I grew up in Sicily, surrounded by people who make food the right way, my family, my neighbours, and the artisans who never forgot what their grandparents taught them. Food wasn’t a trend; it was a way of life built on care, patience, and respect for ingredients.
When I moved to London, I realised how far most supermarket food had drifted from that. Tomato sauces with added sugar, olive oil blended with cheaper vegetable oils, bread and pasta that leave you feeling heavy, it all looked Italian, but it wasn’t real.
That’s why, with The Sicilian, I want to bring a taste of genuine, honest Italian food to the UK. Over the past six years, I’ve learnt that not everything made in Italy is necessarily made the right way. The only way to know is to go there, to meet the people behind the food, to see how they work, and to understand their story.
Every year, I spend weeks in Sicily visiting our producers. Aldo walks me through his tomato fields, explaining why he harvests in several stages for perfect ripeness. Max shows me how filtering his extra virgin olive oil at just the right moment preserves its flavour and purity. Gaetano lets me touch the grains that become our pasta, explaining why he works only with Sicilian wheat grown without glyphosate. Giuseppe welcomes me into his fields of naturally grown legumes, where the yield depends entirely on the season and weather. He points out how many plants are empty, yet those that flourish have a pure, rich flavour, even when eaten raw, because no chemicals are ever sprayed.
You might notice our selection isn’t vast, that’s intentional. I prefer to offer products made by people I genuinely trust, those who embody quality, tradition, honesty, and integrity. I’m not interested in working with large industries or mass production; I value the skill and dedication of small, family-run businesses who keep real food alive.
My work continues, as I travel across Italy in search of producers who share our story and purpose.
If you care where your food comes from and who makes it, if you’d rather have one trusted choice than waste time second-guessing, then perhaps this is the place that will make you and your family happy.
Welcome to The Sicilian.
Carlo
