Fresh Pasta Prince of Bel Air: Exiled heir to the Italian throne now runs hipster-style artisanal food truck in LA selling truffle linguine for $16 a pop

• Prince Emanuele Filiberto di Savoia has launched a food truck business
• Called Prince of Venice, it will sell fresh pasta from the roadside in LA
• Dishes on offer include truffle linguine and trofie al pesto, but not pizza

The heir to the now defunct Italian throne has made selling gourmet pasta from a food truck in Los Angeles a crowning achievement.

Prince Emanuele Filiberto di Savoia, the grandson of Umberto II, the last reigning king of Italy, who was deposed in 1946 when the country became a republic, is running a catering business called Prince of Venice.

The emphasis, the Prince, 44, said, is on quality ingredients, with the dishes available including truffle linguine for $16 and seafood fettuccine costing $15.

The truck will also sell spaghetti carbonara, creste alla papalina and trofie al pesto from the roadside.

The Prince said: 'I wanted to create a gourmet, fresh-pasta Italian food truck with authentic recipes matched by equally high-quality ingredients.

'The concept is to make a variety of fresh pasta in front of the clients and to serve it with incredible handmade sauces.'

According to the Prince of Venice website, some ingredients, such as flour, olive oil and truffles, will be sourced from Italy, but quite a few from California – such as cage-free eggs and free-range meat.

The pasta will be made using a deluxe fresh-pasta machine that's installed on the truck, the website says.

But pizza is not available.

The Prince employed the services of chef Mirko Paderno to help drive the business.

He said: 'I've known Emanuele a long time and I was intrigued when he suggested we partner on a food truck. This is not a truck that will simply cruise around the city every day, but will participate in select local events. We want this to be an extraordinary experience for customers.'

The Prince describes himself as 'an entrepreneur, producer, writer, novelist and philanthropist'.

His family was exiled from Italy for 50 years, only being allowed to return to in 2002.

Prince Filiberto, born in Switzerland, has become a major TV personality in Italy since his family was allowed to return to the country.

The father-of-two has appeared on Ballando Con Le Stelle, Italy's version of Strictly Come Dancing, winning the competition in 2009.

He has a production company called AristoCrazy and a fashion brand called PrinceTees.

Prince Filiberto has had problems with drugs and confessed in 2009 that he only managed to overcome his addiction with the help of his family.

He once claimed to have dated Kate Moss, but is now married to award-winning French actress Clotilde Courau.

They wed in 2003 and have two children , Princess Vittoria of Savoy, born in 2004 and Princess Luisa of Savoy, born in 2006.