Fattoria Delle Torri — Restaurant in Modica

Far from a Michelin experience. What a disappointment and rip off. There were some good parts, but the overall experience was very poor. I've been to a good number of Michelin stars, in Italy and out with and this just wasn't even close.

Food: 3 of the 4 of us took the TerraAMare chef's menu which was a combination of meat and fish. The raw fish was delicious and combined with the prosecco was a good starter, however we then moved on to a gazpacho (read: not a gazpacho) with mackerel on top. The mackerel was completely tasteless. It added a poor texture to the otherwise reasonable tomato soup. After the not-gazpacho we had the pasta. This was embarrassing - it was cold on arrival and the sauce was IDENTICAL to the gazpacho sauce. Talk about a well thought out menu. The most disappointing part of this was that the waitress recommended my mother have the same pasta - felt like they were just making lives easy for themselves. Following this we had what the chef called duck with foie gras - not foie gras, and this wasn't even a bad translation, we were reading the Italian menu. It was ducks liver. It was also overcooked ducks liver. Basically crumbled in your mouth. I'm not sure how you can confuse foie gras with ducks liver in a Michelin restaurant but they did. The white wine that accompanied it was really quite excellent so nothing to complain about there. Finishing off was pork with broccoli (how imaginative). The pork cut was average, a bit too fatty and the broccoli tasted of nothing. The wine to accompany it (the only red of the night) was horrible. Lacked body, any sort of flavour or character. To finish off we had an apperitif and dessert with sweet wine. This was all fine but nothing special.

Service: This was really really poor. It felt as if they didn't want us there. Maybe it was because we were underdressed, but in 35c heat I'm not putting on some jeans and shoes thank you very much. They rushed us through the meals, and the waiter didn't even bother to ask if my mum had finished her prosecco or several of their dishes. We had to ask the waiter to come back with the alcohol. It was pathetic. Even the main waitress did the same thing. Felt like they didn't want us there. We had to tell them multiple times the alcohol pairing wasn't for my little brother but for my mum yet they continued serving him with the glasses.

Maybe we were unlucky, but I wouldn't recommend this place to anyone. It was overpriced, pretentious and the food...

I gave it a 4, although I wanted to give a 3. The atmosphere is pleasant, but our expectations were much higher.

So, let’s begin. We decided not to order the set menu, as my husband wanted to try other dishes. According to the restaurant’s rules, you are required to order it “once” for both.

We started with melon and hot peppers, as well as a seafood appetizer. The second one was interesting, with a true taste of the sea, but the first one was disappointing, even though the waiter said the sauce is prepared over two days. In terms of taste, it didn’t impress me: melon and peppers with cashews were interesting, but not a gastronomic orgasm. I also didn’t understand why the skin wasn’t removed from the peppers, even though it came off easily—perhaps it was intentional.

The FRESH PASTA / GOAT CHEESE / APRICOT / SHEEP dish came with cherries. It was a tasty tribute to cherries and sheep meat. My husband had pasta with shrimp. They told us that they didn’t have the “correct” pasta, so it was replaced with another type. It was a bit tricky to eat, and I think this may have affected the taste. The portion size was also larger than expected. I can’t really single out the pasta—it was good, but we didn’t go on a flavor journey.

For dessert, we chose “MITILUGHIA,” which consists of crispy layers and cherry ice cream. Again, no orgasm, so we decided to try the EGGPLANT / RICOTTA CHEESE / CHOCOLATE. We asked if the cake base was fresh, and they told us it was from the day before. What can I say? The flavor was interesting, but the base was very dry. I liked the sweet-salty combination, and the cream layers were intriguing. Considering it cost €10, I expected a fresher or more impressive execution. Overall, the dessert deserves a 3.

The wine we wanted wasn’t available, so we had to choose from what was left.

And the chipped plate didn’t please me either. Although the waiter explained that it was a family heirloom service, I would prefer if such chips were either covered or those plates removed from use.

Additionally, I didn’t like that the ashtray at the table was full, even though there was only one table allowed for smoking.

Overall, I wouldn’t recommend this restaurant...

The place is quite well hidden, but once you get up to the roof, you appear in a nice cozy garden. It indeed looks very exquisite and at the time of our dinner it was nearly empty, so we got quite some privacy. The staff is very attentive, speak english fairly well (given the location, where nobody speaks fluently). Paolo was willing to chat with us, give a nice tour through our multiple-course dinner and offer some tasty recommendations from their menu, even suggesting some modifications when he saw us struggling with the selection. Needless to say the food was on another level. Do not expect to get food in quantities, but of quality instead. Me, being somewhat picky in what I eat, had no issue with anything that was brought to the table. Some of the names may sound a little odd or scary, but I can't say there was a single thing on those plates I disliked, just yummy. The price for the whole dinner was through the roof, as was expected. We paid almost €200 for 4 adults (not counting toddlers). At last but not least, this is the kind of place to propose to your significant other, which I can confirm as we were able to witness such event towards the end of our evening. The whole staff came as well to applaud and cheer the happy couple after the moving moment. I did very much enjoy the evening and I must admit the luxurious experience provided by the specific atmosphere in Fattoria delle Torri did play a significant role. The price is a not-so-negligible drawback, but you may also consider it a fee for the exclusivity of the experience. For that reason I'd be willing to...