Manicomio Chelsea

Manicomio means lunatic asylum in Italian. I asked the hostess why such an interesting name had been chosen and she replied that it was on the site of a previous lunatic asylum. If so, the dubious atmosphere has not carried through to the present day. This is a highly competent restaurant and we had an excellent lunch. Food was beautifully presented and it was perfectly cooked and outstandingly delicious. The restaurant was full, as befits Duke of York Square on a Saturday, but service remained competent although one did have a sense that staffing was short and the stalwarts on duty were rushed. The only quibble is the value for money. The total bill for lunch for four without wine or dessert came to a hundred and seventy four pounds including service. Not terrible but certainly not impressive value either. We recommend Manicomio but do come with a full wallet and with the full realisation that you are in that pricey frontier between Chelsea and Belgravia. Approached with that attitude, Manicomio is a welcome bit of madness.

I have been here many times and am not dissappointed, nor am I blown away, though the prices do seem to have increased since the last time. We shared a cicchetti platter which offered a good selection and was excellent, though hardly difficult (dried meats, mozarella, salmon tartare, roasted vegetables, tartines of pate and cheese). I followed with light gnocchi with spicy sausage (of which there was very little) and a heritage tomato salad, perfect combination. My colleagues both ate excellent beef ribs & potato cake, though my American colleague was somewhat dissppointed by the portion size... not suprising! 2 deserts - tiramisu and chocolate both rich and superb. Good atmosphere and service (apart from asking 4 times for some water!), I will still return until i discover a better Italian in the area. It is cold and wet now, but heartily recommend going when warmer as there is great outside space, especially for people watchinig in the summer!

Manicomio is the perfect choice post an evening performance at the Royal Court theatre in Sloane Square. No need to wade through the entire menu, simply choose a simple pasta to make for a relaxing end to the day. But what is really special here is the Gavi – simply the best example I have drunk. Service was excellent and allowed for my guests to enjoy their supper at a relaxed pace. I will return for another bottle of the house Gavi.

Greeted by extremely polite and helpful maitre d who facilited our table for three outside with ease. The waitress was equally charming and took our order (3 courses each) without any need for notes. Water and vino brought promptly. The food was, as usual, good without being exceptional. (apart from the cheese which was exceptional!) The rain was coming down hard but as we dined beneath one of the huge umbrellas with a strategically placed gas heater nearby nobody really noticed.

Good location and very good food let down by average and at times sloppy service, with an expensive finish. Regardless, Manicomio is always reliable and has good alfresco on a warm evening. Pick your waiter carefully!

I have been going to Manicomio for many years and in all that time, the quality of the food has remained high and the service always charming and attentive. The outside dining area is very attractive and a great spot for alfresco dining. I have entertained a wide variety of clients there, it appealing to all ages both men and women. The produce used is of the highest quality and their pasta is made on the premises. There are also lots of meat and fish dishes available always of the highest quality served with vegetables which are far from everyday. Simply delicious. The interior is equally attractive with a great bar to sit at. It is a little bit noisy, but that is a byproduct of popularity. A special mention must go to the restaurant manager who is always smiling, greeting and solving with alacrity any queries raised by a diner. Long may this excellent local restaurant remain, allowing me to sit and people watch whilst enjoying a glass of prosecco with friends, followed by delicious pasta and the yummiest deserts to be found anywhere. PS try the rosemary bread. I am hooked on it.

The best antipasti platter I have ever eaten! Fantastic selection including parma ham and melon, bresaola, salami, buffalo mozzarella, foie gras, bruschetta, olives, peppers, aubergine; all looked amazing and tasted great, much enjoyed. Lovely glass of Gavi di Gavi. Excellent, would recommed.

Manicomia – if you take out the ‘omia’ the ‘Manic’ was certainly our experience yesterday! Everything one and everything was buzzing, the sun was shining and the bottle of rose we selected was a dream but oh dear, it all started to go wrong. After a very long wait and nearly ready to order our second bottles of water and wine the main courses arrived. Woops they forgot to give us our starter, the reknowned antipasta, our waiter denied that we had ordered a starter but was encouraged to check his order book to find that we had indeed asked for one. We said no major problem declined the offer of just having our main courses and the wait began. We waited and waited, dish after dish of antipasta passed by us but one never stopped at our table despite pointing out that an hour later we had not eaten. Finally it arrived, gorgeous, mouth watering choice of goodies. Duly satisfied our main course arrived I had delicious veal on a bed of lettuce with asparagus etc. but it was cold. This was blamed on the poor salad underneath, we thought it was our original served up dish being returned to us. Needless to say hot, warm or cold it was divine. The red mullet was also greatly appreciated. Oh! they forgot to give us our rocket and parmesan salad. We were served with the best biscotti we have ever had with our coffees (of which we need two, as you can imagine after two bottles of wine!). Will we return – you bet, we love the place and will always remember our adventure yesterday with fond memories and our thanks to the Manager who was excellent in sorting everything out.

This looked lovely from the outside (especially the outside terrace) and so we queued for a table in the sunshine. The menu itself sounded delicious but the meal itself was extremely disappointing. The ingredients did not seem fresh and the menu seemed to “embellish” the dishes. My friend had a panini which, for £8, was worse than you get in high street chains and was really greasy. I went for the soup which was tasteless and unseasoned. Although I like to be able to add my own salt and pepper, it's nice if the chef has seasoned it a little! The staff were inattentive and we were unimpressed by their attitude. When we ordered tap water alongside our bottle of wine, it seemed that we were speaking a foreign language and we were asked whether we were sure we did not want bottled! There are lots of Italian Cafes/delis in the Belgravia area and I would definitely recommend skipping this one and going somewhere else. The only positive is the location which is great for shopping.

A great choice for lunch or dinner. The balance between food & ambiance is spot on. Good mix of older and younger crowd. Fashionable, stylish crowd. You can't beat Manicomio for location and food. Tucked away in Duke of York Square in Chelsea, you really feel like you've stumbled upon a little hideaway. Afterwards, nip over to Patisserie Valerie for take away pastries & you're set!