Nutrixe
Sicily is one of the safest regions in our database for coeliacs: 34 verified places, 33 of them entirely gluten free. Palermo and Catania account for ten and have their own guides; the other 24 are spread across 19 towns, from Trapani to Syracuse. This regional guide gives you the big picture, an itinerary, and what you need to know about arancini, cannoli and granita.
Where the options are
What stands out is the format: most of these 34 places are bakeries, patisseries, grocers and fried-food counters rather than sit-down restaurants. Gluten-free Sicily is largely eaten on the go — arancini, rosticceria, cannoli — which is good news: these are exactly the specialities coeliacs have to turn down everywhere else.
Palermo and the north-west coast
Palermo has its own Palermo guide: six places, all dedicated, including an AIC-certified gelateria and a grocer inside a historic pharmacy. The full list is on our page of gluten-free restaurants in Palermo.
Just to the east, Bagheria adds two. Le Bonta’ Senza Glutine (4.7★, 375 reviews) is an entirely gluten-free panificio, open for over eight years: bread, cassata, arancine and cannoli. Celiachia Point (4.6★) is a dedicated grocer that accepts the Italian state vouchers reserved for coeliacs.
Further along the coast, The World Without Gluten (4.8★), in Cefalù, is a specialist grocer for stocking up during your stay: bread, pasta, biscuits, frozen food from well-known brands.
To the west, three dedicated places line the road to Trapani. Mille Voglie Senza Glutine (4.8★, 364 reviews), in Alcamo, makes Sicilian breads, cannoli and cupcakes. Sglutinando Trapani Gluten Free (4.8★), in central Trapani, is known for its arancine and cannoli; go early, production sells out fast. Betlemme Gluten Free (4.6★), in Castellammare del Golfo, offers arancini, sfincione, pizzas and pastries at no extra charge. We list it as dedicated, but our entry keeps a caveat: no source spells out that there is no wheat at all in the kitchen.
Catania, Etna and the east coast
Catania has its own Catania guide: four dedicated places, including a bistro to sit down in under the arcades of Piazza Carlo Alberto.
At the foot of Etna, two gluten-free workshops complete the picture. L’Angolo Del Gluten Free (4.8★), on corso Savoia in Acireale, makes only gluten-free sweets and rosticceria, arancini and focaccia included. Zero Glutine Bakeri (4.6★), in Giarre, is an entirely dedicated bakery: best to order ahead.
Towards the Strait, Le Altre Farine Del Mulino (4.1★), in Messina, is an entirely gluten-free bakery and rosticceria that some customers find a little pricey. On the Tyrrhenian coast, ÈsSENZA (4.9★), in Milazzo, is a gluten- and lactose-free shop (bread, babà, cannoli), and L’Angolo Dietetico Celiaco (4.6★), in Capo d’Orlando, is a long-standing dedicated place affiliated with the AIC, doubling as bakery, gelateria and snack bar — pizza must be ordered in advance.
Milazzo is also home to the island’s only non-dedicated place: Il Mondo Senza Glutine. Despite its name, we could not confirm what it really offers, so it is listed as a gluten-free menu as a precaution, with a cross-contamination risk.
The baroque south-east: Syracuse, Noto, Avola, Modica
This is the most surprising part: you will find fried-food counters that are entirely gluten free, which is rare.
- Syracuse: ArancinaGlutenFree (3.6★, nearly 870 reviews), on via Trento in Ortigia, serves arancini, panelle and even spaghetti with no trace of wheat on site; the average rating is modest, but the kitchen is dedicated. The Gluten Free corner of Farmacia Paravizzini (4.9★) sells packaged products, with advice.
- Noto: Putia del Coppo (4.6★, over 600 reviews), on corso Vittorio Emanuele, fries squid, prawns and vegetables in a rice-flour batter, with a 100% dedicated fryer.
- Marzamemi: Fritti in un Coppo (4.0★, over 700 reviews) serves paper cones of fried food, all made gluten free in its own workshop.
