Osteria Da Mariano

Syracuse


Any restaurant that is full on a Monday night in February is doing something right. Old-timer waiters weave their way through snug, art-slung dining rooms, dishing out earthy country food to legions of boisterous diners. Antipasti of bruschetta, ricotta, salami and grilled vegetables are followed by simple pastas like pennette with almonds and dolci (sweets) of sesame biscuits and candied ginger.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Syracuse attractions

1. Galleria Regionale di Palazzo Bellomo

0.04 MILES

Housed in a 13th-century Catalan-Gothic palace, this art museum's eclectic collection ranges from early Byzantine and Norman stonework to 19th-century…

2. Fontana Aretusa

0.06 MILES

Down the winding main street from the cathedral is this ancient spring, where fresh water still bubbles up just as it did in ancient times when it was the…

3. Chiesa di Santa Lucia alla Badia

0.11 MILES

The Chiesa di Santa Lucia alla Badia is dedicated to the city's patron saint, St Lucy, martyred in Syracuse during the reign of the Roman emperor…

4. Palazzo Arcivescovile

0.15 MILES

The elegant, 17th-century Palazzo Arcivescovile is home to the Biblioteca Alagoniana and some rare 13th-century manuscripts.

5. Duomo

0.15 MILES

Built on the skeleton of a 5th-century BC Greek temple to Athena (note the Doric columns still visible inside and out), Syracuse's 7th-century cathedral…

6. Piazza del Duomo

0.16 MILES

Syracuse's showpiece square is a masterpiece of baroque town planning. A long, rectangular piazza flanked by flamboyant palazzi, it sits on what was once…

7. Museo dei Pupi

0.18 MILES

The small Museo dei Pupi chronicles the history of Sicilian puppetry, with a particular focus on the role local puppeteers Alfredo and Saro Vaccaro played…

8. Artemision

0.19 MILES

Loitering beneath Palazzo Municipale are the scant remains of a 6th-century-BC Greek temple dedicated to the goddess Artemis, as well as the modest traces…