3 Best Restaurants in Siracusa and the Southeast, Sicily

A gracious series of delicately arched stone rooms at Giovanni Guarneri's famed eatery, which opened in 1985, are lined with wine bottles and sepia-toned images of old Ortigia. It's all about the freshest seafood and inspired creativity here: from the historic Radici tasting menu sample for instance, a 1986-classic spaghetti delle serene (with sea urchin and shrimp in butter), or partake in a special from 1999, seared tuna with red and green bell pepper dipping sauces. The wine list and pairings, guided by long-serving Neapolitan sommelier Vincenzo, are extensive and extraordinary.

Gabriella Cicero's one-stop restaurant and gourmet food shop delvers a plethora of Sicilian slow-foodie delights, from scrumptious street-food scaccia and panelle staples to an exquisite, superb-value tasting menu foregrounding Sicilian produce and culinary history. Under the stylishly adorned stone vaults of the centuries-old Palazzo Diquattro, diners dive into classic seafood spaghetto taratatatà (with tuna roe, almonds, and lemon), then the unmissable chocolate-glazed pork collar with artichoke and potato purée. The wonderful staff expertly match wines from the extensively-stocked cantina.  

Palazzolo Acreide has become a bit of a food town in recent years, and this blink-and-you-miss-it spot, housed in an ancient grotto off the main street, is a big part of that. The family-run restaurant offers house antipasti big enough to share, a short menu of high-quality entrées, and great-value tasting menus.