Hi,
We will be in Sicily next month for a little over 2 weeks and would love to hear recommendations for great Gelato. I did find a blog here but almost 10 yrs old. So I kind of know what to look out for..
Thank you for all your wonderful suggestions
You can find gelato all over Sicily but the island is known for its Granita.
Yes to granita; it's very refreshing on a hot day. My favorite is the combo of a scoop of almond granita with a small dab of (unsweetened) espresso granita on top. I think that's called "Catanese", suggesting it originated Catania. I bought it once there--from a gelato/granita truck in the train station parking lot--and once in Noto. I don't think it's widely available.
They grow pistachios in Sicily, so that's a good flavor to try.
My favorite pistachio gelato ever was at Dolce Capo in Palermo in March 2025.
As stated, there are gelato shops everywhere. We avoid the shops where certain gelato flavors are bright colors. A good pistachio should never be bright green.
As for granita, prices are not always posted and the price charged sometimes varies whether you’re a local or tourist, even though it shouldn’t. If you buy it from a shop along a tourist street you’ll probably pay more. When we were in Taormina we were charged one price one day and the same shop and seller tried to charge a Euro more for the same thing the next day. We got the lower price.
Two places in Noto worth trying are Caffè Costanzo, and Cafe Sicilia. As others have said, its great moat places, but Sicily leans on granitas and canolis.
Thank you, I'll look for the local Granita, sounds perfect as I'm vegan and this fits the bill also thank you for the recs on Gelato as my husband will love that.
In Palermo we always visit Mr. Carbognano. They serve wonderful gelato (in brioche buns as desired) as well as delicious granita.
We were often tempted to try Gelato in brioche buns but couldn’t bring ourselves to do it until our last day in Sicily . . . and then we regretted all those missed opportunities. It was surprisingly good! So be brave and give it a try.
Monica, we both have PHDs in this area of Vitamin 'G'...
Noto, Sicily--Corado Constanza (as mentioned by MJStedy) slays the nearby, Bourdain-endorsed frontrunner.
Polignano a Mare, Puglia (2 essential shops, ones that were far superior to the competition) Note that Polignano ranks as one of Europe's Gelato Centers.
a) modern shop Bella Blu-their chewy award-winning flavour 'Torta Sorrento' is worth crossing an ocean for.
b) an older more traditional shop, Il Super Mago del Gelo at 22 pza. Garibaldi (some confusion with nearby shop with nearly-identical name); this old family fave is the sole place where one may order 'gelsi neri', a unique mulbery granite ice.
Hope this helps. Enjoy.
Tante belle cose
I am done. The Menu.
Not just granita, but also cremolata, which is like a granita with ricotta mixed into it. The best I had was in Marzamemmi right in the main square. Gelato is excellent everywhere, but granita and cremolata, those are great.
