Cortile Pepe

Cortile Pepe is an exclusive restaurant in the historic centre of Cefalù that was born out of a passion for catering that spans forty years for Toti Fiduccia and his wife, Lidia, his companion in both his life and in his work. Attention to and respect for raw materials of the highest quality and the enrichment of the products and flavours of the region have turned Cortile Pepe into an eatery of excellent quality but somewhere that is still affordable for everyone, whose main objective is to combine the strong bond of tradition with having the imagination to experiment.

 

Toti, how did your passion for catering start?

I grew up in a family of restaurateurs so I was really born into this world which, as a child, can sometimes be somewhat uncomfortable. Catering for children tends to suffer because the parents are constantly busy and are rarely at home. But, as time went by, I realised that in one way or another, cooking was in my blood and so I decided to continue the family tradition by opening up a restaurant of my own.
My ideas took shape from going to restaurants myself as a customer: I wanted to put myself in the customers’ shoes in order to find out what they need, what they ask for most often and how to keep them happy.

What sort of restaurant is Cortile Pepe and what are its objectives?

Cortile Pepe wants to be a restaurant that is open to everyone, that interacts with a responsive clientele, that has a certain culture when it comes to food and that has above all, the will to learn and to be updated on a regular basis with regard to food and catering. We endeavour to acknowledge every need in order to satisfy all our customers, even the most difficult ones!

 

What would you recommend as one of your favourite dishes?

It would be really difficult to name just one of the dishes at Cortile Pepe as a must but, without doubt, my favourite dish is made of two simple ingredients that together form a perfect marriage. The potato pasta with mussels is the dish that succeeds in blowing most people away, whether they are old or young and me, every time.