Earl's Court, Italian Restaurant Guide

“A wonderful display of fresh fish on ice” (“including the biggest scallops with the coral attached”) greets diners arriving at this “unique Italian” in a quiet corner of Kensington, whose “cooking is precise with a light touch”.

“One never tires of Il Portico”, say fans of this “lovely local Italian” with “an authentic feel” opposite the Design Museum, which has been run by the Chiavarini family for more than 50 years. “Everything is served with enthusiasm” and “if prices are a bit on the high side, it’s because of the proximity of some very classy residential areas”.

2021 Review: “Go for the wine: there’s a great selection” focused solely on Italy at this Kensington yearling, with bottles lining many of the walls. Even fans can note that the food (pasta, cheese and meat boards, salads) “is not as good”, but it avoids any harsh critiques. Brunch here is also a possibility.

An “attractive riverside setting” (incorporating a 45-cover outdoor terrace, complete with retractable roof) is a major selling point at star chef Robin Gill’s second opening under the ‘Maria G’ banner, on the ground floor of a shiny new residential development, in the deepest, darkest Fulham no-man’s-land near Imperial Wharf (by the big Sainsburys). Despite its out-of-the-way situation, it’s already attracting more feedback than the first Maria G, which opened two years ago. That’s also hard to find, and also in a glossy new block – this time part of a retirement village on the Kensington/Olympia borders. At both outlets, the culinary theme is Italian although SW6 concentrates more on its raw bar and pasta, with reports praising “some innovative dishes” (The Telegraph’s William Sitwell was also a fan, proclaiming it a “chic oasis” with “delicate and authentic Italian food”). Reports in our annual diners’ poll on W8 were scant (but the Daily Mail’s Tom Parker Bowles found it a “lush, lovely Italian oasis… [in] the sterile, anodyne surroundings of those deluxe flats”).