Captivating Catania, Sicily

Catania is a beautiful late Baroque city in Sicily and is also where our trip in Sicily starts after landing at Catania Airport. See what makes Catania special, what the unique things to eat in Catania are and why it absolutely should not be missed when visiting Sicily.

"This must be the golden hour," I say, looking up at the Duomo building in Catania mesmerised as the sun gently bathes the Baroque building with gentle, golden light. The sky behind it turns an incredible pale blue and tints the clouds pink.

Catania is listed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. In the Piazza del Duomo there is an elephant sculpture called U Liotru. The elephant is the official symbol of Catania and rooted in an ancient legend. During the Upper Paleolithic era, a species of dwarf elephant once roamed Sicily. According to the legend, this elephant safeguarded the early inhabitants of Catania, protecting them from fierce and dangerous animals.

I've just completed four flights to arrive here and have lost my main bag in the process, but being in Sicily is like a balm to the soul. I have wanted to visit here my whole adult life. Mr NQN and I were supposed to visit in 2020 but you all know how that year went. Tomorrow I will join the official Sicilian Food Tour but tonight I'm spending it in Catania.

We are sipping Aperol spritzes and benefitting from the generosity of Aperitivo hour where they bring complimentary snacks with drinks. They bring out huge green olives, frittata, round arancini balls, potato and puff pastry snacks. At this point all thoughts of lost luggage are put on hold and I am completely immersed in the charms of Sicily.

One must-try while in Catania are the arancini. At Caffe del Duomo there are 5 varieties of arancini but we choose two: the pistachio and Norma arancini. The pistachio arancini is round and covered in chopped pistachios. One bite and I am in love. You tend to only get a couple of types of arancini in Australia, mostly ragu filled ones but when in Sicily, the home of Bronte pistachios, you just have to try the one filled with pistachio pesto and bacon that is incredibly delicious. Similarly the Norma arancini is based on Pasta alla Norma made with eggplant. This too is delicious and filled with plenty of soft, melting eggplant and tomato and salted ricotta.

We go for a wander and see Testa di Moro heads for sale. I am absolutely besotted with these emblems of Sicily. The legend of the Testa di Moro (“moor's head”) is of a Sicilian woman from Palermo who caught the attention of a Moor passing by her balcony. The two began a passionate love affair but when the woman discovered that the Moor was already married and would eventually leave her she became enraged killing him in his sleep by cutting off his head.

She used his head as a planter for her basil that flourished. Inspired by her planter, neighbors began recreating ceramic replicas of the Moor’s head which have become a symbol of Sicily. Ceramic pine cones in bright red, blue and yellow are also popular ceramics and these symbolise prosperity.

Perhaps because of this legend and of movies and tv, I thought that the people of Sicily were spicy and a bit scary but I just find them confident, playful and delightful. If anything they operate very much on "Island time". Our Sicilian food tour guide Carm later tells us of a story where she asked a Sicilian man for directions. Instead of pointing at a direction, he slowly removed a cigarette from a packet, lit it, inhaled deeply and then answered her in no hurry for anything.

When we make the short 8 minute walk to dinner we encounter so many friendly personalities from the man offering samples of toffee and candied pistachios to the personalities at the restaurant we are dining at tonight, just 8 minutes walk away from the Duomo.

Trattoria del Cavaliere (that translates to "restaurant of horsemen or knights") is a very popular Catanese restaurant that serves up a range of freshly cooked seafood, meat and pasta dishes as well as a Catanese specialty: horse. Horse is a traditional Catanese meat usually served as meatballs and sirloin steaks. The horse meat are retired riding horses so they've been treated better than say race horses (that aren't used because of the risk of doping).

Because this restaurant is so popular even on a Wednesday night, it often books out but your best bet if you don't have a reservation is to arrive at 7:20pm just before they open and you can get a seat in the al fresco area outside. I watch as plates of steaming hot pasta fly out of the kitchen. Prices are very reasonable and we order a sirloin horse steak, three meatballs and a pistachio involtini. Admittedly this is a very light dinner but they don't pressure us to order more.

The food comes out fresh from the grill and you can take a peek at the restaurant's open grill where an array of meat and seafood sits on display to be cooked by the chefs. The two chefs in front of the grill pose for photos and then beckon me in to get a photo with them.

