Shanghai ★

Permanently Closed

A no-nonsense marketplace osteria overlooking the Vucciria in Palermo, Sicily

A bit of a shabby Palermo institution, this terrace trattoria overlooking the Vucciria market serves mediocre but dirt-cheap food in a tumultuous setting—and gets a star just for being the no-fuss, classic, old-school market eatery that it is. You'll probably eat better elsewhere, but you'll remember better this place.

The name supposedly comes from the sea of stall awnings below, reminiscent of Shanghai, though it could just as easily be a reference to the former practice of Mafia bosses coming here to recruit hit men.

The entry is basically someone’s living room with platters of fish displayed on a table, beyond which locals at a long central table wolf down plates of spaghetti and drink wine straight from the bottle.

The terrace is reserved for the tourists, most of whom get intimidated into springing for the misto di golfo (mixed fish fry).

Although I've heard rumors they'll lower a basket to cook any fish you espy at the stalls below, in my experience they stick to offering what's on the menu: pasta con broccoli integrame (with broccoli and saffron), or steaks of tonno naturale (tuna) or pesce spada (swordfish) garnished with shrimp.

 

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