I once spent a blessed week in Sicily a few years ago, writing about the Sicilia DOC and the Sicilian wine consortium. It was hot as holy hell, but I didn't care. The wine was chilled, the fish was fresh and everyone I met was wonderful.

My husband's family is Sicilian and I am taking him back to his homeland in June this year. While we've been planning our trip with the help of our friend Karen LaRosa of La RosaWorks, all we can talk about is Sicily.

To that end, Karen mentioned an excellent Sicilian restaurant right in our very neighborhood by the name of Norma owned by Sicilian chef Salvatore Fraterrigo who has run restaurants in his beloved home, but also all over the world. He finally had the chance to open his own spot in 2016.

The menu has all of the traditional dishes like caponata, octopus, arancine, panelle and insalata pantesca (the tuna and string bean salad) among many pizza and pasta dishes. They even offer both gluten-free pasta and pizza for anyone who has issues with gluten.

You can't go wrong with any of the pizzas (perfect to share or have solo), but my favorite stand out dish by far was the Carpaccio di polipo (Mediterranean octopus carpaccio). The flavors were absolutely unreal! I know I will be dreaming about that dish for years to come.

For those into wine, they have a wonderfully Sicilian-curated wine list with a variety of options to choose from.

Should you want to celebrate with something sweet, try their flourless chocolate cake or their homemade tiramisu.