Messina focaccia (or Messina-style focaccia, as it is called in neighboring towns where it is not native and therefore only resembles it) is a typical specialty of Messina gastronomy.

Its preparation is very common in the city, but less so in the province of Messina: it is characterized by a thick, soft dough, cooked in a wood-fired oven in large pans. Traditionally, it is topped with escarole, chopped tomatoes, and cheese (usually tuma, although mozzarella has also been used in recent years).

It shares many of its ingredients with the pitone messinese, a well-known product of the local rotisserie.

Both the dough and the thickness differ significantly from those of a normal pizza.

The origins of the product, which presumably did not initially include the use of tomatoes, are probably even older, but it is believed that the recipe began to take shape at the beginning of the twentieth century, and was then stabilized by the bakers of Messina in the early post-World War II period, in the form in which we know it today.

The product is commonly found in all the bakeries and delicatessens in Messina and much less so in those in its province. It is also quite popular in the rest of eastern Sicily, where, however, the recipe differs from the typical Messina product.

In the Nebrodi area, instead of tuma or mozzarella, local provola is often used, which is a Slow Food Presidium.