Zucca

My only complaint about this fabulous restaurant is the difficulty getting a table. It's so good it's always full. The menu changes constantly and is always full of interesting takes on Italian standards. The wine list is extensive and unusual, supported by an extremely knowlegable sommelier. Come to Bermondsey to visit Zucca and tag on a visit to White Cube!

Limited menu (6 starters and only a few meat and fish +pasta choices) mean everything was fresh, hot, and tasty!
Venison and beetroot starter was nicely grilled, and the veal chop main was sizeable and perfectly cooked. My 3 fellow eaters were uniformly delighted with their offerings. Wine was perhaps a little pricey for its undistinguished origins (Sicily).
Noisy? yes, but it had a good amtosphere – and no raucous music.

Zucca is hard to book – its not quite as bad as Scott's or The Ivy but in its own way its on a par; the online option is hopeless, at any normal time you'll be looking weeks ahead and even phoning up several days in advance is normally met with an offer of tables either very early or late. But in this case it reflects the fact it’s very popular (rather than being absorbed with its own self importance), and relatively compact, so there is always a stream of people wanting to go – and I fully understand why.

As other reviewers have commented value for money is brilliant – starters at around £4.50, mains at £12-£15, desserts I'd be guessing as bizarrely there is no dessert menu (more of which later), but add wine and water and three of us ate for £96 – though that didn't include the really excellent service.

Service is right up there with the best in London – things just happen, quickly and with absolutely no fuss. Rather than get a single waiter throughout whoever is passing deals with whatever needs doing, so plates are cleared, glasses refilled etc almost instantly. The only disappointment, and I’m not sure whether it should really be included under service, is the dessert menu – or lack of. Having eaten two courses (starter of pasta with artichokes – a warming taste of pure sunshine with slivers of silver artichoke, followed by a bit piece of roast salmon on a bed of peas, mint, courgette and broad beans – tasted wonderfully fresh) dessert was ordered via the waiter reciting a list of options – personally I like to have a bit of time to think, not that the eventually choice of blackberry and almond tart wasn't perfectly fine, just I’d like a bit of paper to read whilst making my choice and interestingly all of us either took the first or last option offered, showing how poor our recall is.

The venue is relatively small, tables are quite close and it gets a bit noisy when full, but high ceilings help and everything is clean and smart, all be it that the white plastic chairs are a bit uncomfortable.

Overall it’s a good option, hard to book but worth the effort. I will definitely be going back.

We came here, without a reservation, on a busy Saturday night (27/11) after one disaster too many at the Hope & Anchor on The Cut. The place was humming and fully booked, but the friendly maitre d' found us 2 seats at the bar. The way we were looked after you would have thought we had been given the VIP seats! Once you get over the rather stark furnishings which remind you of your university canteen on a good day and the slightly harsh lighting, the rest is just right. The wait staff were all very friendly and helpful and Zeren, the charming and knowledgeable sommelier, helped us around the very extensive (and well priced) predominantly Italian wine list with some real gems. We chose a a delicious 2003 Barberesco Roagna with a very reasonable mark up – a great start. [Sadly only 3 bottles left!] We had the fresh grilled anchovies as a starter – served up very simply but cooked just right, with enough citrus on them to give them a mouthwatering flavour. I then chose a simple grilled veal chop with fresh spinach and lemon watching the chef diligently preparing it in front of me. The spinach was just flash fried in a little olive oil and was fabulous – unlike so much of the spinach served around London which comes over-garlicked or just ridiculously creamy and overcooked. The chop was also cooked to perfection, pink enough to be full of flavour but not off putting and with lemon zest. My wife's bugatini pasta dish was also delectable with cardoons (tasting part artichoke, part celery) and grilled prawns – looked fabulous , tasted even better! We never got to desserts but I am sure they will be delicious too. To cap it all, Sam Harris, the chef/owner came out to chat with us to make sure we had enjoyed our dinner! A great touch – well done Sam. I really can't fault this place – great value, excellent quality and a really buzzy vibe. Make the effort to get there and you will not be disappointed.

Zucca opened earlier in the year to rave reviews from bloggers and critics alike. Many had no idea how they could create their homely yet modern Italian cuisine at the prices they were charging, many of the same people also raved about the quality of the simple ingredients and this man, reading the bundles of food porn produced, licked his lips and vowed to get there, and soon. Well time moved on, and other places opened, and this man didn't get down there (though close) so it was with pleasure while sculling round for somewhere to go last week that this man was reminded of the little (still fairly new) cozy, modern and cheap Italian on Bermondsey Street.

