The best Granita/Cremolata in Modica? Yeah, yeah, much…read moredebate about this - every place has the best, I know. But this is *good*. Locals swear by it. A lot. Not just the locals - we were there pretty much every day for granita/coffee in the morning, and a couple more during the day (And yes, the brioche is pretty damn amazing too - just the right texture for dunking)

Beautiful and delicious sweets! Wish we could have some sent back to our home in the US!!…read more The young lady who waited on us was so helpful! We had car trouble (rental car) and she helped us try to contact the rental agency. Unfortunately, we weren't able to talk to anyone at the Avis agency so she got someone else to look at our car and he got it started! We did bring a tray of their sweets back to enjoy with our daughter and her family. They were delicious!!!

SPECIAL PASTRY My…read moreDad's hometown of Modica is a beautiful town. It is also the undeclared Mecca of chocolate in Sicily. When I was a young child I was first introduced to a breakfast pastry. I truly loved it. In fact, it was always a gift sent to me from my Sicilian family along with bars of chocolate. Well I received a delivery today of those famous pastries and am enjoying one right now. If you ever go to Modica, these little treats are called 'mpanatigghi'. As I got older I started researching these little treats. What I uncovered was very surprising. In fact, if I had learned that these delicious little pastries were stuffed with minced meat and chocolate I would have probably never eaten them. But it is too late for me to stop now. They are really good and unique. You will not find them anywhere in the world. When I was little there was only one baker in town that made them. My heart still lies with the original but for some reason everyone in my family can't remember who that person was. All of the local bakers have analyzed this pastry and have come up with there own versions. They are all similar in taste but I don't discriminate. It's a childhood memory that is hard to let go. It is something that I can only find in my Dad's hometown. So on your next trip to Italy, then make your way to Modica to try this unique pastry. The great 20th-century writer Leonardo Sciascia once wrote this about Modica. He said, "Modican chocolate is unparalleled in savor and tasting it is like reaching the ultimate, the absolute. Chocolate produced elsewhere is an adulteration, a corruption of the original." Modica has been making amazing chocolate since the 1500's since the Spanish conquistadors introduced it. They probably never knew the locals were going to mix it with minced meat to create a pastry. Travel is an adventure and it's nice to find hidden gems of food like the 'mpanatigghi' pastry.

SPECIAL ORDER In the…read moresouth of Sicily they make a type of pastry sandwich that I have never seen anywhere else in the World. When I tell people in America about it they tell me that they have never heard of it. I was lucky because my Sicilian family in Chicago would make this dish. We make it for special occasions and it is the ultimate party food. The dish is called Scaccia and consists of bread dough with wonderful fresh ingredients inside consisting of vegetables, sauce & meat. This location makes these special treats but they also make a special one with seafood that needs to be ordered days before you pick it up. We had a dinner party and our family friend ordered these treats from his hometown of Pazzallo. I joked to everyone that this would be on a "secret menu" in America. The seafood consisted of octopus and a cuttlefish mixed with capers, parsley & potatoes. I will say that many of us had never had a seafood version of these treats. As a food critic I would say these were totally full of potatoes with a hint if seafood. The potatoes were really good but I just wish that there was more seafood inside. I totally understand that seafood is expensive and that's why there wasn't much inside. Many of the people at the party talked about the lack of seafood and that there was too much bread. Not being a local who grew up with these treats all the time I would have to agree with them. When my Dad makes these he rolls out the dough very thin but every chef has their own cooking techniques. We also had some of the original flavors that do not need to be special ordered. I had the fresh ricotta & sausage, the parsley & red sauce and the broccoli & sun dried tomato. The different fillings were really tasty. I loved how buttery the outside crust was on each one. The broccoli is always my favorite. These Scaccia were more tasty then fish version. I am a traditional person and love the original Scaccia flavors that I grew up with. I am glad that I tried the versions made of seafood but I would not go out of my way to order them again. Pazzallo is located on the sea so they cook with seafood and you can see this in their food. If you want to try this seafood version you are going to have to order it days in advance so they can catch the seafood needed to make them. The seafood was very fresh. I was told that it was even caught the night before they were prepared. That is one of the best things about being on an island because the seafood is really fresh. Would I drive over to Pazzallo from Marina di Modica to eat here? Probably not. Many restaurants make the typical versions of Scaccia and they are wonderful. I didn't find these special enough to want to drive over here and buy more.

