Cobham, Italian Restaurant Guide

With its “traditional tablecloths and a sense of comfort”, this “really strong and inventive neighbourhood Italian” close to Richmond Bridge in St Margaret’s appeals to a broad local constituency – “you can tell because it can be hard to get a table!”. The food is “always a treat” – and “the menu changes regularly, which makes eating here frequently even more of a pleasure”.

2021 Review: “Always a surprise” – you get what you’re given (there’s no menu choice) at chef Riccardo Grigolo’s set-price Venetian feast in Richmond: an unqualified delight, with multiple courses of “amazing, delicious food” and “excellent service”, creating “an atmosphere rarely found elsewhere”.

“An excellent venue for a meal before a performance at Richmond Theatre” – this “good value” Italian restaurant near the station has long been a mainstay of the area. Top Tips – set menus are a feature for lunch and pre-theatre, and the wine list is extensive.

“Standing out from the chain restaurants in the area, this vibrant Italian-inspired restaurant in the heart of Wimbledon Village” has a big fan club drawn from neighbouring postcodes. The more cautious view is that “it’s nothing spectacular but the food standard is reliable with some good mid-week deals”.

2021 Review: These “buzzing family-run Italians” in southwest London create “an exceptional atmosphere” for large parties of all ages – and “they won’t break the bank”. “Despite the celebratory brouhaha, they produce a very respectable menu of traditional dishes – fish stew, duck, pizza on demand” – “even the veggies are catered for”. “Expect noise and old people dancing.”

“Really special cooking” – “simple, seasonal northern Italian dishes with excellent daily specials” – has won a star-studded following amongst food writers for Andreas Riva’s Barnes fixture of over 30 years standing (Fay Maschler, Nigella Lawson and the late AA Gill have all cited it as a favourite). The uninitiated sometimes find its attractions pass them by and even fans admit that the “ambience, while OK, could do with a bit of a spruce up”. “This is such an iconic restaurant” for its fan club though that all is easily forgiven – “I keep coming back year in year out and the quality of the food has not diminished and speaks for itself. Looking forward to our next meal already!”

2021 Review: “The best pizza in the area” – “thin, very tasty” and in “large” portions – wins fans for this “friendly” family-owned trio that has built a solid following in Fulham and Putney over two decades. SW15 is primarily take-out and delivery (but has some outside seating).

2022 Review: A “lovely local” near Turnham Green, this “family-owned Italian” is “tiny but with terrific food and atmosphere”. There’s a good range of pizzas but the Puglian dishes are what makes it special.

This “beautiful courtyard” on the Chiswick High Road “feels like a little bit of (the expensive part) of Tuscany – but at least you’ve saved on the air fare”, and the “delightful atmosphere, good fish and pasta” add to the impression. The Chianti estate it is named after has exported wine to London for 300 years.

Small and family-owned, this “always reliable quality Italian” near Parsons Green wins consistently high ratings for its “friendly service” and “cheerful ambience”.

“Just keeping on delivering outstanding quality, year after year, with the highest-quality seasonal Italian food that’s not over-elaborate” – Ruth Rogers’ iconic Thames-side café in an obscure Hammersmith backstreet remains one of the most talked-about destinations in our annual diners’ poll. Since its debut in 1987, it has helped drive culinary fashion. “They take the best fresh ingredients and the open-plan kitchen allows you to watch them work their magic” – an “exceptional” ingredient-led approach that’s now practically ubiquitous in top kitchens. And it popularised the idea that top-notch food can be enjoyed in a “casual” setting, without flunkies and flummery: the bright, “noisy”, “packed-in” space having originally been created as the canteen for her late husband’s architectural practice (it helps that “it has a gorgeous riverside setting, especially outside on the terrace on a summer’s day”). But, “while it’s simply great, my God, do you pay for that simplicity”. Yet again, it tops our list of ‘most overpriced’ restaurants as its “absurd prices seem to be multiplied by the number of years it has been open”. As always our reporters have mixed feelings on this question of value. Some are unquestioning (“it’s expensive, but you never feel ripped off”). For others, it’s a struggle (“it never disappoints… so long as the heart attack when you get the bill doesn’t end the evening prematurely”). And this year, those who “find it increasingly difficult to justify the expense” are gaining ground, particularly as the “beautiful” servers have seemed “very flakey” or “impersonal” on numerous occasions this year. “If you live near an airport, consider a day trip to Milan for lunch instead: it would work out cheaper…”. Top Tip – “the winter weekday lunch is absolutely fantastic value and so delicious”.

2021 Review: “The best pizza in the area” – “thin, very tasty” and in “large” portions – wins fans for this “friendly” family-owned trio that has built a solid following in Fulham and Putney over two decades. SW15 is primarily take-out and delivery (but has some outside seating).

2021 Review: From its Finsbury Park base (next to the Park Theatre), this “cheerful” group of “good neighbourhood pasta-stops” subsequently expanded to Ealing and then onto Wembley branch (there’s also an outlet in Westfield Stratford); all deliver “well-cooked”, affordable pasta.

This “lovely local Italian” near Ravenscourt Park tube is getting back into its stride after “a dreadful time with lockdown followed by a flood at the premises”. Ex-Zafferano chef Andy Needham and his team offer a “really warm welcome and a beautifully executed short menu”. Top Menu Tip – “excellent pasta and specials”.

“Engaging service” is the strong suit at this “solid neighbourhood Italian” that has been a fixture on Clapham’s Northcote Road for many years. The menu offers “no surprises”, but the cooking is “more than adequate”.

“Great Roman-style crispy pizzas” along with a full selection of tapas, starters, “ever-changing Italian main courses” and a “fun Notting Hill vibe” ensure that this smart pub conversion is “a definite step up from the pizza chains” while “still reasonable value”. Two offshoots further west – the Oak W12 near Ravenscourt Park and the Bird in Hand at Brook Green – repeat the trick.

“The sourdough base is slow-fermented for 48 hours”, and there’s “a great selection of toppings (but you can’t beat any with the burrata heart – so creamy, so addictive!”) at these rustic venues in Chelsea and Battersea.

“This unassuming pub tucked around the back of Hammersmith’s one-way system serves good and hearty Mediterranean food”, in particular some “lovely pasta dishes” – “don’t miss the penne with Italian sausage ragu”. It’s also a “top sun trap for early-evening drinks on the patio”.

This rustic Italian trattoria is a “reliable local favourite” which has fed generations of families in Clapham’s ‘Nappy Valley’ over the past 30 years. The hearty cuisine “rarely disappoints”, although the venue “can get extremely loud on a busy night (speaking volumes for its popularity!)”.

Now 30 years old, this battered Battersea Neapolitan helped introduce the capital to the delights of pizza sold by the metre. Others, perhaps, have overtaken it over the decades, but for a good laugh and some very decent pizza, it still has a fan club.