Garlic Sauce
Ponte Nuovo

Ponte Nuovo

66 Westow Hill, London, SE191RX, SE19 1RX, United Kingdom

Pizza • Italian • European • Vegetarian


"What a find! We tried this as an alternative to the usual restaurants we go to in Crystal Palace. I really don't know why we hadn't tried this restaurant before. The seating space is divided into two areas the front part has a bar and is a slightly more relaxed space, whereas the second part is a little more formal. We wanted to sit somewhere warm, cosy and away from other people, so we opted for a table just into the second part of the restaurant behind a set of shelves with wine and champagne bottles under lights. It was really pretty and quite secluded. In fact no one else sat in that part of the restaurant all night for 8.30pm on a Saturday, it was quite quiet. The food on offer spanned the full gamut of Italian cuisine, from pizza, pasta and gnocchi to fish, beef and veal. I went for the vitello milanese and my friend went for the swordfish. I swapped my chips for the rosemary roast potatoes, which was the best decision that I have made in a long time they were crispy and perfect to accompany the veal. We shared a bottle of cab that was both delicious and reasonable at around £24. For pudding we had the home made tiramisu (had to be done! and it was delicious not too sweet and not at all sickly, and quite large! What really made this such a brilliant night, was the service. Everyone was so warm and friendly and fun. It really was a brilliant night and we are going back again very soon!"

Oldroyd

Oldroyd

344 Upper Street London, N1 0PD, United Kingdom

Wine • Cheese • British • European


"The restaurant is small, the tables are small, they serve in small plates style... but they are all big on flavour and quality! We squeezed into our little corner table and managed to devour a couple plates of food in between the catching up! Who says bloggers only focus on the food?! The pork belly and pea croquettes were an excellent way to start the meal, though simple they were simultaneously meaty and light, and quite delicious. We also enjoyed the special of sardines on toast with a tangy chutney type sauce, the lamb and almond meatballs were not at all stodgy as meatballs can be, and came in a fantastic romesco sauce which I would happily pour over everything. Including the crisp and skinny courgette fries. The highlight of the meal was the cornish crab tagliarini; so much crab flavour packed into this plate... it was creamy, the tagliarini was soft and light... I probably could have eaten the whole thing on my own if I'm being really honest. As we were too busy chitchatting, we'd forgotten that Oldroyd only give you 1.5 hours at your table... so get those plates rolling in thick and fast. We'd run out of time... but the staff were really lovely about our faux pas and moved us into the two seats at the tiny bar so we could have dessert. The chocolate mousse was absolutely worth teetering precariously on those stools for (as a shorty, bar stools are not my friend... . We only really scratched the surface of the menu so will be back again for some of the more meaty, richer dishes perfect as autumn and winter roll round!"

Oggi Simply Italian

Oggi Simply Italian

161 London Road, LE2 1EG, Leicester, United Kingdom

Pasta • Steak • Vegan • Italian


"We visited Oggi meaning today) on a cold November evening. The restaurant was brimming with people already at 6.45, so much so we skipped down to a local for 29 minutes until our table became available. The owner f the restaurant brought us delicious olives and bruschetta while we studied the menu. We were a table of 3 couples, four of whom had been close uni mates of 40 years. There was lots to catch up on, tears and laughter and clinking of glasses. The service was professional as yoi would expect from a good Italian restaurant. I am hard to please. I love good food, cooked well and this food was certainly the most delicious Italian I have eaten. Fat, sweet scallops in their shells, grilled with butter, cream and fine cheese. Rich and delicious. Fat, juicy king prawns cooked to perfection in a spicy tomato and garlic sauce. Thank goodness for the bread to mop up the delicious flavours. We ate pasta Oggi linguini with seafood, fresh cannelloni with ricotta and spinach, the best I have eaten, with such fresh flavours. We had fungi risotto with truffle oil and a portion big enough to feed two! We chose an organic Nero D’Avola from a single estate in Sicily. It was superb. Our host sang to us, recited beautiful poetry and brought a tear to our eyes with his generosity of sprit and honesty. I think each of us loved our experience and came away with a warm spot in our hearts for Reno and his superb Oggi, We will be back, for sure."

Nino's

Nino's

18 Electric Parade, E18 2LY, Redbridge, United Kingdom

Pasta • Vegan • Italian • Vegetarian


"We three gluttoneers invaded this delightful eatery to celebrate my wife 's, Angela 's birthday last Tuesday night, and it was better than great. We were welcomed into an inviting ambience of romantic lighting, light tiles and coloured walls, and shown to our favourite window table. Amidst the polite murmer of chat and laughter from diners already there, and the lovely background music, accompanied with a perfectly concocted Aperol Spritz and a Pornstar Martini, we made our selection from a varied menu, especially when you include their specials ' board. James, the proprietor extraodinaire, and the others made us feel right at home with the banter and laughter great. We soon made our selection. All three of us went for the Mango al Granchio; Nino 's do the best this side of Essex. There followed Involini Pescatrice, Saltimbocca Romana. and Linguini Gamberoni; all were faultlessly prepared and presented, and the flavour was astounding. This culinary perfection was baptised with a chilled Prosecco, and it truly woke your palate up. We then concluded this gastronomic extravaganza with a shared Apple Pie and ice cream with a surprise candle and team Nino 's singing 'Happy Birthday ' with their quirky horn wonderful. We finished off with a lemon tea, black Americano, Cappuccino, and black Sambucas plus complimentary ones from our gracious hosts grazie mille! Yet again, Nino 's have raised the benchmark in cuisine excellence, friendship, and laughter. Our compliments to the chefs in the 'hot room ' for their artistry and kind attention, and a huge 'thank you ' to all at Nino 's for an uplifting dining and birthday experience. Until the next time, keep smiling and be happy, ciao."

Hispania

Hispania

74 Lombard Street, London, EC3V9AY, EC3V 9AY, United Kingdom

Tapas • Vegan • Spanish • European


"a few yards from the bank of england is hispania, an ambitious opening that in this phase is a tapas bar and business, but later in 2013 will be a 35-seat fine restaurant. the chef of the future restaurant will be michelin with marcos moran by casa gerardo in asturias,) but this evaluation is the tapas bar.<br/ <br/ the spatial features are very smart, with floor tiles and marble from spanies, bronze light fittings and a high deck. on the ground floor there is a tapas bar and a small deli, on the upper floor a sherry bar and a private dining room. the fine restaurant will be above, beside the open kitchen.<br/ <br/ the short weinlist started at £21 and had choices like cuatro rayas verdejo at £28 for a wein that they can find in the high street for £6, mar de frades sparkles albarino nw to £55 for a wein that sells at around £18, and merto tempranillo to £82. since a wein was 120 pounds, it seems bizarre to me not find any vintages. Certainly Spanish weine do not have the same level of vintage variation as more north wine growing areas, but there is certainly variation, and any interest in wein will want to know the vintage that they are about to order. slightly creamier than a classic gazpacho, had this deep tomate aroma, and exactly the correct amount of olive oil, with enough vinegar to balance the oil 14/20.) each element was made beautiful, and the contrast of textures worked well 14/20).<br <br/ service was friendly, and the waiter in the position to ask about eating without answering to the kitchen. in portions were quite generous, and three tapas would be much for a satisfactory meal. with a modest wein and coffee would come a typical bill to about £50 per head. overall I liked hispania. the cooking felt more authentic Spanish than many of the mainstream tapas bars in london, many of which are operated by non-Spaards.) surely the dishes I tried had more care and attention to them than in many london restaurants. I would come back happy and am intrigued to taste the fine restaurant as and when it opens."