Discover the best pizza in Catania

The Neapolitan round arrived in Catania like everywhere else in southern Italy, gradually through the 20th century. The city's own native format predates it locally: the siciliana, a fried calzone stuffed with tuma cheese and anchovies, was first sold commercially in 1924 in Zafferana Etnea on Mount Etna.

Siciliana in Catania is a fried calzone stuffed with tuma cheese and anchovies, eaten as street food. It was first sold by Giuseppa Donna Peppina Finocchiaro in Zafferana Etnea in 1924, almost exactly contemporary with the Margherita's codification in Naples. It is not the Palermo sfincione, which is a different food.

The city splits about evenly between Neapolitan and a distinctly Sicilian register built on Etna grains and the fried siciliana tradition. Pizza contemporanea arrived later and now sits alongside both, and Roman-style turns up in pockets.

Pizzerias cluster in Centro Storico around Via Etnea and Piazza Duomo, in San Berillo, along Via Plebiscito and Antico Corso, at San Giovanni Li Cuti on the seafront, and in Ognina on the northern coast.

The Etna grain belt grows ancient Sicilian wheat varieties (tumminia, perciasacchi, russello) that rarely reach the mainland in volume. Catanese pizzaioli have regular access, and the local doughs reflect it. Locanda Cerami runs a 72-hour ferment on stone-milled semolina and tumminia.

Expect €7 to €11 for a Margherita at a neighborhood pizzeria and €11 to €17 at a destination room. The siciliana fried street version runs €2 to €4 from a friggitoria counter. Catania is one of the cheapest pizza cities in Italy.

Reservations are expected at destination rooms (Sciara, Locanda Cerami, Sazi e Sani) on Friday and Saturday. Weeknight walk-ins generally work outside August, when the city fills with returning Sicilians.

Two things share the Sicilian label and they are different foods. Catanese siciliana is a fried calzone with tuma and anchovies. The Palermo sfincione is a thick focaccia-like pan pizza with onion, breadcrumbs and pecorino. Both are great, but they are not interchangeable.

Most contemporary pizzerias offer a gluten-free base on request, usually with a small surcharge. Check the venue page on OpenPizzaMap for current dietary options.

Pizzeria kitchens in Catania generally close between 23:00 and midnight. Late-night street pizza and siciliana counters in San Berillo and around Piazza Duomo serve through 02:00 on weekends, often as part of the bar circuit.