When we visited Catania, the owners of the B&B we were staying at suggested we try a restaurant nearby because it served “the most authentic Catanian food”. We were especially encouraged to sample their pasta alla Norma.
That restaurant was Trattoria di De Fiore where the same Chef, Rosanna, has been cooking up her great-grandmother’s recipes for a half century. My wife and I usually don’t eat much for lunch when we travel and enjoy relaxing over an early and hopefully tasty dinner. We arrived early to find the place was not very busy (although I’ve since learned that it often can be very crowded, with long waits).
The Trattoria has a nice décor, inviting tables and even an interesting portrait of Bob Dylan.
We did wait awhile for our main course, initially enjoying a tasty appetizer of some of the best calamari we’ve ever had.
The featured dish is pasta alla Norma, created in honor of nearby Mt. Etna. The eggplant represents black cinders, the tomoato sauce red lava, ricotta cheese the mountain’s snow, and basil the vegetation.
It’s a very pretty colorful plate, and I’m pleased to say that the dish lived up to it’s hype.
House wine was delicious and the entire meal was surprisingly inexpensive. A very recommended stop when visiting Sicily’s east coast.
