Page 461 - The Rough Guide of Sicily

caves at San Calogero. There’s a garden with an area for kids, too, as well as

restaurants and bars where you can hone your Italian medical vocabulary by
eavesdropping on fellow residents chatting about their ailments and treatments. All in
all, a thoroughly Italian experience. Half board obligatory. Doubles, per person €85

Locanda al Moro Via Liguori 44 0925 86 756, almoro.com. Set in a thirteenth-
century Moorish tower in the heart of town, this is an excellent B&B, modern and
clean, and run by a Sicilian-German couple. The only downsides are the difficulty in

finding it by car (ask directions and don’t attempt to negotiate the surrounding narrow
lanes) and the stairs. Rooms – some small – have a/c, and there’s free internet. Local
wine tours can be organized. €100

EATING AND DRINKING

La Lampara Lungomare C. Colombo 0925 85 085. Slightly pricier than some other
places at Sciacca’s port, and better quality, with a fancy upstairs dining area where
you can enjoy your meal overlooking the boats. First courses such as pasta con sarde
and risotto ai frutti di mare go from €10, as do fish mains (though can naturally rise
far higher for prized fish), and there’s a good wine list. Daily lunch & dinner; closed
Mon in winter.

Porto San Paolo Largo San Paolo 1 0925 27 982. Come here for the fine views
over the harbour from the terrace, and delicious dishes such as seafood risotto and
lobster fettuccine, as well as pizza in the evening. You’ll pay around €40 for a full
meal excluding drinks. Arrive early for the best tables, and in any case book ahead in
summer. Daily lunch & dinner; closed Wed Sept–July.

La Vela Via Gaie de Garaffe 60 0925 23 971. This quayside eatery serves a €25
set menu, which includes two first and two second courses plus dessert, but not drinks
– all very abundant and usually exquisite. Booking advisable. Daily lunch & dinner;
closed Wed Sept–July.

Caltabellotta

Twenty kilometres northeast of Sciacca, and an impressive ride past sparkling fresh

streams and jagged outcrops of rock, the village of CALTABELLOTTA perches
magnificently on three jutting fangs of rock 950m above sea level. Tremendous views
stretch out on all sides, apparently taking in 21 villages. On the highest pinnacle, you
can pass through the solitary surviving entrance of the Norman castello (always open;

free) that once stood here, and climb up steep, rock-cut steps to the very top, from
which the village below appears as a patchwork of grey roofs. The castle itself,
ruined by an earthquake, was where the Angevins and Aragonese signed the peace
treaty that ended the Wars of the Vespers in 1302. Immediately below sit the Norman