My favorite place for gelato in the summer or pastries in the winter! There's hundreds of gelato…read moreshops in Modica so you have to make sure you pick the best one. This is the spot you have to go to where you will have no regrets. You can get anything from amazing coffee, granita (Italian ice) served with their homemade brioche buns, ice cream cakes, regular cakes, gelato, pastries, cocktails, the list goes on and on. They have indoor and outdoor seating that is plenty for all to come. Everyone is very friendly. I was lucky enough to go on a behind the scenes tour of the bakery. They homemake everything literally everything except the ceramic plates they serve it on. When in Modica stop by and have a treat. Great shopping is nearby just down the street.

Most people have never been to Modica but I am lucky that most of my family is from here. It is so…read morenice to go back and visit. One place that is a must on your trip is Liola for a espresso, granita or some incredible Gelato (that's ice cream to you Americans)! Liola is a family run business and they are all hard workers. The owner Georgette makes all of the gelato's fresh every day...you will usually find her in the back making tiny gelato cones or amazing ice cream cakes. The tiny gelato cones are very popular and people buy them by the pound. The bad part is that once you start eating them you can not stop. Why can't our ice cream in America taste like this? I think I could live here on gelato alone. And if you are reading this there is a good chance you only speak English...so do not be shy when visiting here because Georgetta speaks great English and would love to have a conversation and show you her kitchen. I loved the tour...it was great getting to see how the gelato cakes were made. My favorite gelato that I had and I sampled most of them was the pistachio. I almost did not get it because it was green but then said, "You only live once!" Wow was I hooked. In fact, it was my favorite flavor and I could have eaten it every day. My second favorite flavor gelato was the Baci, which is chocolate and hazelnut. In past trips, Baci use to by my number one, until my summer trip to Sicily this year. Sorry Baci!!! The espresso is also amazing here to...one of the best I have ever had in Europe. There is also beer here too but I could not mix it with gelato and espresso. I also recommend you try the granita. It is like an Italian Ice but you can actually eat with out needing a shovel. When I was a kid there was one flavor...espresso and then eventually came a second flavor called lemon. I had no idea that there were advances in granita over the past few years...there was strawberry (which I loved) and many other flavors to choose from. So if you find yourself traveling through Modica, then make sure you stop by here and have a nice treat...you deserve it...your on vacation right!!!

When you come to Modica you must stop in and try an impannatighe cookie. It looks like a half moon…read morebiscuit dusted with sugar. The name may be hard to pronounce...so I have included a photo so you can just point at it, when ordering. The name comes from empanadilla which is a Spanish word for a pastry that has a filling inside. The Spanish introduced chocolate to Modica from Mexico. If you have the impannatighe in your hand, then take a bite and stop reading my review. Now when you bite in you will instantly say...yum I like chocolate...but here is the dirty little secret...there is minced beef inside of here too. I started eating these as a little kid and I just fell in love with them. It wasn't until I got older that someone told me about the beef in here. I should have never told my wife because she can not eat them...which is a blessing for me because I do not have to share them with her. Modica is my Dad's hometown and I have been eating these pastries for as long as I can remember. My Dad told me a story that one person started making these pastries and all of the bakers in town tried copying it, until they got it right. When you come to Modica you will be able to find this pastry in almost every bakery or Gelato place. So you must try one for yourself because it is unique to the region. It is great to embrace the culture and traditions of the country you are visiting.