Horses, You ride them, you put them to work, but in many countries, you eat them. Guess what, I ate a horse and I liked it. Before you start shaking your head in disdain, it’s definitely a carnivorous delicacy that is a must try. Believe it or not, while most obscure meats “taste like chicken”, horse for all my beef lovers is most comparable to the most tender piece of flank or skirt steak you could eat.

It was February 2020, pre-pandemic and I was in Catania, Sicily for the Festival of Saint Agatha. The festival spans 3 days from February 3rd through the 5th. During the celebration, the locals visit the church of Saint Agatha for mass while vendors clutter the streets with food and tourist trinkets for sale. After a long day of walking the streets and bar hopping my appetite begins to take form and be a little distracting.

I search Google to see what restaurants and eateries are nearby and have the highest reviews. I came across this one high- rated restaurant called Trattoria del Cavalier. This wasn’t your normal Italian- style eatery. It was much more modern and full of tourists and locals alike. Upon a glance at the menu I see an item in the meats section that translates to horse. I immediately asked the waiter about it and it wasn’t too hard to convince me that this is something I need to try. In most of my travels, I’m always down for something out of the ordinary.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Trattoria del Cavaliere (@trattoriadelcavaliere)

Finally, two grilled pieces of horse flesh show up to my table with a side of pasta. The meat was cooked tender and buttery and my knife had no issues slicing through. The taste was much more on the “gamey” side of beef. Similar to that of venison but much more tender. Upon visiting Sicily you wouldn’t normally think of eating meat, I was looking forward to more typical dishes such as pasta or pizza, but I’m always glad to embrace the unknown.

loc:italy:italy