This cafe-pasticceria is run by Maria Grammatico, Sicily's most famous pastry chef, and the subject of Mary Taylor Simeti's book Bitter Almonds – a series of recipes and recollections from Signora Grammatico's childhood, when she learnt her considerable skills from the nuns of Erice. Her cannoli, dolcetti al liquore (almond liqueur-filled chocolates) and other perfectly crafted cakes are quite irresistible.
Push your way through the crowd drooling over lingua di suocera (lemon-laced, 'mother-in-law tongue' cakes), torta paradiso ('paradise cake'; aka almond sponge cake with apricot jam) and other tempting cakes displayed in the front shop, order a cappuccino at the tiny bar in the wood-panelled back room and grab a table inside or out, in the garden, to linger with locals over some of Sicily's finest sweet treats.
