Princi review - finding sanctuary in an Italian bakery in London Soho

Address: 135 Wardour Street, London W1F 0UF
Tel: 020 7478 8888
Nearest Tube station: Leicester Square

Ratings (out of 5 *)
Price: below £10 pp
Service charge: N/A
Taste: ***
Service: **
Ambience: **
Suitable for: a quick afternoon tea
Coming from an island where it's hot and humid all year round, I do welcome the seasonal changes in weather. I guess a miserable winter just makes you welcome spring and a sweltering hot summer makes you look forward to a cool autumn.

However, one issue that I have with winters is that the glutton in me tends to manifest itself during cold weather - the freezing temperature doesn't exactly encourage exercises to burn off the extra calories either.


The inviting display will be the first thing that catches your eye

The temperature was barely above zero when we trudged along Wardour Street heading towards Kingly Court over the weekend. The gust of wind that came from nowhere broke the camel's back and we sought refuge at Princi.

The heater installed just above the entrance was a lifesaver as we dragged our sorry selves in. "Hello!", a staff who was standing behind the counter nearest to the door greeted us with a wide grin. Afterwards, I suspected she was planted there for that sole purpose as the rest of the staff seemed sullen beyond words.


Pastries galore

But what really caught my attention were the rows and rows of pastries behind a long counter, which spanned the length of the store. Colourful pastries that came in various shapes and sizes with some customers pouring over them through the glass display while the rest nursing cups of hot beverage busy chatting among themselves just seemed so surreal compared to the miserable weather outside.


Bins doubling up as standing tables as well

The entire place was packed to the till and some even had to stand and eat off vertical blocks that served as tastefully designed trash bins. We did get some seats after some time and I was immediately off to the hot food counter placed right at the back.


Nothing staves off the cold like a hot cup of tea

A grand total of four pasta were on display with no clear display of prices. With my stomach growling, I pointed to one that looked like something that I would like. It turned out to be a spinach lasagne, which turned out quite alright. My only grouse was that at £7 per serving (approximately 4 inches by 4 inches), the price seemed a bit steep.

That said, I must add that the pastries were fabulous. We got some Rustichi Spinach (3 for £1.50) for takeaway. The only grumble that I had was that the pastries weren't heated up if you dine in (and they cost much more). It didn't do the otherwise delicious bite size delights any justice as we found out later that they tasted way better after two minutes in the oven at 150 C.

Princi was a welcome addition to Wardour Street. Its minimalist layout with top to bottom glass façade literally lit up the vicinity, which, in my opinion, needed some sprucing up. I would definitely to get some pastries for takeaway the next time I'm in the area, but only for takeaway - I like my pastries served warm.

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Di Monforte review - London Islington Italian restaurant, friendly service with a mean seafood spaghetti

Address:
70 - 72 Liverpool Road, London N1 0QD
Tel: 020 7226 1475
Nearest Tube station: Angel

Ratings (out of 5 *)
Price: below £20 pp
Service charge: 12.5%
Taste: ****
Service: ****
Ambience: ***
Suitable for: groups of four and above, definitely not for quiet romantic dinners.








A pal asked for a casual Italian ristorante in Angel Islington and after much deliberation, I asked her to try Tenore Pizzeria.

She called me after that and thanked me for the recommendation. Halfway through the conersation I realized she was talking about a different restaurant altogether. She was in fact referring to Di Monforte, which is in the same vicinity but along Liverpool Road. Apparently, she took a wrong turn and stumbled into Di Monforte.

After her raves about the Di Monforte experience, we decided to give it a shot one Thursday evening. I called at 6.30pm and managed to get a table for two at 8pm without much fuss. Then again, it was a weekday.

Anyway, there were some delays on the Tube (always blame it on the Tube, people will actually sympathise with you) and were were nearly 30min late.

I pushed through the door and a somewhat distinguished looking gentleman immediately came striding over from the bar. Upon confirming that we did have a reservation, he showed us to our table just round the corner from the bar.

I couldn't help but noticed that the background music (no vocals, just a very loud electric guitar and lots of drums) was playing quite loudly. Didn't thought much of it but it became somewhat unbearable towards the end of the dinner that we actually cancelled out desserts just to get out of the restaurant.


Fresh scallops wrapped in bacon with olive oil sprinkled on it, enough said.

A pity really considering that the sea scallops wrapped in Italian pancetta on a bed of courgette (£6.50), though could not compare with that at Hawksmoor, the accompanying bacon added a interesting dimension to the otherwise relatively bland scallop. But I must maintain that the scallops were quite fresh and the courgette went down well with them.


Spaghetti done nicely with generous serving of seafood

Spaghetti al Scoglio Monforte (£13.50) - spaghetti with seafood sauteed in white wine and garlic was definitely one of the more satisfying seafood spaghettis I had ever tasted. The mussels, oysters and clams (especially mussels) were juicy and the full garlic flavour(not raw mind you) was oozing from the concotion. Though I must add that the single prawn was a tad overcooked.


