Soho, Italian Restaurant Guide

2021 Review: Now over ten years old, this Venetian/Mediterranean chain has suffered a drip-feed of branch closures, with only two now trading: Soho and Chelsea. And in August 2020 it parted ways with its co-founder Russell Norman. Fans do still applaud the duo’s “very convivial and fun” formula, but the groups woes have stemmed from Venetian small plates that are often “no better than fine”, and at worst “uncared for” or “very mediocre”. Perhaps it will now finally turn a corner?

“Does one thing and does it well” – pasta is made fresh on site each day at Stevie Parle’s “busy” Soho venue, and the resulting “great dishes are served quickly with a smile”. It’s “great value too”, so “a good go-to with a few friends for a quick bite”. Top Tip – “shows you don’t need burgers and chicken nuggets to make a good kids’ menu”.

This “lively family Italian restaurant in Soho” has a “lovely vibe”, “very authentic food” and a “brilliant vermouth bar” (‘vermuteria’) serving their own, home-distilled creations. It’s a modern place, founded by three brothers from northern Italy. Top Tip – “head down to the basement for the best atmosphere”.

“Delicious pasta at relatively affordable prices” inspires major loyalty to these “busy” pasta pitstops in Soho, near Trafalgar Square and in Borough Yards: for their legions of fans, “a staple option for a quick meal in London”, even if “the narrow WC2 branch in particular is tight for space and can feel a little crowded and noisy”. The experience, though, can tip into just feeling “rushed”, “unimpressive” or “hyped”, not least due to the “hit ’n’ miss service”. Top Menu Tips – “obviously the ‘silk handkerchiefs’ are best”; “Cacio Pepe is like you’ll never find outside Rome at an unbelievable price”.

“Absolutely brilliant” – Jacob Kenedy’s “go-to place in Soho” (in a backstreet near Piccadilly Circus) remains one of the most interesting Italian restaurants in the UK. “No stereotypical Cucina Italiana here”: “the stellar menu is constantly changing” and the finest and freshest ingredients are treated with the utmost simplicity and respect in “regional small plates” that are “seasonal, well-judged and always memorable”; and which can be paired with “a very fine Italian cellar covering every price point”. “Thoughtful and friendly staff” help “everything function like clockwork”; and while “the room is a little challenging” (“it can be NOISY”) it “has a very good atmosphere”. Top Menu Tips – “mince-stuffed olives Ascolani, Amberjack carpaccio with rosemary oil and orange zest, Sweetbreads with morels and Marsala, Sicilian cannoli with a light and tangy ricotta filling”. “Heaven for olive oil and garlic lovers. Courgette flower with mozzarella and anchovies, Wild garlic pappardelle with duck are all to die for. Every dish packs a punch, down to the sweet Pig’s Blood and Chocolate Paté”.

“Typical Italian fare” comes with a moneyed gloss at this 10-year-old venture off Savile Row from a Florentine banking family with a 700-year-old sideline in wine-making. There is a “warm Mayfair buzz if you’re into hedge fund types”, and “if you calm yourself with a couple of drinks before you see the prices on the menu, lunch here can be a very enjoyable experience”.

D&D London’s well-tailored venue on Savile Row “remains a firm favourite” to fans, who applaud its “beautifully cooked” Italian cuisine and elegant standards generally. But high-profile chef Francesco Mazzei left a couple of years ago and our current annual diners’ poll inspired limited and mixed feedback: chief concerns are incidents of “mediocre food” and the fact that it’s “not cheap”.

“A real sense of being a little part of history in London” – with a side order of “proper cannoli and great coffee” – is the prime attraction of this “excellent” 24/7 coffee bar, an all-but-unique survivor of post-War Soho, founded in 1949 by the Polledri family who remain committed to its legacy.

“We love the pistachio decor and the spacious seating”, say fans of this expanding chain, which had operated as a treasured old deli in Soho for over 75 years before starting to branch out as a pasta-chain in 2018. Impressions of it are something of a mixed bag though. To fans, its stylised outlets are “very convenient” and “can be trusted for a good-value and enjoyable experience with excellent food” (mostly pasta) in “sensible portions”. On the downside, though, are a fair number of diners to whom it’s a good concept whose execution is “perfectly fine but unexciting” (“starters good, pasta average-to-good, but compared with folk who had raved to me about other branches, I was left with a sense of ‘meh?’”). Still, their backers are enthusiastic and this year they added new locations in Greek Street and South Kensington.

“Scrumptious food, Soho ambience: a winner!” – Cameron Emirali and Luke Wilson’s “intimate” fixture has won renown above its size and inspires feedback from diners living all over London. The food from the open kitchen “is amazing and interesting” and “it’s a place to come back to” (“I’ve eaten at 10 Greek 20+ times, I’ve never had one bad mouthful of food”). Top Tip – ask for their ‘Little Black Book’ of ‘rarer wine gems’.

2021 Review: “Neapolitan influences are evident in the choice of ingredients, and the wood-burning oven makes for good, chewy, charred crusts, unlike most high-street pizzas” – so say fans of this global chain, whose HQ is indeed in Naples. Not everyone is impressed, though, and ratings are dragged down by those who feel it’s merely an “everyday” choice: “OK for a bog-standard group, but not great”.

“A top party place” – Paris-based Big Mamma Group’s “huge and buzzing” omaggio to the Sicilian trattoria in Fitzrovia boasts an “amazing atmosphere” buoyed up by ongoing Insta-success which helps draw in an energetic crowd skewed to twenty- and thirty somethings. The food’s not for the cognoscenti of Italian cucina, but it is “consistent” and low cost.

Opulently decked out with old-fashioned decor incorporating acres of red fabric, this engagingly flamboyant new hotel basement provides a cosy Soho escape. No survey feedback as yet, but online reviews suggest that for those who are not particularly budget-conscious and seeking a comfortable rather than a foodie experience, it may find a niche; and in a January 2024 review the FT’s Tim Hayward gave a thumbs-up to its traditional-ish, Italian-inspired cuisine. You can unwind pre- or post-meal in the hotel’s rooftop bar.

“Real Bolognese starters and pastas made by real Bolognese” win praise for this “popular, authentic, family-run restaurant” in Soho. Michela makes the pasta every day, her husband Enrico cooks it and their daughter Carlotta serves it. It’s tiny, so “booking is essential – but you may still have to wait if the previous occupants of your table can’t bring themselves to leave!”. Top Menu Tip – “tiramisu is a highlight”.

Despite its heart-of-Soho location and an early review from The Standard’s David Ellis, this “excellent new Italian” with an elegant interior and Tuscan-influenced menu has not stirred huge media or online attention in its first 18 months. A small but enthusiastic fan club hails “fabulous pasta” in particular, which slips down with “wonderful well-priced wines by the glass too”.

Tucked away in a new development near Tottenham Court Road tube (part of Ilona Rose House), this large and expensively designed October 2023 newcomer is the first London spin-off from a Parisian group. No survey feedback as yet, but in her November 2023 report The Guardian’s Grace Dent gave cautious approval to its “fancy pizza, titivated pappardelle and hyped-up tiramisu”: despite “expecting very little”, she judged the food “more than decent” (particularly the “huge, sloppy, soft-based and floofy-edged” pizza) and the overall venture “a vast, daft restaurant in the heart of tourist land, but… also much better than it needs to be”. Top Tip – it has a fair amount of outside seating on its terrace.