Slightly uncomfortable sub-Habitat chairs aside, the space is a welcoming one. Light walls and exposed brick link the floor to ceiling windows that mirror the open kitchen across the rear. The tables are small and close together, but the high ceilings don't allow the volume to get too loud or your neighbours conversations too intrusive.

And the food? Well I've already booked my return. It's a rare place that makes you feel like that, but Zucca is the restaurant equivalent of a huge hug from an old family friend. And I want another hug. We started, encouraged by the friendly, observant and on the ball waitress, to go for a selection of shared starters. Prosciutto di Parma with a perfectly ripe fig was good, two excellent ingredients in harmonious marriage. Cardoons, celery like sticks of artichoke thistle a rare sight on a menu, came slathered in a thick and slightly boozy fondue cheese which proved perfect for being mopped up by the real star of the starters, the Zucca Fritti. Sticks of pumpkin, squash and carrot with the odd leaf of zingy basil came cooked in a tempura light batter and piled high. The healthiest fried food I've ever had and for a jaw dropping £3 a plate. This would be my lunch, daily, if I lived in the neighbourhood.

You have the option of a pasta course, either before or instead of the main, a bold and light chicory, lemon and gorgonzola taglierini that both companions opted for, and an intriguing bucatini, a spaghetti-like shape with a hollow centre, served with a seasonal pheasant sauce. The gamey notes continued into the carne, where I went for a whole partridge, served with slightly pointless and bland potatoes (the nearest to a duff note I had). Tender as I've had, with a rich stickiness on the breast and a salty umami-filled gravy made from the juices. We shared a homemade tiramisu, rich and creamy, and a panna cotta with poached pear, illiteratively pleasing but as a dessert just too bland for my palate. For £25 a head, it felt like we were committing theft.

What a find! Where else in London do you get a River Cafe-standard meal at £4 a starter, £8 for pasta mains & £12 for a fish or meat course?

We went for a quick lunch so just went for antipasti & primi, but boy were they molto speciale! The eponymous zucca fritti is a lesson in lightness and simplicity, the sweet pumpkin encased in a light salty batter.
Griddled courgette shavings with mint, pine nuts and mozzerella was simple but special.

My tagliolini with garlic and chanterelles blew me away. Again, uber simple but up there with one of the best plates of pasta in the world…better than anything I've been served at the river cafe or locanda locatelli.

Fab that they offer Barbaresco & Brunello de Montalcino by the glass at £8 a pop…the Barbaresco was gorgeous, as was my glass of verdicchio. Though £6 for a price of prosecco is slightly off the mark compared to the food prices. The house red changes daily and the chianti that day was way more special than most house reds.

Didn't have room for pud but the plates of pannacotta wobbling their way past me looked like the real deal…will have to try it next time.

At these prices you wouldn't expect perfectly pressed linen napkins, high quality glassware, top notch olive oil and the best foccacia known to man, but you get the lot, plus service with a smile (except the maitr'd who looked a bit stressed).

A top new neighbourhood find…I am well and truly smitten.

04/11/10 Went back last weekend and had the pannacotta. Sublime.

A gem in Bermondsey! I've been to Zucca several times over the last few months and have never been disappointed. The food is not fussy at all but fresh, flavourful and altogether delicious with a minimum of starch. Although the menu changes fairly often and is concise, there is always much that tempts the palette with a nice balance between pasta, fish and meat dishes. Certain seem to be kept as (welcome) mainstays, for example the sea bream carpaccio starter is wonderful and delicate with olive oil and flecks of chilli, As a main dish I would recommend the mouthwatering veal chop, a generous portion of incredibly tender, juicy and succulent meat. The atmostphere is minimalist and the rather stark interior means the restaurant tends to become rather noisy when busy (which is almost all the time). However it adds the convivial atmosphere and doesn't detract from the overall experience. A nice wine list and a simple but very tasty selection of desserts. Competent and friendly service. For non-SE1 residents, it's definitely worth the trip to try this restaurant.

Great food and wine with lovely atmosphere. Only criticism would be the ventilation. If you sit next to the kitchen as I did which must have been near the deep fryer, I stank of fried food when I left and had to have my coat and suit drycleaned. So value for money was not brilliant but hopefully they will sort it out!

Very good wines list. The Food is disappointing. way too much salt on all dishes. too much oil on the pastas. not quite balanced. Still a long way to go on the food side…