 October CoffeeSaturday La Dolce Vita Pop-Up I sought support for the baristas Fabio Ferreira of Notes and Jeremy Challender of Prufrock.

Sue Aron, Chloe Callow and Ian James joined me in a Roman biscotti bakeoff. Sue, the creative force behind The Art of Puddings, baked pizza ebraica, which is not pizza as we know it but rather a distinctive biscuit from Rome’s Jewish quarter studded with nuts and fruits. Chloe The Faerietale Foodie and I both prepared tozzetti, the biscotti that is Rome’s answer to almond (or hazelnut) cantuccini. And Ian of Pie For Brains won the bake-off by the narrowest of margins with his take on brutti ma buoni (“ugly but good”), those impossibly light almond meringues.

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Guest of honour Katie Parla, creator of the new and indispensible Rome Dining App, provided an expert voice from the Eternal City. She’s my go-to source on all things edible and drinkable in Rome. Since I can’t always have Katie around I’m happy to have her app.

The La Dolce Vita pop-up concluded with a negroni pizza party. Pizzaiolo Herbie Leonelli of London’s great Datte Foco brought over Roman-style pizza al taglio.

So, yes, the 60-plus who signed up for this CoffeeSaturday pop-up did fall back in love with the traditional cappuccino. But, yes, the traditional cappuccino did have a lot of help.