Cotidie

We walked by this high-end looking restaurant on a Monday night. After checking out the posted menu outside, which looked good, and peeking through the window at the interior, which looked posh, we went in. Since it was nearly 10pm, we asked to be seated for dessert, wine and coffee. We were reluctantly obliged. But wait! Before we were seated, the maitre'd let it be known that this was not a cafe and we were lucky (lucky!) that we were being seated, since they were half empty. (I would have said “half full” if I were feeling more charitable.) Well, it went downhill from there. The chocolate fondant was a sponge cake, the server brought a trio of sorbets but he had no idea what flavors they were, and basically we felt we just ought to go. So we did. Too bad.

It looked so promising: a new upmarket Italian (which are seldom done well), lovely room, excellent first reviews… and yet a bitterly disappointing evening – made worse by the fact we were entertaining exacting friends from NY. The welcome slightly indifferent, the Mojito bland, the inability to seat 5 people so one wasn't on a table of their own talking to no-one, patchy service – veering from overbearing to absent, the menu divided by fish, meat and veg rather than by course a non-starter, flavourless amuse bouche, minute starter portions, steak and lamb served out of a deep-ish bowl that's nigh impossible to cut and eat out of, not inexpensive mains at £25+ per dish… by the end we couldn't wait to leave – it was an all-round let-down. Yes, maybe they're new and teething, but would we go back? I don't think so.

London has many high end Italian restaurants and Cotidie is an excellent addition to the London Italian talent pool. Food ranged from very good to excellent with both classic recipes and more modern twists to Italian classics.
Atmosphere was relaxed and the set-up is a pleasant mix of classic upscale and modern furniture.
Service is still in warm-up mode but the chef de salle is making sure everything run smoothly.
Will be back shortly to test different dishes to confirm my excellent first impression.

After years of bland and not quite Italian meals in London (such that I decided not to eat Italian when going out), I can finally have an Italian lunch or dinner in a restaurant and not in my house.
The dining room is elegant and stylish with soft and smooth colours. I was there with a friend but I would feel comfortable going there with people from work or partners as well. The menu is organised by type of food which i find clever. You cannot miss what is a starter or a main as they are listed in order of complexity and price (and they are also explained by the service). On the other hand it helps the customer mixing the type food if she/he wants to, like we did and which we don’t normallydo.
We knew the reputation of Bruno Barbieri and we had high expectations.They have been met and possibly exceeded considering how difficult is to find fresh Italian ingredients in London and/or having them delivered to you from Italy. They have clearly put a big effort in it and they didn’t look for compromises or cut corners like others do (but they still make you pay the fullprice for it). The lamb was perfectly cooked and the sauce was amazing, also the octopus starter and the pasta with vegetables were truly fresh and cooked perfectly. Coppa Macchiavelli as dessert is a winner. Overall we felt that the tiniest detail in the plate has been taken care of in order to bring us the Italian experience and they didn’t look for compromises just to satisfy some clients. We would like to see this by any reputable resto in London of any nationality.
The winelist is not huge (in terms of number of names) but you find what you need and also decently priced, which is not a given nowdays. The service is not spotless and it has got room to improve.
We paid around 100 pounds each for a 4 course meal including a decent wine, water and service. With these standards we are happy to pay that. As a whole we think Cotidie has brought up competition up a notch or two within the Italian restos community. It will benefit us, the customers, in thefirst place. Strongly recommended.

My friends and I went to the restaurant on Saturday evening. We were welcomed by the staff who were very warm, taking our coats and showing to us our table. The interior design is very modern yet welcoming and warm with bronze tones setting a glamorous tenor. We sat in a comfortable location and have been very well looked after by the waiters and the sommelier. We all selected a starter and a main after enjoying a generous glass of very good prosecco. We then went for a red wine to go with our meal selections which were mostly meat and vegetables (we didn’t try any of the seafood dishes on this occasion – but next time I will). I personally selected the eggs as a starter and the lamb as a main. Both courses were unbelievable. The starter was something out of this world and I really enjoyed the presentation – definitely worth the risk of ordering ‘scramled eggs’ for dinner. I love the way Bruno Barbieri revisits some classic italian dishes giving them a twist by experimenting new frontiers. The owner of the restaurant came twice to our table to check that everything was ok and explained some of the story behind the development of the restaurant. Cotidie brings a modern breath of fresh air to the Italian dining out experience (which as an Italian I can say becomes a bit monotonous!). We have booked again for two weeks time.

Great new addition to the London dining scene! Good service, tasty food – well executed with attention to detail. Products are fresh and portions well sized. Try the “Cacciatore style Ragu” – crispy parcel of pasta…exquisite! Wine list is well priced and offers decent selection. Definitely going back for sunday lunch!

Excellent food! The menu is concise and organised by type of food: fish, meat and vegetarian. For each type of food it offers suggestions to combine as starter, first course and main course – an interesting concept that allows guests to maximise the dining experience. The wine list is limited compared to other top restaurants but offer good options for all types of budget. The ambience is nice and decoration is modern and sleek. The service was the only hiccup in the evening but I was there in the opening night. Overall a very welcome addition to the Marylebone restaurant scene and I would definitely recommend a visit.

Just as certain locations are said to be haunted, certain ones seem to sound the death knell for restaurants. In the space of just a few years, Eat and Two Veg and Café Luc have passed through without, in cricketing speak, troubling the scorers. Now it is the turn of an Italian to have a go. Heaven knows Marylebone Village is crying out for a good Italian, with only the likes of the woeful Getti, the throwback to the fifties that both Anacapri and Casa Becci represent or the chain stylings of Carluccio's, Zizzi and Strada, thank goodness for a new top cozza to pick up the mantle dropped by Caffe Caldasi.

The layout of the restaurant has changed little from its previous incarnation, with banquettes along the middle, a bar on one side and the odd scattering of tables throughout. The menu, however, has changed considerably. Out has gone afternoon teas, in has come solid Italian fare.

Not that the menu is particularly user friendly: rather than being separated into starters, pasta, mains etc, it is split by food type. As well as the tasting menu, there are three main headings: meat, fish and vegetables. As was explained to us (and I am sure that they are going to have to do this a lot), each section is itself invisibly split, with the first two dishes in each section being starters, the next two pasta and the last two mains. Obvious when you know, but pointless all the same.

Having worked out how to order, it was all much simpler and easier. The food itself is very well put together, very well cooked and really very nice, without sparkling. There was no “wow” dish. The amuse bouche of deep fried salt cod balls was satisfyingly deep fried and cod tasting; a pasta parcel was al dente; the truffled eggs, three of which nestled on a bed of hay, were lovely; and the lamb cooked pink as advertised. All good, no coruscation.

The wines too are a fine selection of (mainly) Italians, from reasonably priced to trophy, with glasses of prosecco to kick off the evening.

It is early days, and hopefully the restaurant will go from strength to strength, but I am still not sure that Marylebone Village has that top end Italian it so clearly needs. Fortunately, just outwith the Village boundary lies Locanda Locatelli, where the food sparkles as much as the baubles adorning the ladies out lunching. And costs about as much.