Good idea - if you look at their site there will be feature articles/blog posts about the city’s restaurants too, altho these are sometimes out of date.
Seems like the Pasticceria is taking a winter break and are re-opening Feb 20 based on a message from the owner on their Google Maps page https://www.google.com/maps/place/Pasticceria+Maria+Grammatico/@38.0378194,12.5864861,15z/data=!4m6!3m5!1s0x13196372adcf4347:0xac70fa7b99aceed!8m2!3d38.0378194!4d12.5864861!16s%2Fg%2F11bvtdrt2f?entry=ttu
You should probably message them to confirm before you go via there website or other means.
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This is great news. I don’t arrive until the 17th. I’ll see if my B&B can give me any information. Thank you Jen.
We stayed prepandemic in the Trapani area and Palermo (and Agrigento). Trapani was wonderful and I would not mind going back to stay month in the future. The central street is lined with restaurants and (mostly Italians) dining into the night. The ferry to the Egadi Islands was great as well (and the funicular, sorry it is closed). Maria Grammatico of course was a nice spot. To this day, I make Pesto di Trapani all the time (using Lidia Bastianich’s recipe). The salt flat and the small museum there is great – but the main thing is, buy the salt. It is terrific. Super saline, and a nice mineral finish. Makes a nice trip gift as well.
The markets in Palermo were terrific (in summer) – wish I had the ability to cook when we were there, but we were in a hotel (Politeama). It has been a while and any notes I made are long gone (on CH) but I recall dining at Piccolo Napoli, actually by chance. It was OK – later we found it was in one of Anthony Bourdain’s episode on SIcily and it may have suffered from the minor renown.
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Thank you Gooster. I appreciate your tips. I had forgotten Boudain did an episode there. I should see if I can find it.
Reading your posts & @JenKalb’s input closely, as we just pulled the trigger on 5 nights in Palermo 
I’ve been to Palermo exactly once in the early 90s, as it was a stop on our Mediterranean cruise. We saw the catacombs and the seafood market, and I am so DARN HAPPY that our airbnb kitchen has a gas stove.
A few friends from home are currently on the island, and will be making their way north for our time there.
I heard renting a scooter to travel to some other towns / beaches nearby should be easy enough?
Anyone have any input?
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Lucky you! I ended up having a bad cold while I was there but still had a wonderful time. But it did have an impact on the food side. What part of town will you be staying in? I had no problem getting around on day trips via train and bus, if that makes it easier or cheaper, although I suppose with 4 people it might not. I can’t add a ton foodwise, but do have a couple places to recommend. Will look them up and come back with the info.
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I know you’re not really into sweets as much as I am. There are some beautiful cafés and pasticcerias in Palermo. Sicilian pastries are beautiful. I haven’t tried too many, but the ones I’ve tried are more to my taste than most other Italian pastries.
I had been following a few famous pastry shops on Instagram.
I had planned a trip a while back but it didn’t happen.
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We’re staying in the Kalsa area. Friends of ours are in Santa Flavia (which looks incredible!), and - according to them - it’s only a 20 min drive to/from Palermo. If we can rent a scooter (or two) that should be a good way to get to the surrounding beaches or smaller, noteworthy towns to visit, no?
I would love to get some beach time in while there, but of course also explore the city… since I was there for less than 8 hours a million years ago 
My PIC and I look forward to OD’ing on pistachios, caponata, all kinds of seafood & fish, pasta of course, Sicilian wine… I am honestly so much more excited about this trip than our Købnhavn visit last week 
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Sicily is obsession worthy! I went in 2023 to the east coast and adored it, and felt the need to go back and explore some of the west coast this year. And I want to go again! That neighborhood is extremely walkable to the main sites, which will be wonderful. Scooters make sense to me (I just never want to drive on vacation myself, so I didn’t look into that). If you like architecture/churches, make sure to check out San Cataldo and Martorana, which are right next to each other and very near where you’ll be. And get yourself to Monreale, it is incredible.
My taste buds weren’t at their best while I was there, but I had one very simple but perfect meal at Lo Scrigno di Donna Rosa. I found a great little bustling wine bar but I’m having a hard time finding it now on the map. If I can get the info I will come back with it - I feel like it had a pun-ish name.
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The wine bar is called Hic la folie du vin, cozy and happening, I had a great time there.
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I loved Ballaro and Capo markets (the second one was insane in a good way on the weekend), but felt like Vucciria was very touristy.
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Ballaro was near our apartment when we were in Palermo - of course this was pre-pandemic so things may have changed, but I loved the vendors lusty calls and the variety. In the evening it was rougher and rawer, with african vendors and other more recent comers cooking over open fires and not very many street lights.
Do try to find the delicious pecorino ricotta that is a specialty there - that is used to fill cannoli and other sweets as well as in savory dishes. I consumed it by the bowl unadorned for breakfast. Likewise make sure that your cannoli filling is made with this stuff. And that they freshly fill your cannoli in front of your eyes. I just visited probably the top sicilian bakeshop in Brooklyn with another poster here, and they sold the cannoli , already filled, from the racks. It makes a big diff.
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I can confirm that the Ballarò market is a fabulous place for lunch, especially if you love seafood. I’ve yet to try the mystery meat sammich OR the spleen sandwich, and TBH I don’t know if it’s going to happen. Too many other fabulous local specialties I much prefer 
Two places I cannot recommend enough: A’nica Ristorante for the best caponata we’ve had in town & amazing pizza,
and Osteria Alivaru, a small place with incredible pasta at dirt cheap prices. Really nice selection of local wines, too.
I never want to leave 
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it all looks great. I love sicilian food! what were those two pastas pictured?
Tagliatelle and spaghetti, respectively. Very thick spaghetti.
the love the bucatini in sicily! maybe I should have asked, what were the sauces? they look interesting.
Talking about Bucatini, still thinking about the Pasta Con le Sarde at La Cambusa. Dont think I ever had anything like it since
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The tagliatelle had veal ragú, pancetta, and a rich sauce similar to proper bolognese (no tomato anything); my spaghetti came with zuke, pistachios, cherry tomatoes and local shrimp. I’m not entirely sure how the sauce came together - olive oil, butter, the juice from the zuke, tomatoes, and the brine from shrimp? It was fantastic, and you could taste every single ingredient, especially the shrimp.
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Lunch: best arancina a’ccarne in town (according to this site) at a total dive frequented exclusively by locals. Well, and us today
It was really very good.
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