Hospitality in Sicily Reaches New Heights as San Domenico Palace, Taormina, A Four Seasons Hotel Opens the New 2024 Season

Sicily, one of the most beloved Italian islands, has once again become the must-stop for travellers of the Italian Grand Tour. For this new season, Four Seasons hospitality surprises yet again with new experiences. The 2024 season opens with an invitation to discover the area from above with a new Helicopter Experience from San Domenico Palace, Taormina, A Four Seasons Hotel. Taking off from Taormina, guests can survey all its beauty from above and reach Her Majesty Mount Etna, landing at a local winery, for an aperitif among the vineyards and a dinner in the winery.

This year also marks the return to Taormina of the Four Seasons Private Jet Experience; the arrival in Sicily of the Ancient Explorer itinerary is scheduled for August 2024. This trip represents the most extraordinary experience, which takes Four Seasons Private Experience guests across the most beautiful destinations in the world, including this Italian island.

By sky or land, discovering Sicily also means exploring its flavours, those that Chef Massimo Mantarro carries in his heart and on the table at Principe Cerami Restaurant (awarded on Michelin star). One hundred percent Sicilian, the Chef respects the rhythms of nature and its produce, which he artfully interprets to bring an authentic local experience to the table. Chef Mantarro continues to cultivate his belief and gives life to new dishes and seasonal menus respecting Sicilian culture, the rhythm of nature and raw materials that define the strong identity of every dish.

In his spring menu, the use of vegetables reigns, without giving up the Sicilian character and some key ingredients including cheeses, cured meats, meat (mainly farmyard animals), fish, crustaceans and molluscs. The raw materials are primarily Sicilian and local suppliers are Massimo's best allies. In the new Principe Cerami menu, the Chef has created five dishes for each course and there are two tasting menus where guests can choose their courses, thus personalizing the gastronomic experience.

Emblematic of the Chef's cuisine is the dish “Like a Arcimboldo artwork,” where Mantarro uses seasonal vegetables and ancient local legumes, such as grass peas. The dish evolves with the seasons, welcoming what the land offers at different times of the year. New entries this year are: the “Marinated langoustine with Etna apple and crusted langoustine” to demonstrate the meticulous use of all the elements of the raw material itself; and the “Squid as if it were a risotto,” where the squid it is cut into small pieces similar to grains of rice. In the preparation of the dish, rice cream, basil pesto and the slightly spicy squid ink sauce are made separately, but the guests finish the preparation with the other ingredients, elaborated with a complex process.

The Chef dedicates great care to his dishes and their ingredients. He has equipped the kitchen with the means to optimize maximum efficiency, such as the Winnow machine that monitors food waste and measures how much food is needed in the preparations, thus predicting the quantities of raw materials that need to be purchased.

For this year, Chef Mantarro opens his kitchen and shares his team with one of the best-known names on the gastronomic scene, French Chef Jean-François Piège, for an unforgettable event for haute cuisine lovers. On May 9, 2024, Principe Cerami will become the stage for a collaborative dinner in which Sicilian cuisine meets with French cuisine.

Jean-François Piège is at the helm of nine restaurants with complementary gastronomic expressions, including the Grand Restaurant awarded two stars in the Michelin Guide since 2016, and has constantly built a unique culinary identity throughout his career. Author of more than 14 books and with a strong media image, Chef Jean-François Piège continues to shine in France and abroad.

The two Chefs bring a gastronomic partnership to Principe Cerami, in an international dinner, with an elegant Four Seasons setting, surrounded by the sea and the history of Taormina.

The vibrant Sicilian atmosphere is also transmitted through the mixology offer of the Bar & Chiostro - in the Great Cloister of the former monastery, the heart of San Domenico - where the Bar Manager Juri Romano "extracts" the flavours of the island and seduces guests with his cocktails. Here the aperitif at sunset is one of the most eagerly awaited moments of the day.

Guests are certain to enjoy the Hotel’s iconic infinity pool and its Anciovi Pool Bar, the perfect setting for living a glamorous lifestyle under the Sicilian sun enjoying cocktails and fresh fish dishes, served at any time, until sunset.

San Domenico Palace, Taormina, A Four Seasons Hotel, welcomes guests in its 111 rooms and suites, to guarantee each guest a unique stay, among private plunge pools overlooking the sea, terraces with views of the Ancient Theater, citrus and orange blossom gardens. With its history, which has seen among its guests illustrious Hollywood actors, writers, artists, royalty, San Domenico Palace, Taormina, A Four Seasons Hotel is an icon of hospitality and plays a key role in the promotion of Sicily, all over the world. General Manager Lorenzo Maraviglia, Chef Massimo Mantarro, Pastry Chef Vincenzo Abagnale, Bar Manager Juri Romano and the whole team is excited to open the doors to a new vibrant season of Four Seasons in Sicily.