Finisci di Mangiare!

Pasta and seafood and granita, oh my! The one thing I was looking forward to on this trip was all of the wonderful food! Preparing for the trip I knew this would be one vacation destination that I would not have trouble finding meals! This proved correct the minute we started our adventure in Sicily!

From the first meal I had to my last I was not disappointed! I don’t consider myself a foodie in the sense of gourmet, but I am a foodie in the sense that I love food and a good meal! A lot of our dinners were at restaurants near the hotel since after a long day of touring we didn’t want to head up into Taormina’s main area, we wanted to be able to get back to the hotel easily and get to bed quickly! Below are some of the places we enjoyed meals!

Bar Ristorante Principe

We enjoyed this restaurant so much our first night in Taormina that we went back again! Usually we don’t repeat restaurants since when you are on vacation there are so many options and you can find a place to eat just walking around. The location of this restaurant is definitely one of the reasons it was a multiple visit place for us! The restaurant is located next to the cable car station which was not far from the hotel we were staying and where we picked up and were dropped off for the majority of our tours. The first night we stopped here was our first night in Taormina and we were looking for an early-ish dinner and was one of the options open for the time we were looking. The first meal I enjoyed here was prosciutto and Mount Etna pears and what was described as mussel and clam soup. This was more of clams and mussel in a tomato based broth with some beautifully toasted bread. This was a meal after my own heart! I love seafood and the clams and mussels were delicious and just the right amount of broth to dip the bread!

The second meal we enjoyed here was another winner! This time I chose to go with the gnocchi in a pesto sauce. Now I love these little potato dumplings, but usually they are on the denser side of pasta, not here! The gnochhi was pillowy, light, and enjoyable! So much so that I had enough room for a lovely strawberry and blood orange cake for dessert!

Ristorante il gabbiano

This restaurant is a winner for the views and the food! The restaurant was meer steps from our hotel and has a beautiful airy feel. The interior of the restaurant is white and fresh and the outdoor seating overlooks the Ionian Sea and Isola Bella. We had the pleasure of sitting on the outdoor balcony and watched as the sun set and the night set in. As I enjoyed my octopus salad, linguine and clams and lemon sorbet I could hear the waves crash onto the shore. The octopus salad was a warm salad with octopus and small potatoes. This was a different salad and so delicious that I had to find a recipe on Pinterest so that I can re-create at home! The linguine was cooked to perfection and the light white wine sauce and clams were at the perfect meal to enjoy al fresco. The lemon sorbet was the perfect refreshing way to end the meal. Overall, this was an enjoyable meal with a lovely view!

Ristorante Castelluccio

We walked around to find a restaurant for dinner the night we stopped in here. Again we are early eaters so we were some of the first patrons at this restaurant so it felt like we had special attention, they allowed us to sample various wines before we each settled on our choice for the night. We sat in the enclosed front patio section of the restaurant which gave us a view of the street. This may not sound like a great view, but the streets in this section of Taormina is not bustling and there is a small patch of grass outside. My choice of entrée tonight was, you guessed it seafood! I chose prawns with potatoes and broccoli. It was nice to have a little vegetable in my diet for the night!

Ristorante di Giovanni

This restaurant across the street from our hotel. The restaurant is on the smaller side but it has a homey feel to it. The food here was delicious! I started out with brasciole carpaccio with arugula and shaved parmesan. If you order this you may want to ensure you have someone else at the table with you would will also enjoy it! The portion was on the larger
side and my traveling partner does not eat meat. For my entrée I had seafood and spaghetti. Again, I was not disappointed in my meal selection! There wasn’t an overwhelming amount of tomato sauce in the dish that would take away from seafood and spaghetti itself! Of course I hd to end my meal on a sweet note and I was eyeing up a lemon cake that truly looked something my mom would make through the entire meal since it sat on the sideboard near out table. And I’m so happy I decided to try it! We are in the land of lemons and it was a nice light cake with a little sweet and a little tart! The cake and Americano was the perfect topper to the meal!

Ristorante Pizzeria Mazzarino

This restaurant is located next to Ristorante Castelluccio. The menu is similar to the restaurant next door, has a little different feel with bright interior and beachy feel. This night I chose start my meal with an appetizer of mussels in white wine sauce. The mussles were supple and delicious. For my main course I chose maccheroni with a nutty cheese and red sauce. The maccheroni was cooked to al dente perfection and the cheese mild. The topper to the meal was a not too sweet pistachio cannoli. This was the restaurant we ended our trip and it was the perfect way to end our trip!

Other Meals

We enjoyed several other meals throughout our trip. Some highlights include:

Arancini – The fried stuffed rice balls are an Italian speciality. I had these as a light lunch at Mount Etna. When you think fried rice you think heavy, but they were actually fairly light.

Cheese Plates and Bruschetta- This trip was a cheese lover like myself dream! There was always a cheese plate on almost every menu we looked at! Another item you will find on most menus is bruschetta. It is a great option for a light lunch! We tried an eggplant caponta bruschetta that was a great variation!

Granita – This refreshing treat is not too sweet and since you are in the land of lemons available most places you go!

Pizza – Of course you can get pizza in Italy! Who could resist having pizza while in Italy. I only had pizza once during the trip. It was definitely will power to not order pizza every meal!

Gelato – This sweet treat is another item that can be found easily while you are wondering around towns. Little shops were the best places to get our nightly gelato.

Cafe – How could I forget the coffee! Cafe Americano was perfect at any time of the day, morning, noon, or night! It was even better when you could enjoy with a beautiful view!