There are stories that begin with a departure. And others that make a journey in reverse. This story starts with a necessary, almost inevitable return, which transformed an existential crisis into a gastronomic project capable of narrating Sicily with a new, profound, contemporary voice.
From Milan, where he practised law, to his homeland. From law to cooking. From the noise of the metropolis to the silence of the family countryside. 'Me Cumpari Turiddu' is not just a restaurant: it is an identity tale, it is the symbolic journey of those who, like Roberta Capizziowner of the restaurant Mè Cumpari Turiddu in Cataniahe decides to change his ways and returns 'home' with his grandmother's recipe book under his arm and an enriched view of the world.
In this narrative there is the most authentic island, that of the small producers, the Slow Food Presidiafragile and precious biodiversity. But there is also the idea that tradition is not a glass case: it is living matter, capable of dialogue with what has been seen, studied, tasted elsewhere.
Behind this dream is a project built on the trust of the Father Eduardo Capizzi, who believed in this adventure from the start, supporting it when it was just a fragile but powerful intuition. A project welcomed and shared by the Chef Gianluca Leocataby sommelier Giovanni La Rosa and by a team that gives life to the same vision every day. It is no coincidence that when Roberta tells her story and that of her restaurant, she always uses the word 'we', because for her, it is thanks to the choral work of the whole team in the dining room and kitchen that she is able to transform her vision into reality every day. To them goes her deepest gratitude, as well as to her mentor, her father Eduardo.
Today 'Me Cumpari Turiddu' interweaves roots and innovation. The menu becomes a tale: half of the dishes come from family tradition, the other half come from encounters with distant cultures and flavours, reinterpreted in a Sicilian key. It is not surprising, therefore, to find among the proposals reinterpretations of international dishes or dishes from other regions, such as a Sacher reinterpreted with homemade orange marmalade or a Ragusa donkey stew inspired by a recipe from the Veneto region, but told with the soul of Sicily.
So the restaurant becomes more than a place to eat: it is a sensory and cultural journey, where each dish brings with it memories, territories and distant histories, all filtered through the love and passion for their land.
We met Roberta Capizzi, the soul of 'Me Cumpari Turiddu', to let her tell us how a comeback that smells of citrus fruits, summer aubergines and memory came about.
"It was born out of a crisis, but a fertile one,' she starts to tell us. 'I was working as a lawyer in Milan and I realised that it was not my path. I felt a strong desire to return home'.
That return was not meant to be merely personal, but symbolic. The idea was to tell the story of a Sicilian emigrant who decides to return to his homeland to rediscover his roots. A story that belongs to many islanders, forced to leave with the hope of a better future. 'Turiddu' returns with a family recipe book and a new vision gained from travelling. And the kitchen becomes the meeting point between memory and contamination, between what has been and what can become.
Yours is a short supply chain project. What does that mean in concrete terms?
It means eliminating all intermediation. The selection of producers is direct, personal, the result of continuous travel throughout Sicily and visits to local markets. Today we collaborate with over seventy small artisans of taste. For us, the human face of food is fundamental. Knowing who produces it also means knowing the history, the techniques, the secrets of pairing.
For this reason, among our special ingredients, special attention goes to the Slow Food Presidia. These projects, promoted by Slow Food, protect products, cultivars or breeds at risk of extinction, which are the result of artisanal production and thus preserve the biodiversity of the territory. From Sicilian Black Bee honey to Nebrodi black pig, from Girgentana goat cheese to rare vegetable varieties, the choice is cultural before being gastronomic. Each ingredient tells an identity. Seasonality is the cornerstone of everything. The family has put the Moasi countryside, in the Acquaficara district near Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto, back into production. Today the vegetable garden directly supplies the restaurant, strictly following the natural cycle of the seasons.
'Seasonality is respect, it is wholesomeness, it is highest product quality,' Roberta explains. Even the famous pasta alla Norma, made iconic by its preparation for Stanley Tucci in the CNN documentary on Italian cuisine, 'Searching for Italy', is only offered when aubergines from the garden are available. Despite being in demand all year round. It is a consistent choice, even when it involves financial sacrifices.
What message do you want to convey through your cooking?
That cooking can be a circular economy, protection of the territory and pride of identity. Choosing indigenous raw materials means supporting small local companies and preserving biodiversity and knowledge. It is not just a question of taste. It is a cultural responsibility.
What is the restaurant's signature dish?
Actually, they are more than one... 'Spaghetti alla Turiddu' is the manifesto of the project, because it also tells our way of reviewing tradition. They are the result of a mix of two classic Sicilian recipes: pasta alla Catanese and pasta all'Eoliana. Pasta alla Catanese features Masculina da magghia, or anchovies from the Gulf of Catania. This too is a Slow Food Presidium, protecting a very ancient fishing technique recounted by Homer, using a very small net, no more than one centimetre high. And the pasta alla catanese pays homage to this tradition, hence, anchovies and mollica atturrata, to which we add the Aeolian ingredients: cherry tomatoes, capers from Salina and nocellara olives from Etna. The fusion of these two dishes also represents our way of recounting tradition with an aspect of innovation, but also of memory and respect for our roots.
Next to this dish, iconic is our sweet couscous inspired by the original recipe of the cloistered nuns of the convent of Santo Spirito in Agrigento: preparations that have consecrated us among the BIB GOURMANDs of the Michelin guide for thirteen years.
Pasta alla Norma, which represents the restaurant's most identifiable soul, certainly deserves a mention in its own right. It bewitched Stanley Tucci, who also included it in his personal ranking of the six best Italian dishes tasted in the CNN documentary. It is a great honour for us to represent Sicilian cuisine abroad, most recently in China. In fact, our Turiddu was recently the star of the Chinese programme 'WOW! THE WORLD', a travel reality show produced by Tencent. The programme chronicles the journey of eight Chinese celebrities as they discover the world through the landscapes and flavours of different culinary cultures. Our cuisine is an open window on the Sicilian culinary tradition.
Does the atmosphere also tell a story?
Absolutely. The restaurant is designed to evoke a homecoming, but with an open eye to the world. At the entrance, there is an air of a contemporary bistro with a cocktail bar and putìa, where you can buy the same products you taste on your plate. Further on, the room recalls the Sunday lunches of Sicilian grandmothers, with handmade doilies that become mise en place and embroidered drapes of our vaults. The experience must be total. The beautiful amplifies the good.
What are the future dreams?
Expanding the production of the vegetable garden, arriving at the production of a completely our own oil, which would flank the already existing production of citrus marmalades and onion and tomato jams. Strengthen the cocktail bar to also tell Turiddu's American soul. Always maintaining the balance between roots and innovation, memory and future.
"Me Cumpari Turiddu' is much more than a restaurant. It is proof that you can leave, grow up elsewhere and come back different. And that, sometimes, the most authentic future comes precisely from a conscious return, from the courage to listen to the call of one's roots.
At the bottom, 'Me Cumpari Turiddu' tells us that every return can become a beginning. That memory, the flavours of the land and the dedication of the right people - from the team to the father who believed in a fragile but powerful dream - can turn a personal choice into a collective heritage. Here, among the garden seasons, Slow Food presidia and dishes that speak of roots and journeys, Sicily is not just a place: it is a time to savour, a future to cherish, a history that continues to be written at the table.
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