Caffè d'Ortigia — Restaurant in Syracuse

Closed Monday

Tuesday 20 May 2025 to Tuesday 27 May 2025 Maria, Mario and Salvina all remembered us from last year. We met Salvo (who is a big fan of DC and Marvel) and Lina. A big glass of lovely white wine costs €6, a medium beer costs €6, a granita costs €4 and a limoncello spritz costs €8. Salvo and I talked about superheroes as I wear superhero shirts almost every day and one day I told him a long joke (in Italian) about me being The Thin Man because I was wearing a vertically striped long-sleeved shirt. (Una camicia a righe verticali) Don't ask, but he laughed before the punchline so it obviously translated.

Tuesday 24 September 2024 to Tuesday 1 October 2024 The same great location and staff! A small bottle of water costs €1.20, a double espresso costs €3, a large glass of white wine costs €5 or €6 and a lemon spritz costs €8 or €9.

Tuesday 14 May 2024 to Tuesday 21 May 2024. Hurrah! Salvina is still working here and remembered both of our names and our usual order! Lemon Spritz costs €9 but a large glass of excellent white wine is still only €6. Great location and attentive service. On Sunday afternoon I spoke to Paolo in my limited Italian and shook his hand as we have been his clients for several years. On Sunday evening it thundered and rained for a second time and surprised everyone as it was out of an almost clear blue sky. I said goodbye to the kind and friendly woman behind the counter in my limited Italian and then refused to shake the hand of Salvina. Instead, I insisted on a proper Italian hug with a kiss on the cheek. Salvina is smart and funny. I will miss her and all the staff here. We hope they are all OK until September.

Tuesday 26 September 2023 to Tuesday 3 October 2023 Our regular pre-dinner drinks location. A large glass of nice white wine is still €6. Our friend with the beagle who sits in his lap is still here. And the waitress (Salvina) remembered us from Tuesday night (heavy rain in the evening) on Wednesday night (sunny after a morning downpour)! It was hot and sunny all day Thursday so we ordered lemon granitas at €4 each. What a great way to cool down! And in the evening my wife discovered lemon spritz. Twice before dinner! We also talked briefly to the gentleman we see every year who keeps his lovely beagle dog (Nico) in his lap. Lunch on Friday 29 September 2023 All the tables were occupied, including half of them by men and women in Regency attire, despite the heat! We had to tell an elderly couple (more than once) that we were already waiting for the table they were pointing at and edging towards. A huge bottle of water, a nice bottle of Grillo Bianco at €23, two big salads (Insalata Mediterranea with anchovies, capers, cherry tomatoes, lettuce, orange pieces, pistachios, primosale and sweetcorn) at €15 each, two coffees and two free desserts cost €60. (Primosale is a lovely salty cheese.) In the evening we met a lovely couple from Hertfordshire called Rob and Jo. There seemed to be a discrepancy between how many spritz they said they had already ordered (three) and how many spritz Salvina said they had already ordered (six). I am afraid that we believed Salvina! Nevertheless, they are lovely and we have arranged to meet them again on Saturday night. I had a great chat with Salvina when I paid. It was one of those chats when you know you have made a connection with a real person. Apparently I speak Italian with a northern English accent! I have been told this twice today! Even Nico's owner (who is actually from Warrington) asked if I was from Lancashire! On Sunday we said goodbye to Paolo. We will say goodbye to Salvina and Marie tonight. Rob and Jo arrived before us tonight but we managed to get a table after a bit of a wait, followed by a minor standoff. Salvina proceeded to tease Jo about Friday night but we all had a wonderful time, helped by white wine and lemon spritz. We said goodbye to Rob and Jo with proper hugs. I thanked all the staff, including Marie, and gave Salvina a hug and then called her my Italian girlfriend in...

Great location! Friendly service. But we both got food poisoning from our meals. We ordered a mix of grilled seafood and ravioli. I’m allergic to gluten and dairy so they made it a grilled plate, which was really nice. I noticed the calamari was a bit tough and rubbery but still edible. The fish and shrimp were nice. My husband had ravioli with pistachio sauce. I didn’t try it obviously but he tried my seafood plate and we were both sick hours later. Hope you have better luck.

I can’t reply to the owner on Google so I hope you see this update. My husband is not gluten free and he was sick with food poisoning. He never gets sick with food. He shared my meal but I didn’t have any of his (perche ravioli has gluten, naturally). We both did not eat breakfast ( just espresso in the morning), this was our first meal of the day. We’re certain it was this place, we came by today just to make sure. I heard that your restaurant was good so we came. We just wish we didn’t get...

Really good place. Chose it straight off the street. Best Aperol Spritz I’ve ever had I reckon. Just brilliantly made. We had a couple of Arancini balls. They’re huge here and absolutely delicious. Our paninis were good - the fillings were brilliant - but the bread was a little chewy. The food inside the place looked amazing too. Service was fine and you can’t beat that as a spot to sit. Right across from ancient ruins. Cost was very reasonable we thought. We’d happily come here...