The horse steak is cut very thin, like a minute steak (or even a smidgen thinner) and because it is thin it is cooked through. Still it is tender and delicious and tastes very similar to beef. The meatballs have a slightly stronger flavour to them that reminds me a bit of game and these are also tasty. The pork involtini are filled with pistachio and cheese and come as four pieces threaded on a skewer. The waiters are playful and fun and the bill is a very reasonable €7 per person. As we leave there is a large number of people milling about waiting for their turn at a table.

After dinner we head to Don Peppinu, a very popular gelateria in Catania near the main square. The system there is that you pay for your cone or cup first and then choose the flavours. Pistachio is a must and for €1 extra you can get the Bronte pistachio, the local pistachio flavour. We all order different flavours: I go for the Syracuse lemon, a tangy, tart delicious lemon gelato. I also order the Bronte pistachio which is absolutely divine. I usually can't eat a lot of gelato in one go but this flavour is so deliciously complex that I can't stop eating the pistachio gelato. I also try some of Tenina's roasted pistachio flavour which has a satisfying hit of saltiness and Leisa's Sicilian mango which reminds me of a mango Weiss bar (no shade, it's delicious).

The next morning I wake up early to the sound of car horns. Even at 6:30am the city is busy. We all head back to Caffe Del Duomo for a Catania tradition: granita and brioche for breakfast.

There are around 8-10 flavours available and we order a selection. They're all delicious particularly the strawberry which is a personal favourite although the most traditional combination is coffee and almond with whipped cream. You pluck the ball off the brioche and dip it into the granita and enjoy it.

Once we find out that Caffe Del Duomo sells all of the Catanese specialties on our must try list, we order them all. We start with Olivetti or marzipan olives. There's also Cipollina Catanese, a delicious puff pastry filled with onions and tomato. We also try an Iris donut filled with pistachio cream and has a lovely crispy breadcrumb crust on the outside. It's with a breakfast of champions such as this that we head off to start the first day of the official Sicilian Food Tour!

Where I stayed: Les Suites Del Duomo Luxury

For my stay in Catania I booked myself into Les Suites Del Duomo Luxury located right in the heart of Catania's old town and a couple of minutes or 200 metres/657 feet from Catania Piazza Duomo and 100 metres/328 feet from Catania Cathedral.

The hotel also has a free airport pick up service that works well. Before I arrive the driver texts me as does the hotel confirming my arrival time. In Italy there are a lot of accommodation that is made up of a few rooms sold as a small, uber boutique hotel and this is one of them. Les Suites Del Duomo Luxury is located on Via Raddusa. When I arrive and try to push the doors open, the door mysteriously clicks open as they must be watching on a camera. I carry my bag up one flight of stairs and arrive at the lobby area.

There are four rooms at this little hotel and I am staying in number 3. The reason why I chose this hotel was the location and also the unusual decor. It looks as though it is carved out of rock and is uniquely styled.

The main feature is a huge spa bath right near the bed. The bed is very comfortable and I have a solid, deep night's sleep here. There is also a shower with excellent water pressure and jets and two shower heads with a bathrobe and slippers. There are Italian Terra amenity products provided that smell wonderful. There are two large flatscreen TVs in the room, one facing the spa bath and one facing the bed. Netflix and Prime are included and you don't need your own account so I feel right at home (except I am missing my luggage!).

The toilet and bidet are in a separate area with a sink just past the wardrobe and safe. There is also a little working desk area just near the bed and a small balcony with a view of the city outside. Wifi is fast, free and unlimited. Coffee, tea and a large bottle of still water are provided and you can also opt to get an aperitivo platter in your room on arrival for E30.

The only issue is that because it is near a restaurant below at night you do tend to hear the live music playing. But this is fixable with a pair of good ear plugs. Once I put them in at 9:30pm I couldn't hear anything and fell asleep soundly.

All food and accommodation in this post was independently paid for. This was not part of the Sicilian food tour.

To book the Sicilian Food Tour follow this link. If you use the code NQN when booking (please write it in the date field) then you’ll get a bottle of Cerasuolo Wine from Vittoria, the only DOCG wine of Sicily. This cherry red wine variety is a blend of Sicily’s famous Nero D’Avola & Frappato worth $80AUD.