Locanda Locatelli

One of the best high-end italian restaurants in town. I would say the food is somewhat more classic and refined (similar to say zafferano but by now probably a touch better) than the top-notch but slighly “simpler” dishes you'll get at say river cafe or theo randall (they're great though, don't get me wrong – just a slightly different take). Like the other top places it is always down to the ingredients that make the dishes work. A really good venue both for lunch and dinner with attentative service.

I got taken here by my wife on Friday 10th March for my 30th Birthday and it was truly one of the best meals if not the best I have ever had! I had wanted to go for some years as I am a huge fan of Giorgio Locatelli and so when we walked in, it was a complete surprise as I had no idea I was being taken there. The welcome was excellent, very warming and completely un-pretentious which is always a danger with places of this calibre. We had a lovely table and overcame some delicious bread and oil of sublime quality. The wine list is all Italian naturally but not a problem; working in the wine trade, this presented me with a problem – what could I possibly choose!!?? I went for a 2006 Brunello di Montalcino as I had already picked my main dish and so knew this would be a great match.
My starter was scallops with celeriac puree, lovely, light and almost palate cleansing in a strange way, very pleasant experience. Next came the pasta ribbons with chicken livers and crispy sage; I am a HUGE pasta fan and offal fan, this was excellent, the sauce was rich and highly tasty without being too rich and claggy. Main was braised ox cheek with polenta and seasonal vegetables; ox cheek was like butter and the sauce of bitter chocolate and red wine was every bit as luscious as I thought it would be, portion was excellent given its £30 price tag, cooked to perfection, and the polenta was well prepared and only a small amount needed. Dessert was chocolate and pistachio fondant with milk ice cream and toffee sauce; perfect end to the meal. All ended with espresso and house chocolates which themselves exquisite. The fact it was my birthday meal did heighten the evenings atmosphere and enjoyment, but with that said, it was still probably the best meal I have ever had. Can’t wait to go back again!

Locanda Locatelli serves the best Italian food outside Italy I know. It is seldom that a celebrity chef so directly delivers what he promises. The restaurant is a true pleasure, of course this level comes at a price but it is a truly very good effort. The menu covers the classics but allows for some slightly more innovative dishes as well. A top pick in London. This impression was recently re-affirmed. Italian in London? Look no further.

Truly one of the worst meals I've had in London in quite some time. Veal was like leather. The special cod starter was like an average fish pate. A real disappointment.

Locanda Locatelli oozes money. The staff, the decor and the clientele. They all scream, in a modest understated way, that if you have to ask the price of anything, you shouldn't be here. Now beating up a restaurant on Portland Square, next to Little Arabia and just up from hedgefund-land, for its pricing might feel a tad unnecessary. It's like attacking the child infused atmosphere of a Harvester during the middle of the summer holidays or as someone less verbose than I would put it, like shooting fish in a barrel. That being said, I feel it's important to make the point, as unless price is entirely and utterly irrelevant to you, pricing this steep can easily get in the way of even a very good meal.

Baccala’ Mantecato, that Venetian treat of salt cod blended with olive oil to a smooth paste with the lightest hint of the sea came with aromatic pomodoro tomatoes, watercress and a crumble of tasty polenta crisp. A rustic winter classic, scoffed by the ton as a way of getting the most out of the preserved fish in leaner months. A beautiful and expansive starter with tons of contrasting flavour, followed a vast and interesting breadbasket, opening well, but at £14.50 a plate, enough to give all but the most homesick of Venetians a moment's pause.

We both went for a pasta course as our main, my guest sampling the Strozzapreti pasta, a rougly rolled penne style ideal for holding a thicker tomato sauce full of olive and spicy soft n'duja salami. I went for perfectly cooked risotto over, slightly salty, duck ragu, served with a handful of girolles. It was good ribsticking fare, the kind that you'd expect at any trattoria across the Italian countryside, but with both at over £20 a plate when you pay the main course ‘supplement’, a little (or a lotto) on the steep side. The carne and pesci selections are also often recommended by regulars, small selections of pan fried or char grilled fresh fish and meats with simple accompaniments.

As you'd expect, the wine list is aimed at the high end, but there are a number of reasonable surprises and it's telling that they've won a number of awards for the long, well thought out (predominently Italian) list. It's not just the obvious regions they cover, we went for a Nero Di Troia from unfashionable Puglia in the South, it's bright blackberry and prune notes with only a hint of tannin balancing perfectly against the rustic tomato and meat sauces. You'll find a few below fifty a bottle, but you have to look hard.

Despite the vast number of night clad servers, roaming and floating between the soft white clad tables and gold banquettes like exclusive, sleek and designed water taxis through the Venetian canals, the attention to detail was mixed at best. The water server seemingly over-compensated, leaning across us to refill after every gulp of (not offered until asked for) tap, for the stingy smear of Sicilian extra virgin, poured, providenced but never topped up and the long, long wait to get the bill. Minor quibbles sure, but, as with the food itself, the caveat has to be that you expect better for the price.

