161 Best Restaurants in Sicily, Italy

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. 

This rustic restaurant promises good home-cooked meals in a cozy and friendly atmosphere. It is housed in a typical Sicilian trattoria, with a very casual and relaxed ambience. The menu has the usual appetizers, pasta dishes and mains, and wood-fired pizza—all very generous servings at a very reasonable price.

Chef Luca Casablanca is like a character out of a Sicilian storybook. Full of personality and endlessly dedicated to the showcasing the food of his native land, he adheres to the Slow Food philosophy more than anyone else in Taormina. There are very few tables at this intimate little trattoria down a narrow staircase off Corso Umberto, so it's highly recommended to reserve ahead of time.

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.

An amicable beach bar-restaurant right on the harbor at Marinella di Selinunte, Tukè is ideal for a simple hearty lunch after seeing the temples. They have two daily fixed menus, comprising pasta (they do an excellent Norma), a main of grilled meat or fish, a salad, water, and coffee. If you want a lighter meal, the shared aperitivo platter of locally cured olives, salami, cheeses, and caponata is rather exceptional. In summer they rent umbrellas on the beach below.

This cool, relaxed café-bar-restaurant is the hub of Scauri life, and has very loyal local following since it stays open all year long. The menu—written on a chalkboard—is strictly seasonal, featuring a nice mixture of traditional Sicilian dishes and more creative dishes, all focusing on island and mainland Sicilian produce and served on blue-rimmed white enamel plates.

Run by the charming and dynamic Davide di Salvo, nephew of chef Giuseppe of nearby Nangalarrini fame, this rustic, convivial spot does tasty plates utilizing the best meat, vegetables, and seafood of the Madonie and coast. The name alludes to the Unione Volontari Alcolizzati, and the restaurant has a well-rounded wine cellar and ethos fit for relaxed dining and friendly chat.

Book a table on the cobbles by the empty river basin or in the sleek dining room and let talented chef Roberta's inventive seasonal dishes take you to new culinary places. The young, friendly staff are happy to talk you through the seasonal menu of exquisite pastas, fresh seafood, steaks, and imaginative veggie creations.  

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.

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.