Cefalù: Best Lasagna Ever and a Vanilla Slice Surprise on the Train

We were very happy with our accommodation in Messina, but after finishing the complimentary breakfast, we headed back down to the mall area so Leanne could squeeze in some shopping before our train to Cefalu. Unfortunately, we were a bit too early as the shops weren't open yet!

Beautiful Streets of Cefalù

Messina to Cefalu: She Never Drew Breath, Just a Flapping Mouth!

We caught the 10:45 AM train. Since we couldn’t book seats in advance, it was a first-come, first-served and luckily, because the train originated in Messina, there were plenty of seats available. We settled in, and then it happened!

Four loud American couples boarded and did not stop talking for the full two hours. Their mouths just flapped loudly and continuously; one of them didn’t seem to draw a single breath the entire journey. Between the two Australians opposite us, another American couple, and an Italian teenager, we all sat there waiting for them to stop. Give me a crying child any day—at least they eventually stop!

One good thing did come of the trip, though. We spent most of the way shouting over the Americans to the Australian lady from Sydney sitting across from us, who's returning from Malta with her daughter. She shared her grandmother’s Vanilla Slice recipe, I took a photo from my phone and I’ll definitely have to give it a go when I get back home.

Arriving at Cefalù, it was only a ten-minute walk to our accommodation, and yes, it was uphill again and there were definite grumblings behind me most of the way, but on arrival the room made up for the walk with a lovely view over Cefalù with sea views to match. Our accommodation is like a B&B, where they have a nice little dining area in the morning for breakfast. The room is lovely with an ensuite and a balcony too. The name of the place is called Ma&Mi.

It was hot, but thankfully the humidity had dropped. After a quick break in the air-conditioning to cool the bodies, we headed into the old town of Cefalù and made our way down to the beach. It was absolutely packed and being a Saturday certainly didn’t help. We managed to find a little café right by the water where we sat down for a bite to eat before heading off to explore more of this lovely area.

We checked out the Duomo di Cefalù, which is a beautiful, well-preserved cathedral sitting up on the hill built around 1131 and very Arab-Norman looking and lovely inside. Over time, it had mosaics added but I’m not too sure where though, as you had to take a tour for this. There is a lot of rich history here, so I’ll read up on it later.

Did we Just Have the Best Lasagna in Cefalù?

Tonight, we circled back to the restaurant area which was only down the hill from us and found a charming family-run spot called “Capriccio Siciliano.” a wine and Tavern bar as well. The owner swears she serves the best lasagna in all of Cefalù—a recipe handed down from her grandmother. How could we argue with that?

We pulled up a table and placed our order of... Lasagna, though it seems she gives that same pitch to everyone, as almost every table was tucking into a plate of it! When ours arrived, it was piping hot, fresh, and absolutely delicious. Leanne the Lasagna Queen rated it right up there with the one she had in Germany, which unfortunately knocks our mate Beverly’s lasagna down to equal third place (sorry, Bev!). This version was a little unique—it was topped with hand-crushed, toasted breadcrumbs. I'm not really a Lasagna eater, but I think I'm converted.

We were hoping to finish with her Tiramisu, but unfortunately, she had completely run out, so we had to settle for a fairly average gelato further down the road.

Best Lasagna ever at Capriccio Siciliano!

After an amazing meal we trudged back up the hill to our accommodation to call it a night. We're thinking about a lazy beach day tomorrow with a little sightseeing thrown in.