Cabonara - tasted heavenly but was overpriced

Tagliatelle with wild mushroom bacon n cream sauce (£12) was essentially glorified tagliatelle carbonara. Though the consistency of the cream was tastefully done, I thought that they could be more generous with the mushroom (there mushroom bits were barely discernable).

There was a irrepressible young waiter who was literally all over the place taking orders. As Di Monforte began to fill up, the service became noticeably slower. Our dinner took almost two hours. To give that waiter some credit, he was unfailingly polite and good humoured, and managed to placate everyone.

By the time we finished our mains, i was dying to get out of the place as the loud music was starting to give me a headache. I wasn't the only one who think so - the guy seated in the table next to ours asked a waiter, "What kind of music is this? Sounds like a live rock conert going on!'

I left Di Monforte wondering how their tiramisu tasted like. Oh well.

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Tenore Wood Fired Pizzeria review - the Italian pizzeria that you'll bring your date to

Someone once told me that you can never go wrong with Italian food in London. I have to agree with him as I have yet to find anyone who would refuse a good pizza or pasta, and I am pretty sure everyone has got their favourite pizzeria that they would retreat to at the end of a long day at work.

Tenore Pizzeria, which is a 5 minute walk from Sainsbury in Angel Islington, is one class act. Serving Sardinian cuisine, Tenore Pizzeria is probably the only reason why I would venture to Barnesbury Road.

Given its façade, you would have mistaken it for a local pub but you would noticed, as you stepped thought the front door, that Tenore Pizzeria was much more than that. With big band music playing lightly in the background, the main dining area on the ground floor was adorned with large black and white photos portraying 'the good life'. The attentive and friendly all-Italian staff strutted their stuff with warm and enthusiastic smiles that rivalled that at Antonio's Ristorante.


Saporita - tomatoes in melted goat cheese

Let's get down to the serious stuff shall we? The Saporita pizza - £10.75, with buffalo mozzarella, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, avocado and goat cheese, was a treat. The soft melted pungent goat cheese, which was liberally layered on the pizza, went surprisingly well with the avocado.


Spaghetti Bottarga e Vongole - fish roe and clams, need I say more?

The Spaghetti Bottarga e Vongole - £9.55, turned out to be an apt choice. The fish roe added to the savoury texture of the spaghetti and the clams were far from overcooked and still supple. I would probably order that one again during my next visit. It really reminds me of the Chinese stir fried noodles, one of my favourite if done right, only Tenore's was so much better.



While we were there, there were a couple of tables with Italian customers chatting busily among themselves oblivious to their surroundings. For a moment, one would have thought that one was in bustling pizzeria in the heart of an Italian town, Tenore was that convincing. In short, Tenore is a La Forchetta, only with better food, better ambience and way better service.

Address: 14 Barnsbury Road, London N1 0HB
Tel: 020 2786 955
Nearest Tube station: Angel

Ratings (out of 5 *)
Price: below £15 pp
Service charge: N/A
Taste: ***
Service: *****
Ambience: ***
Suitable for: couples and small groups who are looking for a nice evening out

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Antonio's Ristorante review - the Italian pasta restaurant tucked in an alley at Angel Islington

Some say that Angel's Upper Street is one of the most happening street in Europe. I'm not sure how true that is but the fact is that the entire street is filled with restaurants of almost all major cuisines on Earth. If you were to dine in one of them for every week, it could very well take you a year before you pay a repeat visit.

In fact, the street is so crammed with restaurants that some had taken to opening up shop in alleys that run perpendicular to Upper Street. Antonio's Ristorante is one of them.

Antonio's Ristorante is one of those restaurant that is almost begging not to be found. If you search for its location using its postcode on its receipt (N1 1PQ - a typo), you'll end up a couple of streets away. The irony is that once you find it, chances are you'll ask yourself whether this is a mistake. Let's be frank here, dining in a shady looking place sitting beside a car workshop down a dark alley is not exactly your idea of a perfect evening, even if it comes with a fancy name such as Antonio's Ristorante.

But before you start backing off back to Upper Street, let me assure you that it's not as bad as it seems. I suspect the staff over at Antonio's know that the odds are stacked against them and they more than make it up for it in the excellent level of service.

We were greeted warmly by the host and led swiftly to our table, which was right beside the kitchen. Even though we had made a reservation, it was a busy night for Antonio's Ristorante as there was a private party going on on the first floor.

Its interior décor looked more promising than its sorry surrounding. With rows of recycled wine bottles adorning its walls, Antonio's, with dimmed lighting (a tad too dim for my liking, and the main reason why no photos were taken of the food) provided a perfect setting for a quiet dinner.

Toptable offered us a promotion for two courses with a Bellini thrown in for £15 per person. And we got a goat cheese soufflé for starter, a spaghetti with giant prawns and a roast veal for mains, and a Belgium chocolate mousse for dessert.

