The Battle of ‘Palazzolese’ pizzas
After eating many pizzas during our month-long stay in a small Sicilian town, Palazzolo Acreide, Sicily, I decided to do a comparison of one of their most famous pizzas called ‘Palazzolese’. It’s typically made with tomato sauce, cheese, Palazzolo sausage, mushrooms and olives.
The key ingredient is the Palazzolo sausage that’s found all throughout town. This traditional sausage is part of the Slow Food Presidia, and it has been around since the Romans. It consists of 9 cuts of a Sicilian black pig, spices, and red wine from the Noto Valley.
I tried the ‘Palazzolese’ pizza in 3 different restaurants, 3 different ways.
But, what makes a pizza go from ‘great’ to ‘out of this world’? Is it the sauce, the cheese, or perhaps the dough? In this case, maybe it’s the mouth-watering sausage!
The three restaurants I’ll be comparing are:
1. MOB Master of Beverage and Food
2. Settecento Ristorante
3. Taverna di Bacco
All three offer their own version of the ‘Palazzolese’ pizza with one as a personal standout. I’ll go into detail about each restaurant and what they offer.
1. MOB Master of Beverage and Food
In the summertime, MOB‘s focus is mainly as an open-air style restaurant with tables scattered over the cobbled streets.
It’s a bustling place in the evening with an ideal location for people watching, and an after-dinner stroll (to burn off all that pizza!) through Palazzolo Acreide’s community park.
MOB’s menu consists of build-your-own burgers and paninis with an extensive list of pizzas suitable for all tastes. Their ‘Palazzolese’ pizza is a standard offering with plenty of flavour.
2. Settecento Ristorante
Located within the historical part of town, Settecento has a large indoor space with traditional Italian decor, and a quaint outdoor space. The air conditioning certainly helped during the heatwave!
We went there twice during our stay, and always had excellent customer service. The wait staff knows some English to help with translations, and the menu was very well priced.
As for Settecento’s pizza, their version of the ‘Palazzolese’ was loaded with chunks of sausage with a crunchy crust.
3. Taverna di Bacco
There’s an extensive indoor space suitable for large events, and colder evenings. And, the whimsical outdoor space is decorated with colourful umbrellas hung from above and greenery placed throughout to create a relaxing atmosphere.
Tucked away in the historical part of town, it’s no wonder this hidden gem is a popular spot among locals and visitors alike.
Between the excellent service, the attention to details (even their menu looks nice!), and their ‘out of this world’ pizza, I’ve ranked Taverna di Bacco’s ‘Palazzolese’ pizza as my favourite among the three.
What makes Taverna di Bacco‘s pizza extra special? It’s all in the dough!!
They let their sourdough rest for 48-72 hours, which produces a very light and fluffy crust. Some added benefits of using sourdough is that it’s an ancient form of leavened bread, which makes use of a ‘starter’ (a mix of fermented flour and water) instead of commercial yeast. The result is a dough that’s naturally gut-healthy and rich in nutrients.
Taverna di Bacco also adds ricotta cheese and bacon to their ‘Palazzolese’ pizza, which tips the scales for yummy goodness. I especially loved spreading the ricotta cheese on the crust. Delicious!
Paul introduced me to North America’s first ‘Cittaslow’ town in Cowichan Bay, a project that began in 1999 in Italy.
Ever since, I’ve been intrigued to discover more communities and countries around the world that place more importance on sustainability, preserving tradition and living a more slow paced lifestyle.
While all three restaurants have quality pizzas with the traditional Palazzolo sausage, Taverna di Bacco’s use of sourdough and additional toppings made their version of the ‘Palazzolese’ stand out among the others.
My hunt for the ‘best pizza in the world‘ is never-ending, but accordingly to the experts, the ‘best’ is in Naples, Italy. So, I’m booking my ticket as we speak. Just kidding (kind of).
