Sorrento Local Customs

A visitor to Sorrento could spend a whole week here and only encounter fellow tourists, but a wander to the Sedile Dominova, on Via San Cesareo, brings contact with the locals. In medieval times, this building, with its faded frescoes and old coats-of-arms, was a place where the aristocracy met; nowadays it's a gathering place for the local OAPs, who pay no attention to the passing tourists and spend their time playing cards.

Those giant "lemons" you see being sold all over the Amalfi Coast aren't really lemons at all. Cedri (Chay-dree) are not generally eaten by Italians. It is more popular to decorate your kitchen table with a couple of these to keep your house nicely perfumed.

To see what a cedro tastes like, ask a local bartender for cedrata, an ancient Southern drink made from the rinds of these fruit.

Sorrento, as with the rest of the Amalfi Coast, is know for it's vast production of lemons and lemon-flavored/scented products.

A few of my favorites:
1) limoncello (served very cold)
2) lemon chocolate
3) lemon soap
4) lemon-adorned ceramics

Random fact: A lemon tree can produce up to 2,000 lemons in one growing season!!

In Italy it is very popular to have a pastry and a cappuccino in the morning or during the day in a cafe or bar. The price depends on whether you consume it standing at the bar or sitting at a table. Sitting at a table doubles or triples the price.
Often you have to pay the cashier first before ordering with the recipt at the bar.