Esperia Palace Hotel & Resort Spa

Once through the entrance gate, make your way through an orchard planted with citrus trees to get to this restaurant occupying a charming, carefully restored 19C “palmento” (a building once used for fermenting wine) that has retained its magical and romantic atmosphere. Here, Giuseppe Raciti’s top-quality cuisine is showcased on themed tasting menus from which dishes can also be chosen à la carte. His dishes put Sicily centre stage, as does the excellent wine list, with specialities which the chef reinterprets in impressive, modern style. For us, the charcoal-grilled tuna ventresca with smoked

On the slopes of "a muntagna," one of the respectful nicknames for the volcano in the area, just outside the town with ample private parking, you'll find a family-oriented setting offering predominantly meat dishes, fresh pasta, and mushrooms. The dishes are carefully prepared, with generous portions, and meals are always enjoyed in a lovely glass-enclosed veranda. The wine list focuses mainly on Sicilian and particularly Catanese selections.

Generous Sicilian specialities reinterpreted with imagination and prepared using top-quality produce from the hotel’s orchards and vegetable garden, all beautifully presented in contemporary style, take centre stage here. There’s an extensive choice of meat and fish dishes showcased on tasting menus and an à la carte, which can be enjoyed either in the elegant dining room or on the attractive outdoor terrace shaded by palm trees. Courteous and professional service completes the picture.

Situated behind Acireale at the foot of Mount Etna National Park, this restaurant is located within the Relais San Giuliano. Deceptively uninteresting from the outside, this historic building and its inner courtyards boast a charm and grandeur that will take your breath away. A huge 16C wine press provides the backdrop for fine cuisine that is more than equal to its impressive setting. Here, the menu makes full use of vegetables and other Sicilian ingredients in dishes that are influenced by the island’s culinary traditions yet reinterpreted with a skilful contemporary twist by the chef.

Situated on Giarre’s main street, this small, simple restaurant has just a few tables and an informal atmosphere. The menu offers a small selection of reasonably priced dishes with a focus on Sicilian cuisine made from top-quality ingredients that guarantee delicious flavours.

In the baroque heart of the city, this small restaurant – comprising two dining rooms, one overlooking the bell tower of the Basilica Collegiata dei Santi Apostoli Pietro e Paolo, the other more intimate – welcomes guests with a contemporary style and cozy atmosphere. The cooking takes a modern and bold approach, offered either à la carte or through two tasting menus that trace journeys of travel and inspiration by way of forthright and intriguing flavours. To then end the meal with a touch of lightness thanks to the playful ‘tiratisù’. Here, you are not simply clients, but guests.

Italian