The good spot : Ristorante da Nicolò e Figli, Mondello, Sicily, Italy

Traveling off-season is great but can prove tricky when it comes to finding a restaurant that is open and serving fresh food.
So let’s just say that when we went to Mondello, the seaside resort next to Palermo, at the end of November we weren’t expecting much in terms of food. The town was quite desert and so was the restaurant in which we landed at lunch. Yet, not only were the owners charming (with the son serving and the grandfather playing in the sun with his grandson) but the linguine alle vongole we ordered were simply the most delicious I have tasted. They actually created an issue for us since it was only the beginning of our trip and we feared we wouldn’t taste such a good version of the dish anywhere else. And, indeed, the frozen vongole we had to endure a few days later proved us right.