Nicoletta Polo Lanza Tomasi, Duchess of Palma, was born in Venice and is a former interpreter, translator and music festival organiser. She speaks six languages and has travelled and lived all over the world. She married Gioacchino Lanza Tomasi, Duke of Palma, a renowned musicologist, writer and opera manager, in 1982. In 2007 the couple returned to Palermo, making it their permanent home, after many years of living in various cities, including a four year stay in New York where the Duke was the Director of the Italian Cultural Institute. On their return, they completed the restoration of their family home, Palazzo Lanza Tomasi, and the rental apartments.

Palazzo Lanza Tomasi was the last home of Prince Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, the Duke’s cousin and adoptive father and the author of the world-famous novel Il Gattopardo (The Leopard). The Duke lovingly carried on his literary legacy. The Duchess is an accomplished cook and has embraced the Sicilian culinary and cultural traditions with a passion. She organises cooking classes and events in her Palazzo and personally welcomes her guests and oversees the design and preparation of the menus. She offers refined Sicilian cuisine with a unique twist, and revisits traditional Sicilian dishes reflecting the various cultures that have shaped Sicily’s history. Sicilian cuisine resonates thousands of years of influences and experiences, due to the foreign presences that landed on its shores over the centuries and forged the incredibly rich, diverse, and multifaceted Sicilian history. Each dish is the result of this extraordinary cultural and culinary melting pot. Join her for A Day Cooking With The Duchess to learn from the best!