Santa Caterina, a 16th-century Dominican church on Piazza Bellini facing the Fontana Pretoria, has one of the most over-the-top Baroque interiors in the city — every surface coated in coloured marble inlay, gilded stucco, and 17th-century painting. The contrast between the restrained late-Renaissance exterior and the kaleidoscopic interior is a Palermo speciality.
The convent next door, now also open to visitors, includes a rooftop terrace with views over the whole old town and a small café selling cakes and biscuits made by the Dominican sisters to original recipes. The cassata siciliana and the cannoli are excellent. Combined ticket for church and convent.