24-Hour Food and Wine Tour

Kissed by the sun, caressed by the sea, loved for the variety of its coastline, where you can choose between sandy beaches and rocky cliffs, watched over by the volcano in the distance, made austere by the black lava stone of its buildings and streets, adorned with artistic masterpieces and historic monuments of the greatest Mediterranean civilisations, protected by its beloved patron Saint Agatha, birthplace of men of genius over the centuries, and favoured by its strategic position in Eastern Sicily.
 
Some know it as the "Milan of the South", for both its remarkable commercial vitality and its nightlife; others hail it as the gateway to "Etna Valley", thanks to the impressive achievements of its citizens in IT and digital professions; while rock and electronic music lovers know that, from the 1990s onwards, the city earned the nickname "Seattle of Italy" for its musical ferment.
 
In short, Catania boasts many beauties, many excellences and just as many records.
Food and wine, in all their nuances, are among the pride of the city at the foot of Etna, a renowned paradise for every palate; what few people know is that the love the people of Catania have for food also earns them a record: in Catania you can order food and drink 24 hours a day.
 
Even at the most unlikely hours, whether at dawn, in the late afternoon or in the middle of the night, in Catania you can always enjoy a delicious treat or sip a typical drink.
There will always be someone ready to serve you because, for the people of Catania, cooking in the street is an age-old trade: Catania street food existed long before the English-speaking world gave it a name.
 
Seeing is believing. Want proof? For our test of popular spots and street food made in Sicily, all you need to do is step out through the front door of Palazzo Speciale.
If you have a whole day to "season" with visits to historic and artistic sites and attractions, plus a big appetite and a roomy stomach, you are ready to start this adventure, to be completed snack after snack.
 
Departure: after breakfast at Palazzo Speciale
The tour can only begin in the lounge of Palazzo Speciale, where breakfast made with local, seasonal produce awaits you.
After your last coffee, set your navigator, leave Palazzo Speciale and head towards the Pescheria, the historic fish market.
 
Interlude: the travelling ice cream seller
If at the start or at any point on your walk you come across a Piaggio Ape three-wheeler painted like a Sicilian cart, wave to the driver and ask him to stop.
That Piaggio Ape, you can be sure, is an ice cream seller.
Travelling ice cream sellers don't usually offer a wide menu, but this is an experience that simply must go into your album of memories.
You can choose ice cream or granita, in a cup or a cone, but we recommend asking for it in a brioche: once he knows what you want, the ice cream seller will cut the typical brioscia in half and fill it with an outrageous amount of delicious ice cream.
This format lets you eat your granita and brioche without stopping your walk; on the other hand, it takes some skill to bite into it without that terrible feeling of freezing teeth. But don't worry, be happy: the more ice cream sellers you meet, the more brioches and ice cream you will order along the way, and the more expert you will become at enjoying them without mishaps.
 
Stage 1: lunch at MM! at the fish market
When you reach the fish market, brioche and granita still in hand, you will be enchanted both by the display of the day's catch and by the picturesque setting.
After a few hours you will surely have explored the whole market, and you will certainly feel like tasting a dish made with those delicious treasures of the sea.
 
And here we are at the first gourmet stop: MM! of the Marino brothers in Piazza Pardo.
Once a historic butcher's shop, it is now a trattoria specialising in shellfish and local fish, served with typical starters such as caponata or parmigiana, and homemade desserts.
Generous portions to wash down with local wine and craft beers, and traditional recipes that will tickle your palate: pasta with sea urchins or with ragù, octopus salad, swordfish parmigiana, king prawns and every delicacy the sea has offered that day.
The dishes, in fact, change according to the day's catch; the MM! trattoria always guarantees fresh ingredients.
If you are lucky enough to arrive at the right moment, you will enjoy your lunch at the Marino brothers' trattoria to the sound of a DJ set or a local band playing for the guests, livening up the whole of Piazza Pardo.
 
Stage 2: quench your thirst at a kiosk
Did you overdo it and eat until you were fit to burst? Can't quench your thirst in the scorching Catania heat?
Well, here we are at the second stage.
Stop at the first kiosk you come across, a few steps from the square, and order a typical drink: seltzer with lemon and salt to quench your thirst, a mandarinetto for relief from the burning sun, or a delicious tamarind drink to help your digestion.
The kiosks are a local tradition dating back to the 19th century.
These little shops are shaped like a sort of gazebo and, in the oldest ones, take on Arabesque architectural forms.
The man behind the counter will prepare your drink, exquisitely handcrafted, among glass jars of syrups and piles of fresh citrus fruit, using brass tools worn by time and by the acidic fruit juices, which clink among cups and glasses on the marble counters.
The syrup recipes and the quantities of the ingredients vary from kiosk to kiosk, as they are the result of secret personal touches handed down through the owners' families from generation to generation.
 
