For over 20 years, Sultano has turned his Duomo restaurant in Ragusa Ibla into the lodestar of Sicilian haute cuisine and one of Italy’s most admired restaurants, with a first Michelin star earned in 2004 and a second one in 2006.
Study, passion, research, and cross-pollination are the keys to his gastronomic vision, which draws from Sicily’s centuries-old history and the historical and cultural influences that have shaped it. His cuisine re-fashions these influences with contemporary dynamism, highlighting and enhancing their essence without falling into the trap of decorativism.
Sultano began his experience in the world of cooking at the tender age of thirteen, when he accepted a part-time job in a pastry shop in Vittoria. Blessed with a natural curiosity and boundless enthusiasm, he immediately caught the owner’s eye, and his part-time job turned into a seven-year apprenticeship.
Once he began working for a local spaghetti restaurant, the eatery became a huge hit, as Ciccio’s cooking was greatly appreciated. Buoyed by his early success, he began to dream about opening a restaurant of his own in Sicily. Before he could do that, however, he realized he needed to make his bones abroad, first in Germany, and then in New York City, where he worked for the famous chef Lidia Bastianich. After returning to his native Ragusa, in 2000 he fulfilled his dream of opening his own restaurant, Duomo.
In 2004 he earned his first Michelin star, followed by a second one two years later. Inspired by the simple and traditional stands featuring local bread, cheese, salami, pastries and wine, in 2015 Ciccio Sultano opened I Banchi, a contemporary version of a traditional trattoria.
In 2018 Ciccio opened his first restaurant outside of his beloved Sicily, Pastamara in Vienna’s Ritz Carlton Hotel. In 2019 he opened Cantieri Sultano, a multi-purpose space next door to his Duomo restaurant: a workshop for experimentation and masterclasses and a lounge for cocktails and after-dinner drinks, creativity and conviviality have found a home at Cantieri.
In autumn 2021 Ciccio opened the Giano restaurant in Rome, inside the first W Hotel (part of Marriott International) in Italy, offering cuisine that combines traditional ingredients with contemporary influences.
