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Località Casale, 2,
98065,
Montalbano Elicona
Italian
Mediterranean
Premium Casual
Monilia, this is how the ancient Romans defined a place when it was of incomparable beauty, just like a jewel, a necklace. Here, perched on a hill in the hamlet of Casale in the municipality of Montalbano Elicona, where the great breath of nature welcomes yours, where everything becomes awe and wonder, the architect Michele Calcagno has managed to create an enchanting habitat, taking care of every particular, every detail with infinite patience, passion and dedication. The deception of man intertwines and merges with the grace of the place that determines its majesty, delivering moments of joy and quiet to visitors. You have to walk to see, observe and understand the charm and purity of the place, with its velvety sky, the colours of the broom, and the pomegranates that break into the stone. Here you will see the old dovecote surrounded by the rock that rises like a tower, skilfully transformed into a cellar; the large barn turned into a dining room, pervaded - thanks to the piped music - by an overwhelming background of rhythmic pulsations of jazz music, elegantly renovated where the stone mixes with the ancient wood while the dim light radiates into the environment creating an almost magical atmosphere; and "intimacy" becomes the preferred word. Then, the old barn aggregated to the farmhouse transformed into warm bedrooms furnished with taste and sobriety to spend pleasant days, in which the only friends, the moon and the stars, become silent. And the menu – replies the architect – is a surprise, perhaps a novelty, and we understand that it will be extraneous to conventional schemes but still respectful of the Sicilian gastronomic tradition. "Monilia" is beautiful because the architect's heart is not half in shadow and half bright; it is devoid of darkness and full of glare, a tumult of passion without brakes and without guidance, a proud will; he just listened to his heart, and with his heartbeats he made it happen. You, visitor, have to get to the Casale, just 4 km from Basicò, once Casale Novum, and 8 km from Montalbano Elicona, the most beautiful village in Italy, where you can breathe centuries of history because Frederick III of Aragon walked there and Eleanor of Anjou; and then, you'll see, you won't forget...