This was quite the happening place when our party arrived in the afternoon. Tables were filled and…read moreit took a moment for us to get seated. After being seated, we were never provided a menu of any sort and actually sat for several minutes before someone came by for our order, still with no menu. Regardless, we knew we were ordering granitas, brioche, and the arancini. Granitas - They verbally gave us a limited list of what flavors were available. We tried the almond, strawberry, pistachio, and limon. All flavors were delicious, not overly sweet, and very refreshing. A lighter more slush like version of gelato. Brioche - The brioche here is light and delicious, served warm, and is an amazing accompaniment to granitas. Definitely order one to balance out the granita if it gets too cold. Arancini - The ragu arancini is absolutely amazing. It was actually the better of the three items ordered in my opinion. I came for the desserts, but found myself fully enjoying this item more. The ragu is hearty and the flavors robust. A masticating delight of flavors. If you're not a smoker, definitely try to top for a seat indoors. Sitting outdoors will likely expose you to several patrons and even passersby or individuals sitting on nearby benches to cigarette smoke. Overall, the food and desserts here are amazing. I wish I had the stomach and time to try more of what they had to offer. Everything looked amazing and all seemed to be very reasonably priced.

Avoid Pasticceria Savia at all costs. The staff were…read moreshockingly rude and aggressive. My mother, who is disabled and uses a walking stick, simply wanted to sit while a table was being prepared. Instead of showing even basic decency, a staff member repeatedly dismissed her, saying "no, no" in an aggressive and disrespectful way and physically pushing her away from sitting. It was humiliating to watch. We waited about 20 minutes and were treated like we didn't matter the entire time. There was zero respect, zero explanation, and absolutely no empathy. It got worse!my sister tried to use the restroom while we were waiting, and it was disgusting. No soap, no toilet paper, and clearly not cleaned. We ended up leaving because the treatment was so offensive. Between the appalling behavior and the filthy facilities, this place does not deserve your time or money.

Amazing all around! I would highly recommend to visit Spinella while visiting Catania. This casual…read morerestaurant is located right off Via Etnea. It was a very beautiful day when we visited Spinelli and we chose the outdoor seating. Large trees and umbrellas gave us a lot of shade and made it comfortable even in 80F weather. The service was extremely nice and fast :) We chose Aperitivo for 4. For only 10 Euro each of us received a glass of Aperol Spritz, and a very! large charcuterie board to share.

Stopped by while strolling via Etnea for a sweet bite. We did not try much as we had a dinner…read moreplanned elsewhere and did not want to fill ourselves. We got the pistachio cake, so lite and delicious. Not too sweet but definitely had some rum! Service was great. Recommend

This is one of my favorite dessert joints in downtown Catania, not only because of the great…read morelocation near Elephant Square, but because the gelato is so delicious! Their flavors are unique and the textures are perfect. Whatever flavor you choose, be sure to grab a patio seat outside for some premium people-watching.

Troppo caro per una citta' spazzatura che e' catania. Il prezzo del "coperto" poi e' semplicemente…read moreil tipico colpo di mazza. Ma fatemi il favore!

Nice selection of pastries and desert! Got the Strawberry Gelato and Chocolate Canoli. :Dread more

Beautiful cafe. We visited a lot of cafés while in Catania but Prestipino was my favorite by…read morefar!!!! Located on the Dome plaza with a beautiful view of the city, delicious pastries, ice cream (best one ever!) and espresso, and great service we went back there many many times. Make sure to go inside and check out the pastries, and cookies. It is unbelievable!!!!!

This is where we pretty much had breakfast every day in Catania. Mainly because their cappuccino…read moreand pastries were to die for. We had sweet and savory pastries for breakfast. It was very delicious and cheap to boot. Service was a little spotty. But there wasn't any hurry. It is right in the main square, which I referred to as Elephant Duomo. I'm not sure what the locals call it. But perfect for people watching and enjoying the morning or sometimes afternoon for us.

Closed- no longer in business restrictions in place we walked off the beaten path to find this…read moreplace, but then it was closed

If you are looking for "Saint Agatha's tits" (sorry, I am not making this up, I am quoting directly…read moreas they are called "minnuzzi ri Sant'Àjita" in Sicilian dialect), you must visit the "best pasticceria" (pastry shop) in Catania, I Dolci di Nonna Vincenza. In a nondescript building in a piazza just off of Via Vittorio Emanuele (they actually have four locations in Catania), my Sicilian wife was looking for Minnuzzi di Sant'Agata (aka St. Agatha's tits - it's a long story), a Catanese specialty, to take to her relatives in Erice (near Trapani). I mean no disrespect as I am only telling you the story of Saint Agatha's breasts as told by Sicilians. The short version being that Saint Agatha's breasts were torn from her body during her martyrdom and she is now the patron saint of breast cancer patients as well as Mount Etna. The Catania Duomo (cathedral) is also named after this venerated 3rd Century saint. How the tradition of cakes in the shape of breasts and fondly called "St Agatha's Tits" (translated from Sicilian dialect) came to be is unknown to me or any of the locals I talked to. The ricotta filled pastries bearing her name actually look like a lovely white breast, red nipple and all. You can apparently only get these extremely sweet pasties, I mean pastries, during the Christmas season and around her name day (February 5th). The filling is sweet ricotta and covered by an extremely sweet sugar-based shell, topped with a red confection in the shape of a nipple. If you eat them the right way, like a pizza, with more filling than sugary shell, they are actually quite tasty. After all, I never tasted a tit I did not like (sorry Saint Agatha, I could not help myself). Anyway, back to I Dolci di Nonna Vincenza ... The shop, which was recommended and known by every local we talked to, sits on the side of a piazza and looks quite small, even smaller as you first walk in. But if you walk up the stairs to your left, you enter the first large room filled with cookies and candies. Go around the corner to the next big room filled with cakes and St. Agatha's breasts, both large and small. At €2.50 ($3) a pop, St. Agatha's breasts are not a cheap treat. It is, reportedly, the "best" pasticceria in Catania, but the prices I saw were rather high and not a "great value" in my eyes. CombatCritic Gives I Dolco Di Nonna Vincenza 7 Bombs Out Of 10 ... More Breasts, I Mean Bombs, Are Better!

I LOVED this gelateria and chocolate shop!…read more It looked very new and modern, and the staff was welcoming. My small gelato (cookies and stracciatella) was a nice way to beat the 90-degree heat in Catania. Price was fair. My only regret is not buying any of their fancy chocolates! I'd absolutely return on future visits to the city.

Took the team out for dinner. The staff made it perfect with the four course option. More than…read moreenough food. The presentation, the selection, the incredible food and service was exactly what we were looking. Definitely be back.

After dinner, we walked over to Scardaci Ice Cafè for dessert. 24 flavours of ice cream, 15…read moreflavours of granita. Scoops were 3,50€ (classica) to 6,50€ (maxi). 10% extra for table service. - Granita (3,30€) - fico d'india (prickly pear) and arancia rossa (blood orange). Prickly pear was decent, blood orange a touch bitter

Low key, sophisticated but fun-cool, right on the main drag--Via Etna--with a view of Etna…read more Delicious treats and reasonable prices. Worth the stop.