It’s every spaghetti lover’s dream come true today, as people around the world celebrate National Pasta Day.
To mark the occasion, a popular restaurant chain is giving away free pasta at 25 locations across the UK.
Pasta Evangelists will be giving out free servings of their best-selling pastas on a first-come, first-served basis from 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm for one day only.
While today marks National Pasta Day, October marks National Pasta Month, making it the ideal time to enjoy this Italian delicacy.
Pasta Evangelists will serve pasta with wild mushrooms for vegetarians and beef ragout for meat lovers.
Pasta Evangelists is giving away portions of its best-selling dishes today to mark World Pasta Day, including wild mushroom pasta (pictured)
Customers looking for a free pasta fix can visit one of 25 locations including London, Glasgow, Cardiff, Brighton, Manchester, Nottingham and Newcastle.
Each location will give out 200 free slices, but pasta lovers should hurry because it’s first come, first served.
The food venue opened its first restaurant at Harrods Dining Hall in May 2021 and has since opened locations across the country.
It comes after celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay angered Italians by putting peas in a dish of spaghetti carbonara.
The TV chef, 57, added the quintessential British vegetable to his version of the Italian classic, spaghetti carbonara.
However, the popular pasta dish is traditionally made with guanciale or bacon, pecorino cheese, and egg.
The added ingredient of peas left Italians and carbonara fans furious, with some begging Gordon to never cook pasta again.
The £15 dish is served at its Gordon Ramsay Street Pizza restaurants across the UK.
Pasta lovers can get a free serving of beef ragu pasta (pictured) at 25 UK outlets.
The Italian Juline Marconi was furious: “For God’s sake.” Guanciale, egg and pecorino cheese, it’s not that difficult.
His compatriot Sandro Luc added: “I love Gordon, but this is not carbonara.” Amedeo Emmolo said: “Please delete this and never cook pasta again.”
Britain’s Chris Bane said: “That’s not carbonara on any level.” Connor Musson said: ‘What is this abomination of Italian food? What a shame, Gordon.
Another person joked: “I’m not even Italian and I’m offended.” While someone else added: ‘Do people have to pay for that?’
Another said: ‘RIP carbonara.’ Meanwhile someone else joked: “Gordon isn’t afraid of Italians.”
It is not the first time that the famous chef has received criticism for some of his culinary creations.
In June, the Hell’s Kitchen star came under fire for her new breakfast burger with a runny fried egg.
A month earlier, Ramsay was branded a cheapskate for serving just six fries with a steak at his Heddon Street Kitchen.
The 57-year-old’s Instagram account boasted of the grilled steak served with fries and a fancy corn chimichurri sauce.
Each location will give out 200 servings to the public for free on a first-come, first-served basis.
It costs £19.50 at his Heddon Street Kitchen restaurant in upscale Mayfair, west London, but foodies were quick to say the same about the lack of chips.
The meat is sliced and the sauce is drizzled over the top with a side of salad, but only six fries are left stacked in a tower on the plate.
One social media commenter fumed: ‘Six chips, get out of there.’ Who are you kidding? Give me a plate of them.
Another joked: ‘How tight are the chips? I had fish and chips there and thought the fish had eaten them.
A fellow fan wrote: “Looks good, although I would like more than six chips please.”
The steak and chips comes with a starter or dessert as part of the price. The summer menu costs £19.50 for two courses or £24.50 for three.
But it is only available during lunch and afternoon on weekdays and is not available for groups larger than 12 people.