Gelsonero

Talk about a Hidden Gem! I was shocked to not see any reviews of this place on Unilocal yet, because this is a Sicilian Food Mecca. The owner Antonello is one of the most accommodating business owners in all of Sicily, if not Italy. We wanted to have a private meal here, so I reached out to him via email with low expectations of even a response. We wanted to have a late lunch during Mid — March, which is their off season, so I think the restaurant is not even normally open. We arrived to Savoca to find the entire town empty, nothing was open for their «off season», so we basically had the entire place to ourselves, which worried most of my group since the agreement with the owner to have a meal at their restaurant was barely a step above a friendly handshake agreement. We arrived to find the Restaurant open just for us, with the settings already set out, and the feeling of the red carpet rolled out. The owner and his chid served us themselves, and waited on us hand and foot. We were delighted to several amazing courses of Local Delicacies, and Sicilian Specialties. The first appetizer put everyone’s mind at ease not knowing what to expect with this restaurant we were just introduced to, because it was the perfect intro to a meal that we knew we would never forget. The owner selected wine pairings for each course, and served generous portions of both food and wine. As each new course came out, we kept thinking that there was no way anything could top the wonderful flavors that we were savoring in our mouths, yet each new course raised the bar even higher. It was a journey through amazing flavors. To prove just how delicious the meal turned out, we had a group of 12 adults with several of them classified as «Picky» eaters. This was outside their comfort zone to say the least, but every single person ranted and raved about how unbelievable everything tasted. We even had one travel companion that did not eat seafood, and didn’t discover this until we arrived to a set menu of all fresh seafood. By the end of it, she had found at least a few courses that she was in love with. We probably did not convert her to seafood entirely, but I know without a doubt she would return to Gelsonero in a heartbeat for whatever the Chef wanted to prepare. We also discovered on their menu later that they serve traditional pasta dishes and other meats, but we had asked the owner for more authentic Savoca flavors. We felt like family, welcomed to this fine restaurant, so much that we found it impossible to leave, and we cannot wait until we can return for some new taste experiences.