This is food my mama used to make. Its food her mama used to make! I have had four dinners here in three weeks (am trying to get as many lovely evenings out before my twins arrive in early june) and I am not only a very lucky woman, I am astounded at the level of professionalism. I am an Italian who spent her childhood listening to my family discuss what they were eating for breakfast, lunch and dinner, not understanding the importance as a child. Now I get it! Giorgio Locatelli's flair for keeping everything simple, tasty, nutritious and clean is un-surpassed. This is truly Italian food, in a glamorous and sleek operation that I can only imagine will continue to thrive. The bread basket is heaven on earth – prehaps the only fault was that it was impossible to leave it alone. No cover charge for bread! And what bread!
I had the sole (on the bone) which was the freshest fish I think I have ever eaten in London. It came on a bed of vegetables that were al dente and full of flavour. The service was seamless and the (half glass – pregnant remember) red wine that I had with my pasta – kid goat ragout – starter, reccomended by the sommelier, was top notch.
Everything faultless. Love you, Locanda Locatelli. Get those high chairs ready – we're coming back en famille!

A good choice for dinner, lovely food, really authentic. I think if you are a foodie, then this is your place, as the chef does Italian very well.

Location is right behind Oxford street, so very central.

Ambiance, I wasn't convinced. I'm more of a Chelsea type, but it seemed a bit flat to me.

Food was the absolute highlight, so go for that. Go elsewhere for a scene.

Whilst it may not be cheap, I have always found the service at Locanda Locatelli to be excellent. In fact it was the service that from day one, drew me in and encouraged me to make repeat visits. The food is excellent and LL is home to the best scallop dish I have ever had… The Capesante Al'Aspretto di Zafferano is a revelation of carefully balanced flavours. Plump scallops with celery and a saffron vinaigrette are a great way to kick off the meal. The one thing about LL is that the food is pretty simple. If its innovative, stylised cooking you are looking for then you are better off spending your money elsewhere. My Italian friends blast LL for what is essentially overpriced and very simple and rustic cookery… But where quality is concerned, there is no scrimping here. The standard of cookery is excellent, even if the skill involved isn't overly complex.

I always like to choose fish when I eat here but depending on the time of year, they do a mean pork and also veal chop, cooked to perfection, juicy and succulent. I am always happy to pay those prices for beautifully cooked and prepared food.

The only down side is that the dining room is a bit lifeless, which is why I prefer to lunch here as dinner's lack ambience.

I'm sorry that my first review for 2011 has to be a negative one. My last visit to Locanda Locatelli was about a year ago and I thought the food then was clever and inventive. So I was really quite excited about going back. Sadly like the stock market, restaurants can go down as well as up, and this was the case with Locanda. This time the beef carpaccio, which I usually love, seemed tasteless and the stewed neck of lamb was fatty and stringy. I understand that the vogue (culinary or financial I wonder) is to use cheap, unloved cuts but this one truly was a case of mutton dressed up as lamb. To charge £27.50 for it therefore showed that Signor Locatelli has a stronger nerve than most. For me however, I'll be voting with my feet; it's back to Incanto, my local in Harrow on the Hill where the food is nearly as good for half the price. Oh and if the waiters had smiled even once I would have put their service score up a point.

What a treat I had, my Husband and younger Daughter booked us in for the most fabulous lunch for my Birthday treat, (this is our special treat Restaurant).

The Restaurant is quietly decorated, with a feeling of space due to the clever design seating -no dodgy tables and chairs, flattering lighting-thank you for that! the atmosphere is of people enjoying wonderful food, a contented happy, being served with polite decent people.

The bread basket was lavishingly full of the most wonderful FRESH Italian Breads.
My Husband and the Wine waiter decided on the most delicious Sparkling White to start and a very beautiful Red that complimented our main course, (the wine list would leave any wine buff speachless and the waiter knows each and eveyone of them).

For a starter I had the smoked Goats cheese with spinach, refreshingly gorgeous
As it is the Truffle season we could not resist the Veal with White Truffle for main course, heavenly treat.
For desert everything Chocolate, sex on a plate!
Again the waiter knows the way round the menu dish by dish.
Coffee and home made chocs, the perfect way to end a perfect meal.

I have nothing else to say but as always, from the moment we walk in to when we leave, absolute perfection.

THIS GUY HAS IT RIGHT!, not done the Restaurant chain, like so many of the T. V Chefs, we have had the most dreadful meals, poor service and at times been ill for several days after eating at their Restaurants. Hence, this is why we have Laconda Locatelli as our special Restaurant, the experience is good to look forward to and look back on!

Thank you for making a celebration so special.
See you for the Husbands 65th!

Jan.