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Restaurants vary from the inexpensive tavola calda (literally “hot table”) to casual pizzerie, osterie and trattorie , to the more elegant ristorante . An enjoyable meal is an important part of Italian life, so feel free to linger in any establishment as long as you like.

Hotels serve good strong coffee and bread, if not a full buffet. Out and about, bars serve strong espresso or cappuccino early in the day, usually accompanied by a cornetto (croissant) or arancini (see Arancini). The typical Sicilian breakfast is gelato in a brioche – a sweet but heavenly way to start the day.

Antipasto literally means “before the meal”. It can be anything from salami and cheese, to marinated anchovies, or any creative little bite the chef has prepared.

This is the first course, and is usually a soup, pasta or rice cooked with vegetables, and some fish or meat. You can ask for a mezza porzione if you don’t want a full plate of pasta. If you order cous cous with fish (a Sicilian speciality) it’s often served as a piatto unico (single course) since it includes the pasta and fish on the same plate. Primi are eaten alone, with no vegetables, salad or bread.

Second courses are based on meat or fish. A selection of grilled meats and involtini (slices of meat rolled around a stuffing) are usually on offer. Excellent fresh fish is available in almost every eatery on the island. The secondo is usually served alone on the plate, however, unlike the primo , it is perfectly acceptable to eat the course accompanied by bread and vegetables.

Contorni are vegetable side dishes that accompany the secondo . They usually consist of salads, tomato salad, grilled vegetables or roasted potatoes, French fries or greens.

After the main meal, you might be offered a cheese course. Ask for the speciality of the area. Fruit is almost always available. Dolci (desserts) in Sicily (see Cassata and Cannoli) are excellent and often made in-house. Finally, coffee is served at the end of every meal. If it’s late and you’d prefer to avoid the caffeine, ask for your coffee to be decaffinato (decaffenated).

Bills for meals include il coperto (a small cover charge) and sometimes a servizio (service charge) of around 10 per cent which will be marked on the bill. If service charges are not included, you aren’t usually expected to leave a tip, although it’s always a nice gesture. An Italian will usually leave a few euros in a trattoria if the service and food were good, or if it’s a place they frequent regularly. They leave a little more in a restaurant.

You’ll be offered the house wine in a half or full litre carafe. If you are at all interested in wines, take a look at the wine list as there are usually at least a few good bottles at decent prices. Try a malvasia, moscato passito , or Marsala with cheese or dessert, or as an after-dinner drink.

All Sicilian bars serve coffee, pastries and sandwiches, specialities such as arancini , as well as beer, wine, spumante (sparkling wine) and a range of other alcoholic beverages. They are open from early in the morning until late at night. As a rule of thumb, it is always more expensive to eat or drink seated at a table than it is to stand at the bar.