Casale Villa Rainò, Sicily
Casale Villa Rainò is the result of a labour of love by its owners Aldo and Nina Conte. The couple have restored this prestigious old farmhouse that was once home to the noble Li Destri family, and its walls hosted exotic guests including a Russian tsar and Italian dictator Benito Mussolini. Now it is open to more ordinary folk as an agriturismo hotel and restaurant.
Situated in the valley of Mount Marone, Casale Villa Rainò is surrounded by the wooded countryside and mountains of the Parco Naturale Regionale delle Madonie national park in the heart of Sicily, and is a few miles from the pretty medieval hilltop town of Gangi. Its rooms have been sympathetically renovated with period furniture and, amusingly, its owners have given each one a female name to reflect its character. Also, after a day of sightseeing or hiking in the region you can relax by the villa’s swimming pool set in the villa’s large gardens.
Best of all is the food. If you can’t stay at Casale Villa Rainò, you can at least try its restaurant. You can have a Sunday lunch of more courses than you can count for only €25. All the dishes are made from local produce, and the menu changes according to what is in season. So you may find yourself sampling ricotta cheese so fresh that it is still warm on the plate, or trying regional delicacies such as delicious Palermitano panelle fried chickpea fritters, and tender stigliole grilled kebabs made from lamb’s intestine and eaten with lemon and salt. For the less adventurous, there are usually three courses of grilled or roasted meats and sausages, the ubiquitous cannoli ricotta pastries, pear-shaped caciocavallo cheese and huge plates of fruit, all washed down with some local wine, and finished off in Italian style with a tiny shot of dark espresso.
Casale da Raino , Gangi, Italy
Contact tel: +39 0921 644680, e-mail:
Cost standard double room: £50 - £100 per night
Services swimming pool, parking, hotel restaurant
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Casale Villa Rainò
Added 2008/07/11 @ 21:22:25
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