Accursio Ristorante

Accursio Ristorante

This Michelin-starred restaurant situated in the beautiful Sicilian city of Modica brings together the different cuisines of the island under one roof.
41 Via Grimaldi
Modica
Ragusa
Italy
97015
Contact Details
  • +39 0932 941689
  • Visit website
  • Accursio Ristorante
    41 Via Grimaldi, Modica, Italy, Ragusa, 97015
    Telephone
    +39 0932 941689
    Restaurant reservations
    Open Table Logo

    Modica was awarded UNESCO World Heritage Status in 2002, and anyone taking a quick walk around the city will see why. Its beautiful baroque architecture and grand San Georgio Cathedral have been the subject of many a beautiful photo over the years. But amongst the history, culture and art of the city, there’s also some fantastic food to be found – especially at restaurants like Accursio Ristorante, which has held a Michelin star since 2016.

    Set in the very heart of Modica, the restaurant is a stylish ode to Sicilian cuisine, combining the flavours found on the east and west of the island. The understated dining room seats thirty, making it small and intimate, but the trendy interior design makes it a place to be remembered. Retro style runs through throughout, with floral tiles, exposed wood and simple white linens on display. Different coloured chairs represent the colours of Sicily; blue for the sea, green for the land and red for the poppies that grow all over the countryside.

    Diners can choose to create their own four-course menu from the à la carte, or go all-out with one of chef Accursio’s tasting menus. ‘Between the Hills’ focuses on the inland cuisine of Sicily, with earthier, meatier dishes. ‘Along the Coast’ is the chef’s ode to his childhood in Sciacca, a western Sicilian port town. It celebrates the local fish caught off the coast of the island, with plenty of light, fresh flavours.

    The wine list, as you’d imagine, focuses on the incredible wines of Sicily, but there are other bottles available from across the country and further afield. Accursio Ristorante is a perfect example of how traditional Sicilian cuisine is being thrust into the twenty-first century – no trip to Modica would be complete without a meal there.

    Three things you should know
    1
    Accursio Ristorante is closed for the holidays from 13 to 30 November.
    2
    Just round the corner from the restaurant is Accursio's street food café, Accursio Radici. Here you can pick up quick bites like arancini to eat whilst walking the streets of Modica. There is also Accursio La Terraza, a cocktail bar in the centre of the city.
    3
    St Peter's Cathedral is close to Accursio Ristorante, making the restaurant the perfect place to eat lunch whilst sightseeing.
    Accursio Ristorante
    41 Via Grimaldi, Modica, Italy, Ragusa, 97015
    Telephone
    +39 0932 941689
    Restaurant reservations
    Open Table Logo
    The Chef

    Accursio Craparo

    As one of Sicily’s most prominent chefs, Accursio Craparo puts the flavours of the east and west of the island centre stage at his eponymous Michelin-starred restaurant in Modica. A good number of Italian chefs seek new pastures and travel the world to develop their skills – but the vast majority of them always return to Italy in the end. That’s certainly the case with Accursio Craparo, who after an initial plan to see the sights of Europe was convinced to return home and realise his potential as one of Sicily’s most celebrated chefs. Born in Sciacca, an historic fishing port on the southwest coast of Sicily, Accursio’s earliest memories are of watching his grandmother in the kitchen while his father and grandfather worked on the family farm. ‘When I think about my earliest memories of food, it’s always the aromas of lemons and saffron that I can’t get out of my head,’ he says. Remaining on the island to attend the local catering college, his main aim – as with many young chefs – was to see the world, so he set out for Frankfurt, cooking at the Michelin-starred Osteria Enoteca for a year. He was set on staying out there, but during a short break back home he ran into his friend and mentor Corrado Assenza. ‘He took me for a walk in the countryside and taught me how to pick the right herbs and notice all the different wild flavours,’ says Accursio. It was during this walk that Corrado told him he must never lose sight of where he came from, and that he should return to Sicily one day and open his own restaurant.