After an encounter with the Swiss' cheese fondue, we were a bit hesitant to order any cheese based dishes but we both agree that the goat cheese soufflé was surprisingly light to the taste and before long, we were scrapping the plate clean.

The spaghetti (al dente) was done just nice. Accompanied by a grand total of two large prawns (with a handful of smaller shrimps), the dish didn't last long as well.



We were, however, a bit disappointed with the veal. The two slices came caked with something that I could only described as disparate bread crumbs, which was rather bland. The dish also came with a slab of kische, some roasted mash potatoes and a small serving of carrot shavings seasoned in some sweet solution. The presentation was a bit awkward as it seemed to me that the chef was looking for something to fill the plate. But I must add that the kische went well with the carrots.

Even though the chocolate mousse tasted rather flat, the staff who served us made our day. She was attentive, efficient and always with a smile throughout the night. Though the food served at Antonio's is hardly to shout about, I would probably return knowing that the experience would most likely be a pleasant one.

Address: 134-137 Upper Street, Islington, London N1 1QP
Tel: 0207 226 8994
Nearest Tube station: Angel or Highbury & Islington

Ratings (out of 5 *)
Price: below £20 pp
Service charge:
Taste: **
Service: ****
Ambience: **
Suitable for: a quiet dinner for two, just ignore the car workshop beside it.

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La Forchetta Pizzeria & Restaurant review - a cheap alternative to Pizza Express in London

Some say that the High Street/Essex road in Angel Islington is the street with the most restaurants, eateries and bars in the whole of Europe . How true that claim is, I'm really not sure but one thing is true, you would really be spoilt for choice when it comes to for dining. In fact, if you were to visit one restaurant every weekend, it would be almost a year before you hit the same place again.

That's also the reason why I never understood why so many would flock to Pizza Express when there are a number of pizzerias that are much better in terms of taste. La Forchetta Restaurant, which sits at 73 Upper Street , is just one of them.

Its recent promotion of selected pasta and thin crust oven baked pizzas (12 inches) at £4.90 each was what first brought me to this self styled Italian eatery chain. Staffed entirely by Italians, the service could be pretty brash. Don't get me wrong, the staff is not impolite, you just don't expect them to fawn over you while you decide on what to order.

We proceeded to order a Mariana (spaghetti) and a Forchetta pizza. Currently there's an ongoing promotion of any pasta and pizza with a drink thrown in for £6.90. Add a quid for beer. The Mariana was done just right with fresh seafood. You would however, after a quick survey around the restaurant, conclude that most patrons are going for the pizzas instead of pasta.

The Forchetta pizza, which the restaurant takes its name from, normally goes for £6.70 without the promotion, is a treat with parma ham and eggplant. Crisp edges but not burnt (like the one I had at Uno just a couple of doors down the street), I would say that the pizzas served in La Forchetta is a treat with a swig of beer.

While serving the food, a waiter came by with a bowl of parmesan cheese and grunted in heavily Italian accented English,

"Would you like some parmesan to go with your spaghetti though we don't recommend it?"

That sums up the La Forchetta's experience - the Italian styled pizzaria that would not shy away from telling you how you should have your food.

Address: 73 Upper Street, Islington, London, N1 0NY
Tel: 0171 2266 879
Nearest Tube station: Angel

Ratings (out of 5 *)
Price: below £15 pp
Service charge:
Taste: **
Service: **
Ambience: **
Suitable for: a casual date

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Saponara review - the little Italian paradise

There's this quaint little Italian deli in Angel, Islington. Well, not exactly near the Tube station but it's within walking distance just off Packington Street and along Prebend Street.

Saponara is exactly what you would imagine an Italian deli to be for it's easy to imagine yourself in a little Italian town once you step into its cosy settings. It's nothing fancy; it's attraction lies in its unpretentious service and simple fare, all at a affordable price.

The Italian proprietor is a friendly man. Well, I'm not just saying that because he offers us free sampling of food and some wine the other time. He reminds me of Artie (from Sopranos), only less talkative.

The deli is quite popular with the local Italians. How do I know? Well, it becomes apparent when the staff speaks to more than half of the customers in a language that I'm not familiar with. But it's also frequented by families as well. It's quite interesting to watch the toddlers wondering in front of the counter displaying the variety of pasta and having Italian chatter all around... all this while enjoying a cappuccino.

My favorite? Defintely a ham croissant. Well, I must say that my picture did it injustice. Rest assured that it taste must better than it looks... the cheese just melts in your mouth. Anyway, we must start ordering something else. The proprietor has been asking us, "The usual?" without even taking our orders nowadays.

Oh, did I also mention that there's a nice church just outside? A great view if you decide to have your cuppa outdoor instead.


Address: 23 Prebend Street, Islington, London N1 8PF
Tel: 020 7226 2771 (Closed on Sundays)
Nearest Tube station: Angel (15 minute walk)

Ratings (out of 5 *)
Price: below £6 pp for breakfast, below £10pp for dinner.
Taste: **
Service: ***
Ambience: **
Suitable for: Leisure breakfasts

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