From fish couscous to traditional Sicilian sweets: the dishes not to miss and a selection of places personally chosen by SempliceStay.
Trapani isn't discovered with your eyes alone, but with your palate too. Its cuisine blends Arab, Sicilian and Mediterranean influences that make it unique: a land of fishermen and farmers, where every dish tastes of home.
The king of Trapani cooking, it tells the story of the historic bond between Sicily and North Africa. The semolina is "incocciata" (rolled) by hand and steamed in the traditional "pignatta", with a rich broth of scorpionfish, gurnard, crab, cuttlefish, tomato and local spices.
Hand-rolled spiral pasta, dressed with the local take on Ligurian pesto: fresh tomato, almonds, Nubia red garlic, basil, extra virgin olive oil and pecorino.
A large semolina bread roll dressed with extra virgin olive oil, fresh tomato, salted anchovies, primo sale or pecorino cheese, oregano, black pepper and sometimes capers or olives.
Also worth trying: cannoli and cassatelle, jasmine, almond or lemon granita, and Trapani's caldo freddo. Always ask whether a dish is made "the traditional way": in many family-run trattorias you'll find authentic flavours, perhaps with a glass of local Zibibbo or Grillo.
Restaurants, pizzerias, gelaterias, rosticcerias, pastry shops and bars: the places we genuinely recommend to our guests.