- Avola: La Dolcezza di Essere (4.9★), AIC-certified, makes bread, pastries, granita, gelato and daily lunch dishes, all gluten free; Celiachia Shop e Altro (4.6★) is a dedicated grocer.
- Modica: Bye Spike (4.7★), a family workshop founded after the owners’ son was diagnosed, and Giannone Bakery (4.8★), founded by a third-generation pastry chef, are both 100% gluten free.
The interior and the south coast
Fewer visitors, but one dedicated place at each stop. Food Senza Glutine (4.9★), in Caltagirone, kneads and bakes bread, pizza and fresh pasta on site, gluten and lactose free. Panificio Senza Glutine (4.7★), in Gela, makes bread, arancini and rosticceria with certified flours. Angel Gluten Free, in Enna, has only one review so far but states “100% Gluten Free” on its website. And for the Valley of the Temples, Gluten Bon (4.7★) is actually in Favara, next to Agrigento.
Arancini, cannoli, granita: what changes for coeliacs
Often gluten free
To confirm
- Granita: water, sugar, fruit or almonds in the classic recipe.
- Panelle, fritters of chickpea flour, water and parsley… if the fryer is dedicated.
Contains gluten
Unless made dedicated
- Arancini, dipped in flour batter and breadcrumbs, then fried.
- Cannoli shells, a fried wheat-flour pastry.
- The brioche served with granita.
- Sfincione (a leavened bread dough), cassata (sponge cake) and rosticceria in general.
The rule that decides everything is the frying oil. In its eating-out programme, the AIC forbids member venues from using oil that has already been used to fry food containing gluten. A chickpea panella fried in the same oil as classic arancini is therefore not safe. Hence the value of the counters in Noto, Marzamemi and Syracuse: their fryers never see wheat.
Watch out for identical names. Two shop names appear in two places on the island: “Le Bonta’ Senza Glutine” in Bagheria and in Catania, “Food Senza Glutine” in Palermo and in Caltagirone. Our entries do not say they are linked. Each was verified separately: trust the address, not the name.
For Italian pasta, pizza and desserts in detail, see our upcoming article on Italian dishes and gluten; for gelato and cones, gluten-free gelato.
Hotels and holiday villages
Let us be clear: no Sicilian hotel or holiday village is in our database, so we recommend none. The benchmark in Italy is the Associazione Italiana Celiachia: its Alimentazione Fuori Casa (AFC) programme lists venues trained in gluten-free catering, including hotels, B&Bs, agriturismi and villas. The list can be searched on the AIC website and in its AIC Mobile app, which comes in a free version and a full version for members. The AIC has a regional branch in Sicily.
For the method — what to ask before booking, how to test breakfast — read our upcoming gluten-free hotel guide.
A one-week itinerary
An example loop built around the dedicated places, to adapt to your pace:
- Palermo and Bagheria — fresh arancini, shopping at a dedicated grocer.
- Cefalù, then the west: Castellammare del Golfo, Alcamo, Trapani.
- Agrigento (Favara), then inland via Caltagirone or Enna.
- Modica, Noto, Marzamemi, Avola — gluten-free fried food and granita.
- Syracuse and Ortigia.
- Catania, Acireale, Giarre at the foot of Etna, and back via Messina or Milazzo for the Aeolian Islands.
Travelling on through the country? Our guide to gluten-free travel in Italy explains why Italy is in a league of its own.
In short
- 34 verified places in Sicily, 33 entirely gluten free; only Il Mondo Senza Glutine, in Milazzo, remains unconfirmed.
- Palermo (6) and Catania (4) have their own guides; the rest cover 19 towns.
- The south-east has 100% gluten-free fried-food counters: Putia del Coppo in Noto, Fritti in un Coppo in Marzamemi, ArancinaGlutenFree in Syracuse.
- Arancini, cannoli, brioche and sfincione contain gluten unless made dedicated; classic granita does not, but ask.
- Two pairs of identical names: trust the address, not the name.
- No hotel verified by Nutrixe: go through the AIC’s AFC programme.
Figures as of 25 September 2026. The database grows every week: today's count is on the map of restaurants in Italy. A Sicilian place missing? Suggest it.
