Zash

Should You Book Zash? The Verdict

If you are returning to Zash, the answer to whether it is worth a second visit is yes; and the reason is the tasting menu format, which gives Chef Giuseppe Raciti room to shift his Sicilian sourcing story across seasons. A single visit gives you the architecture; a return visit reveals how much the menu breathes. First-timers: book it without hesitation if you are within reach of Riposto and prepared for a dinner-only €€€€ commitment. It earns both.

The Setting and the Experience

The journey to your table at Zash starts before you sit down. You pass through an entrance gate and walk through an orchard of citrus trees before reaching a 19th-century palmento; a stone building historically used for wine fermentation, that has been carefully restored without losing its structural character. For a special occasion, this arrival sequence matters: the approach frames the meal before the first course arrives, the room itself carries the weight of the setting rather than relying on interior decoration to do the work.

That context is not incidental to the food. Raciti's cooking is rooted in Sicilian produce and technique, then reinterpreted in a modern register. The tasting menus are themed, which means the progression of courses follows a deliberate narrative arc rather than a sequence of individually impressive dishes. You can also order à la carte from the same menus, which is a practical advantage if you are dining with someone who resists the full tasting format. The Michelin guide singles out the charcoal-grilled tuna ventresca with smoked aubergines, grapefruit, red onion, teriyaki sauce as a standout, a dish where the smoke from the grill, the acidity of the grapefruit, the fat of the ventresca are doing different structural work in the same bowl. That is the register Raciti operates in: Sicilian ingredients, international technique, clean flavour logic.

The wine list is built around the same regional focus. Sicily has been producing serious wines from Nerello Mascalese, Carricante, Grillo for long enough that a wine list anchored here is not a provincial compromise, it is a considered curatorial position. For a celebration dinner where you want wine and food to reinforce each other rather than simply coexist, this matters.

When to Go

Zash is open for dinner only, Tuesday excluded, from 8 PM to 10 PM. The dinner-only format means this is not a lunch venue, the evening timing suits the palmento setting: the restored stone interior and the citrus orchard approach read differently after dark. For special occasions, a Friday or Saturday booking gives the meal the frame it deserves without the midweek compression. Sicily's eastern coast around Riposto and Catania runs warm through spring and autumn, which are the most practical travel windows, high summer brings heat and tourist volume to the region, while the restaurant's produce-driven menu typically benefits from shoulder-season ingredients.

Booking Zash

Booking is hard. Zash holds a Michelin star and has a small capacity in a restored historic building, which limits covers and increases lead time. Book as far in advance as your travel plans allow, for weekend dinners, especially in high season, weeks rather than days. There is no walk-in culture for a venue at this level and format. Plan the booking before you plan the rest of the trip.

Ratings at a Glance

• Michelin: 1 Star (2024)
• Price tier: €€€€
• Cuisine: Creative / Sicilian contemporary
• Format: Tasting menus (à la carte selection available from the menu)
• Closed: Tuesday

Practical Details

How It Compares

More to Explore in Archi and Beyond

• Our full Archi restaurants guide
• Our full Archi hotels guide
• Our full Archi bars guide
• Our full Archi wineries guide
• Our full Archi experiences guide
• Uliassi in Senigallia, another Italian coastal one-star worth the detour
• Enoteca Pinchiorri in Florence, for the deepest Italian wine list at this tier
• Piazza Duomo in Alba, if Piedmontese terroir is your next focus
• Le Calandre in Rubano, benchmark tasting menu format in northern Italy
• Enrico Bartolini in Milan, urban alternative if Sicily is not on the itinerary
• Casa Perbellini 12 Apostoli in Verona, strong tasting menu architecture in a comparable setting
• Quique Dacosta in Dénia, if Mediterranean creative cooking is the draw and Spain is an option
• Arpège in Paris, produce-driven tasting menu at a higher price point for comparison