Star chef Phil Howard will launch a specialist pasta bar in the heart of the West End next week. Notto opens on Thursday 3 November at 199 Piccadilly, a few doors along from the Royal Academy.

It is the first pitch at the mid-market for a chef associated with the heights of fine dining, having run the Square (RIP) in Mayfair for 25 years and Elystan Street in Chelsea since 2016.

He says of the new project: “The goal is simple – to bring pleasure to fellow Londoners by sharing authentic pasta dishes in a relaxed fun environment, at a price that is accessible to all.”

Notto began as a pasta delivery service during the pandemic lockdown, under the name Otto. The N was added to make Notto ahead of the restaurant launch, to avoid clashing with an existing business. The kitchen will be run on a daily basis by executive chef Louis Korovilas, formerly of Locanda Locatelli, Pied à Terre and Bacone.

The trend for high-quality but good-value fresh pasta restaurants was launched by the immediate success of Padella at Borough Market, which opened in 2016 and has been followed by half a dozen in similar vein in London and elsewhere around Britain.