12 Best Restaurants in Catania, Sicily

Lawyer-turned-baker Valeria Messina has singlehandedly revived the use of heirloom grains in Catania. At her welcoming little corner bakery, she uses tumminia, perciasacchi, maiorca, and timilia flours to create crusty sourdough loaves, focaccia, buttery biscotti, and traditional pizza marinara. Don't miss her schiacciata (a sort of filled pizza) stuffed with the ingredients of the season, from broccoli or chicory to roasted peppers with mint or anchovies and capers.

Dive right into the hustle and bustle of Catania at Caffè del Duomo, which has handmade cookies and cakes and a great local atmosphere. The piazza-front location is the main draw, but the fantastic cannoli are another reason to stop for coffee and watch the world go by. Avoid their restaurant food, though. 

It's worth a visit for the sheer wow factor when you walk in and see the long pastry cases filled with every Sicilian delicacy you can imagine. Since 1962, they've been supplying the Catanesi with their daily raviola fritta (a fried pastry stuffed with sweetened ricotta) and short pulls of espresso. At aperitivo, order a drink and your table is instantly filled with a cornucopia of arancini, pizzette, potato croquettes, nuts, and chips.  

Following a Slow Food philosophy, this restaurant strives to be a typical Sicilian neighborhood destination in every sense, with a scene set by vintage tables, chairs, chandeliers, and a plethora of lace. In the morning, you'll find just-from-the-oven breads, pastries, fresh-squeezed juice, and goat's milk yogurt at the front counter while the restaurant's main menu pays homage to the area's distinct culinary traditions, such as donkey steaks or donkey mortadella, pastas with anchovies and breadcrumbs, and macco soup from fava beans. There's also a small bodega (putia) that sells ingredients from the producers they use.

Located in the Ognina port, the little Nitto empire has exploded: what began as a mobile market in the 1960s (from the back of a Piaggio Ape) is now a standing fresh fish market and series of restaurants. Locals line up outside the little market to get their daily catch, while next door the fast-casual restaurant serves some of the best-prepared seafood in the area, including squid ink pastas, skewers of grilled fish, and raw seafood platters.

An acronym for "Pane, Mortadella, and Champagne," Pamocha indeed specializes in bubbles, masterful salumi plates, all the bruschetta, and raw seafood towers of oysters, sweet red shrimp, tuna, and caviar. Typically the portions at this glam-meets-rustic café are small, making it perfect for aperitivo or a late-night snack (it's open until 2 am).

The lively Pasticceria Savia makes superlative arancini with ragù. Or you could choose cannoli, granita, or other snacks to munch on while you people-watch from one of the streetside tables just opposite Villa Bellini.

For those needing a break from rich Sicilian offerings or just from meat, this neat little place, tucked away off Via Emmanuele, fits the bill. It offers very fresh vegetarian and vegan food which comes in panini, burger, or box form, either to eat in or take away.

Ask for an outside table under the canopy at this charming—and always bustling—bistro, located down a pedestrian-only path in the heart of the historic district. Here, you'll find a mix of the Catanese standards (eggplant parmigiana, meatballs cooked in lemon leaves, caponata) as well as a rotation of riffs on typical Italian dishes (such as lasagna, sometimes served with radicchio, Gorgonzola, and walnuts). The daily menu is colorfully hand-scrawled on a chalkboard and the wine list champions female producers. Though they accept walk-ups, during peak hours you might have to wait a bit if you haven't booked a table. Just order a spritz and enjoy the people watching until your table is ready. 

Located just off the fish market, in an alleyway covered by brightly colored parasols, Tantìkkia (which means "a little" in Sicilian dialect) serves little tastes of modern Sicily. Drawing on tradition, the updated twists show inspiration, yet steer far from precious. The lemon tagliolini is bright and fresh; the grilled octopus is softened with a potato mousse, peas, and leeks; and the saffron-scented arancini are stuffed with red mullet. This cozy little restaurant offers a great example of an updated Sicilian kitchen.

Street food meets small plates at this ode to the flavors of Sicily. Located on a foot-traffic-only street, this compact, vaulted bistro serves chef-style iterations of the island's greatest "fast food" hits. And they make arguably the best arancini in the region: full of meaty ragù and saffron rice, fried to-order, with a crunchy crust that crackles as you break into it. There is also a good line in burgers.

This unassuming little spot tucked on a side street between Via Umberto and Piazza Verga consistently underpromises and overdelivers. It portends to be a little neighborhood eatery, but it's a destination in its own right with chef-owner Ivan Siringo serving classics like pasta with squid ink, roulades of stuffed chicken, and salmon carpaccio with tropical fruits. Every dish has a subtle elegance and ingenuity to it that transcends the plate as pure joy in your mouth.