Stage 3: something sweet and a coffee
Once the kiosk keeper's (chioscaro) alchemical potion has worked its magic, you can continue your walk.
After admiring the Amenano Fountain and the waters of the river of the same name that flows beneath Catania, head to Piazza Duomo, the heart of the city.
Waiting for you here is the symbol of Catania: the obelisk with the Liotru, the stone elephant you will certainly want to have your photo taken with.
Before visiting the Cathedral and the Diocesan Museum, however, you will definitely need a good boost of energy.
So, before starting your visit, step into one of the two cafés on the square, Prestipino or Caffè del Duomo, and order a delicious espresso with one of the many pastries displayed on the counters.
When it comes to pastries, you are spoilt for choice: mignon pastries, minnette and olivette di Sant'Agata, cassatine, marzipan fruit, tea biscuits, and cannoli with ricotta, chocolate or custard.
Now you are ready to enjoy the wonderful display of sacred art that Catania offers you in Piazza Duomo.
 
Stage 4: Savia
As everyone knows, cultural visits always work up an appetite.
After your visit, stroll along Via Etnea, perhaps stopping in Piazza Stesicoro to admire the Roman Amphitheatre, and walk up to Villa Bellini.
Before entering the public gardens, however, make your visit even more enjoyable with a stop at the historic and renowned bar Savia.
Why stop here? To enjoy the typical tavola calda, Sicilian savoury snacks: the crunchy arancino, the cipollina with its light puff pastry, cartocciate in a thousand flavours and the hefty bolognese.
 
Stage 5: Wine bar
After your visit to Villa Bellini, it will surely be time for an aperitif; close by, in Via Montesano, the Wine Bar offers a wide selection of good wines.
Once there, order a glass of wine to sip, strictly accompanied by a generous platter of typical cured meats and cheeses.
 
Stage 6: Via Plebiscito
When the aperitif is over, it's time to start thinking about dinner. Don't worry about the time, because people in Catania always have dinner after 9:00 pm. From Via Montesano, head back towards Piazza Stesicoro and, skirting the fence around the remains of the Roman Amphitheatre, walk up the slope that leads to Via Plebiscito.
This was once the street of the horse meat butchers the people of Catania love so much; these former butcher's shops have now become trattorias specialising in grilled meat.
Among them, all excellent, the most famous is undoubtedly "Achille".
At Achille you can choose, depending on your appetite, whether to have your meat served on a plate or in a sandwich; tell the cook what you would like grilled on the barbecue, such as horse meat slices and meatballs or the typical cipollata (grilled spring onions wrapped in pancetta), and wait to be served.
 
Stage 7: Via Santa Filomena and around
After dinner, Catania's movida begins: head to the bars of Via Santa Filomena and nearby Via Gemellaro.
In Via Gemellaro you will find the Vermut pub, where you can enjoy excellent cocktails, while in Via Santa Filomena, besides browsing the shops and the independent bookshop open until late, you will find FUD Bottega Sicula, ready to serve you extraordinary traditional dishes reinvented with ingredients that represent the best of the Sicilian food supply chain.
At FUD you can also stock up on the best that Sicily has to offer: preserves, spreads and other products.
 
Stage 8: the milkshake kiosk
If, between one cocktail and the next, you suddenly feel like something sweet, no problem.
In Catania it is a tradition to end the evening with a milkshake (frappè).
Head to Piazza Roma, where there are kiosks specialising in excellent Nutella milkshakes, made with a special locally produced brioche among the ingredients: the Tomarchio brioscina.
 
Stage 9: paninari, or Sicilian truck food
Still not full? Viale Africa is the kingdom of the truck food vans serving typical "panini", a full dinner between two slices of bread.
These sandwiches are very different from the classic hot dog, because in Sicily you can fill and season them with anything you like: porchetta and cheese, meat, chips, sauces and all kinds of condiments.
 
Stage 10: a nightcap by the river
On your way back to Palazzo Speciale, if you fancy a nightcap, we recommend a place nearby: the former Hostel in Piazza Currò.
Here, in one of the rooms, you can watch the flow of the Amenano, the same underground river you already admired in the fountain between the Pescheria and Piazza Duomo.
 
Stage 11: dessert time in Via Napoli
It is almost dawn now, and you can't wait to rest in your beautiful, comfortable room at Palazzo Speciale.
But know that, if you hadn't given up just now, there would be one last stop: Via Napoli.
It is a Catania custom, after a night of dancing, to head to the bakery in Via Napoli where, from late at night until dawn, skilled pastry chefs bake warm croissants, brioches, chocolate iris, ricotta raviole, cipolline, cartocciate and pizzette.
Kissed by the sun, caressed by the sea, loved for the variety of its coastline, where you can choose between sandy beaches and rocky cliffs, watched over by the volcano in the distance, made austere by the black lava stone of its buildings and streets, adorned with artistic masterpieces and historic monuments of the greatest Mediterranean civilisations, protected by its beloved patron Saint Agatha, birthplace of men of genius over the centuries, and favoured by its strategic position in Eastern Sicily.