Enoteca Turi

Good food and vaste wine list.

Its about a year since Zucca closed, and its left a hole in our restaurant list for a restaurant serving interesting yet traditionally- based Italian food, of good quality and without breaking the bank. Does Enoteca Turi fill that gap? Well in some ways it does, sufficiently to anticipate a repeat visit, certainly. We ate five courses between us today, and none were less than nicely cooked and presented. We ate a mix of a la carte dishes and choices from the set lunch menu. We each had a starter- in my case Baccala with polenta; in my wife's case the day's creamy lentil soup . Both pretty good, we thought. For mains we opted for main course-sized pasta dishes; my wife agnolotti with veal, me Paccheri with a sausage ragu and bitter turnip tops that complemented the dish very nicely. We had a half litre of a pleasant Monferrato from northern Italy and again this worked well. So from the point of view of food quality and flavours I'd say we were well satisfied today. Service was brisk ( maybe a fraction too brisk) and always pleasant and friendly. A couple of things we found maybe a little surprising. First for a restaurant serving food that is in essence fairly informal, the restaurant itself looks and feels a bit stiff, with wait-staff dressed in suits and uniforms, and this is reflected in the way the restaurant looks . Its as if there's something of a dissonance between the nature of the food and the look of the premises/staff. Also. for a person eating his main meal in a restaurant perhaps 150 days of the year, I eat remarkably few desserts. Reason is that I'm diabetic and it takes a lot to tempt me. So usually my main meal in starter, main, wine and coffee, and I find in general that that's enough for me. Today, well my a la carte starter and a main course pasta wasn't quite enough. The pasta ( and my wife's) was somewhat on the small side, and I should say that they might have given rather more of the delicious, smoky, sausage ragu as well. It really wouldn't hurt to give a little more. And that's why my "value" mark is below the food mark. It is not because the food is hugely expensive, its because the main course portions were IMO too small, maybe placing delicacy before satisfaction. Still, a good meal, and we will go back.

A longstanding favourite in Putney high street. Regional Italian at its best.

Simply the best italian restaurant in London! This is real italian genuine food, providing a wide range of the italian cuisine from all the different regions, which makes it even more special, because every time I go there, I know there will be something that reminds me of my region plus dishes from other parts of italy. The wine list is extensive and lists all possible good wines from all over Italy Service is always attentive and friendly I have been to Enoteca Turi several times over the years and always loved it

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.