Enoteca Turi

It's maybe not the type of place you go to every week but whenever you do go it always feels rather special and the menu is always new. For some reason the menu seems to be much more interesting in the autumn/winter season, or maybe it's just that the typical dishes on the menu are better enjoyed on a cold an rainy autumn evening than on a sunny Saturday lunch in May.
There are few (if any) cliché italian dishes – you will not find pizza, salad tricolore, pasta bolognese or anything like that. This is REAL italian food as you can imagine it being served in a small rural restaurant in Italy! Vegetables are more likely to be cooked and served as dished in their own right than come as salads or garnish. They use a lot of beans, lentils and chickpeas as well as more “foody” vegetables such as artichokes, beetroots, aubergine and courgettes. Pasta dishes and risottos tend to be rich, whenever crab or lobster linguine is on the menu that's a sure winner.
There is often game (venison, rabbit, wild boar or game birds) on the menu as well as lamb and pork. There is usually at least one interesting fish/seafood dish but the menu is definitely more geared towards meat than fish. More red wine food than white wine food. And talking about wine; if your partner is a wine buff, make sure you're at least half an hour late meeting him/her at the restaurant to give him/her plenty of time to read through the wine menu (it's a book!). They serve a lot of wines by the glass/carafe/half bottle so you can try out a few different ones with your meal.
Service is quite formal and sort of old-fashined in a charming way. The atmosphere is fairly up-tight (but not in a stuffy or boring way, just that it's quite grown up and restrained); it's not really a party kind of place but more the sort of place you take your parents for their silver wedding anniversary . We come here for the quality of the food and wine and to have a nice, quiet dinner.

Lovely small intimate neighborhood restaurant. Very fresh pasta, excellent wine list, helpful staff. Owner takes personal interest, greeting each guest and overseeing operations.

Enoteca Turi is one of those local hidden gems which really doesnt seem to be as well known as it should be. We ventured there when i lived in Putney and my partner loved Italian food so i thought we should try this place. It always looked empty from the outside but i realise now this was because they seemed to fill the place up from the back outwards! Again, fabulous food which truly tasted ‘authentic’. I had steak which was cooked perfectly. Partner had veal and still talks about it regularly! You have to make bookings on the weekend but after trying so many places in town, this must be one of the best Italian places around.