Osteria Alivàru da Carlo Napoli

I was for over 30 years in international chef and this is one of the finest small family run restaurants I have been to. The menu is not extensive but together with their daily specials offer plenty of choice. The restaurant was well appointed, clean and the staff were very welcoming and attentive. I have no hesitancy in recommending you this eatery.

Lovely restaurant, that is a must visit if you're in Palermo. The menu has lots of great options, including vegetarian. We tried several dishes, and each time a plate arrived, it was a good portion size, and everything was beautifully cooked. Reasonable prices but they do not refill the bread basket.

The food was exceptional!! Great value for money in this quaint Osteria tucked away in an unassuming street. The service was good(and fast). We were going to skip dessert, but the waitress brought out a display of their desserts and we had to try one! It was very good

Make sure you look at the menu before you arrive. They will want to take your order right away! You can not go wrong with anything on the menu. The veal ragu bianco was incredible.

My wife and I have just left Osteria Alivàru, after spending the day in Palermo, visiting from Cefalu. We were so excited about eating at the restaurant and the food didn’t disappoint. However we left Osteria Alivàru rather despondent. Having read the online instructions to call ahead to reserve a table on the day, we did so for 19:30, allowing enough time to get the Cefalu train back at 21:35. After calling, we received numerous ‘pocket calls’ back from the same number with no response on the end of the line when I answered. I returned the call and could only speak to someone in broken English (not a problem) which seemed to insist on having a table at 8pm. Given our return travel this wasn’t an option so preceded with the time we initially booked. We were the only guests when we arrived, but a few elderly waiters made our presences seem unwelcome. This included rushing our orders, removing plates whilst my partner was eating and then standing over our table whilst we finished our drinks. I would like to point out that other staff were friendly and accommodating, but one waiter seemed particularly frustrated with our presence. We ate outside, and as we left he was the only member of staff outside, and didn’t even give a faint hope of a goodbye or thank you. All in all very weird behaviour and the only experience of bad hospitality we had in our whole day in Palermo. Food was excellent though.

Carlo is an extraordinary chef serving sicilian cuisine as it should be, with a respect for his beloved Sicilian roots, and the traditional cooking of his dear mamma combined with modern flair and generosity like no other in Palermo. I recently brought my tour group from Australia here and many have said what a lasting impression Carlo's creations made featuring an abundance of antipasti, a traditional sicilian pasta and seafood plate all sourced locally from Carlo's visit to his favouite local Palermo food market, and, all embodying the bold flavours and rich history of sicilian cuisine. The restaurant sits humbly in the Kalsa district of Sicily's vibrant capital city. Make it your special place to dine in Sicily, you will not be disappointed.

The restaurant had incredibly good food at great prices. Unfortunately, the service did not live up to our expectations. Our table was squeezed between two other parties and a corner, which made it difficult for the staff to reach us once the other groups had seated themselves. We were forgotten and had to repeatedly try to signal and ask for the bill. When it never arrived, we went to the bar to pay, but were ignored there as well. Eventually, the receipt was practically thrown at us. As mentioned, the food was fantastic, but unfortunately, the service fell far below our expectations, and we will not be returning.

Absolutely fantastic food, ambiance and service. We arrived early and they sat us down with a drink while they were still setting up. They were so nice! The food was fabulous, good portions and nicely priced. Among the absolute best food we’ve had in Palermo. Can’t wait to visit again.