Syracuse Ortigia - Sicilian Street Food Tour by Do Eat Better
Description
Discover Syracuse on our Syracuse Food Tour, a journey through the charming streets of the historic center and the picturesque island of Ortigia. Taste the dishes locals love, from fresh seafood and traditional Sicilian recipes to sweet treats that define the region. Every stop is carefully selected to introduce you to authentic culinary traditions, highlight the best local restaurants and markets, and create an unforgettable food experience. Your guide is a passionate local Foodie, a friendly expert who shares insider tips, explains each dish, and reveals the history and stories behind every bite. Do Eat Better Experience tours combine high-quality gastronomy with an immersive cultural walk, offering a true taste of Sicilian life. To ensure a personal and authentic experience, tours are limited to small groups so every guest receives full attention and guidance. Please note the tour is always run in English and Italian; other languages are available upon request.
Tour Options
Itinerary
At our first food stop, we’ll dive into the most authentic local street foods, surrounded by the historic atmosphere of the Temple of Apollo. You’ll savor arancini, the world-famous rice balls stuffed with a variety of ingredients like meat, cooked ham, spinach, pistachios, or aubergines, fried to golden perfection for a true taste of Sicilian tradition. In the summertime, you can also enjoy a fried fish cone, filled with a selection of fresh fish caught that very day. With the ancient columns of the Temple of Apollo as your backdrop and the lively energy of Ortigia’s streets all around, tasting these local specialties becomes a perfect blend of history, culture, and flavor.
Next, we’ll have the chance to taste the Sicilian impanata, a traditional artisanal specialty. This oval-shaped, golden calzone can be filled with tomato sauce, vegetables, meat, cheese, potatoes and sausage, or even shrimp and black olives, offering a rich explosion of bold flavors. Enjoying it in Piazza Archimede, surrounded by the grandeur of historic palaces and the lively energy of locals and visitors alike, turns this tasting into more than a meal, it’s a true taste of Syracuse’s culinary and cultural heart.
To then go to taste some local products: along a tour of the ancient market in Syracuse including a tasting of paninetti with locally produced cheeses and cured meats.
We’ll also relish some local and refreshing desserts in the heart of Syracuse’s historic center. Sicilian granita is perfect for relaxing and cooling down on a hot summer afternoon. Served in a glass, this simple yet incredibly tasty mix of fresh fruit, sugar, and ice is ideal to end a rich meal on a high note. Alongside it, you’ll enjoy Sicilian cannoli, where the crisp wafer, traditionally molded around a hot metal bar, is filled with sweet, creamy ricotta and often garnished with candied fruit, crunchy pistachios, or dark chocolate chips. Surrounded by the vibrant streets and historic architecture, tasting these desserts becomes a colorful and indulgent experience that captures the essence of Sicilian life.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Please be aware that the guide may speak both in English and Italian during the tour
- Minimum drinking age is 18 years
- For safety reasons, guests with severe or life-threatening food allergies are unfortunately unable to participate in this experience.
Reviews(556)
Giuseppe is a phenomenal guide with interesting facts about Ortigia and its history. The food itself is incredible and the guide is very accommodating for all diets and ages. Very special experience.
Definitely the best tour in Ortigia! Guiseppe was an amazing guide, super knowledgable and really good fun. All of the stops were amazing with great food to try - a highlight of our trip! Highly recommend
I highly recommend this food tour with Giuseppe! Giuseppe lead us on an absolutely amazing tour starting with a huge platter of Sicilian meats, cheeses, and other goodies and ending with amazing desserts. Giuseppe’s passion, openness and friendliness was better than any other food tour guide I have experienced. Giuseppe has an amazing command of English and was eager to answer questions of any type. He did not worry about the time and made sure we were all enjoying ourselves. He often pivoted and took us on special stops to help us learn more about specific foods and Sicilian history and culture. There was so much incredible food with five major food stops and a handful of special stops. My family and I loved this tour and Giuseppe! Thank you Giuseppe for your warmth and passion.
Great tour, you must request Giuseppe, who’s in depth knowledge, passion for the subject matter, and ability to personalize the content to the interests of his guests, made this a highlight of our holiday.
Thank you for a brilliant tour of Ortigia! We had such a fantastic time with Maria who shared her fabulous local knowledge in such an interesting way and really brought this amazing island to life with her stories that have passed through the generations. The tour was paced perfectly for a family with teenagers and the food stops were outstanding! Maria is a superb guide - so generous with her time and information. Would highly recommend Maria’s tour as the best way to experience Ortigia! Xxx
We’d like to extend our heartfelt thanks to Maria, who took such great care of us. Being able to taste the wonderful flavors, along with their history and stories, right where they originated was an amazing experience for us. As we wandered from one delightful culinary stop to the next, taking in the beauty of the historic buildings and listening to their stories was truly priceless. We highly recommend this to everyone, and we’d like to thank Maria once again.
We had a wonderful time with Iryna in Ortigia. The street food vendors that Iryna showed us were of very high quality. We started in the markets with prosciutto, salami, mortadella and fresh mozzarella. Everyone was very friendly. Our next tasting was arancini from a family run store. These were the best I had ever tasted. Then onto limone granita, a glass of wine and canolo. Iryna was very knowledgeable about the history of Siracusa, Sicilian food and language. She also gave us some recommendations for dinner which were of high quality.
Guissepe was a very knowledgeable tour guide. We really enjoyed our tour with him.
Our tour guide Giuseppe was excellent. He had great rapport with all the vendors so the food we got was fresh, delicious and plentiful. This tour was definitely worth the cost. The historical part of the tour was also informative and interesting.
Our guide Guiseppe Giammanco was so antimated and expressive and very knowledgeable! Our tour was just the right length of time, flavors and a great experience. Our family enjoyed it immensely.
