39 Best Restaurants in Mount Etna and Eastern Sicily, Sicily

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.

In Sicily, tavola calda is its own food group. From arancini to filled savory pastries, this "fast food" option is the heart and soul of the Sicilian aperitivo experience (or lunch on the fly), and in Milo, your go-to is Putìa Lab. They also offer excellent pastries, sandwiches, and hot plates (like lasagna or roast chicken). But their sweet spot is the robust selection of excellent tavola calda.

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. 

Here it's all about the views. Though Etna keeps the eastern side of Sicily from having truly excellent sunsets, this southern point of Aci Trezza manages to have a pretty remarkable vista for the sun's farewell, with the Norman castle of Aci Castello visible across the Ionian inlet. Order a spritz and take in the show. 

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.

In a town where life still has a small-town village feel, locals fill the outside tables of this trattoria in the central piazza at the base of the castle. The menu is full of seafood specialties, but your best bet is to ask the server what the chef is suggesting that day. They'll guide you to the best fish brought in that morning. 

Specializing in regional Sicilian cooking, this intimate little trattoria focuses on meat with a wide selection of certified Angus, Sicilian, and Wagyu beef, donkey steaks, sausages, and meat involtini. You can shop the meat locker to choose your cut. Start the meal with the nduppa puttusu appetizer, which includes 10 different typical dishes, including parmigiana, caponata, arancini, chickpea salad, and sweet-and-sour yellow pumpkin.

Warm, inviting, and unassuming, one of Taormina's best pizzerias makes use of traditional grains to produce deliciously seared crusts with fresh, well-balanced toppings, plus fresh fish in summer, all paired with Sicilian wines. If a Nutella pizza doesn't appeal, there are a host of ice creams and granitas for dessert. You cannot fault the view.

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.