The Dining Diaries: Eat like an Italian

One of my biggest pleasures living in London is the number of amazing restaurants on my doorstep. There’s no need to ever eat at the same restaurant twice, and you can go on a culinary tour of the world through without leaving the city. So I thought I’d start documenting some of my favourite recent eats. This is a somewhat daunting task as there a SO MANY good places to dine, but heck, me and my (ever-expanding) tummy are up for the challenge. First up, probably (definitely) my favourite cuisine: Italian!

SAN CARLO, REGENT STREET

I’ve always been vaguely aware of San Carlo Restaurants – they have a few branches in fairly central tourist locations. I admit I’d never really considered it before, as I have a horrible habit of writing off anywhere on one of the main central London streets as overpriced tourist fodder.

But I’m honestly so glad I finally gave it a go, because I was proved completely wrong.

Their menu is not the usual fare I’ve come to expect from an Italian menu. Yes, there are pastas, but don’t expect pizza, and there’s an impressive selection of appetisers, and cicchetti, a form of Venetian small plates that I grew to love when I last visited Venice. Glass of prosecco, handful of small bruschettas, and a view of the canals: bliss.

We started with cocktails, navigated through the menu by restaurant manager Livio. Livio also had a background as a sommelier, and helped us pair wines to our meal. I’ll admit I don’t know a huge amount about wine – I probably couldn’t tell you if I was drinking a bad one. But I could certainly tell I when I was drinking a good one.

They were beautifully smooth, and there was no heavy bitter taste that comes with some cheaper wines. I would never normally consider wine to be particularly flavourful, but these were. Definitely a step up from corner shop Echo Falls! Consider me a wine snob now.

When it came to food, it was almost impossible to narrow down a selection – they recommend 5-6 plates but trying to pick even that many is a struggle, as everything sounds so enticing. We eventually settled on dorset crab, scallops, lamb cutlet, paccheri pasta, burrata, and tuna carpaccio.

We were sitting outside, which despite a slight chill was a lovely spot for people watching. The venue we visited is on Regent Street just off Piccadilly Circus, so right in the centre of things. It’s a perfect spot for a lazy afternoon alfresco dining, whilst the interior is grandly decorated for a more intimate evening meal. Definitely a good date spot.

The food arrived and it was as good as the menu promised. The lamb cutlets with herbs were cooked perfectly, and a unanimous highlight was the dorset crab – crab can often be too ‘fishy’ but this had such a delicate, light flavour. Despite being absolutely stuffed, we managed to find it in ourselves to take a peek at the dessert menu, settling on the Tiramisu and Pistachio Cake with ice cream. Both were, unsurprisingly, also delicious. Although I’m a huge tiramisu fan I’d actually particularly recommend the pistachio cake. There’s really no better word to describe it than ‘squishy’, in the best possible way.

I left San Carlo vowing to return. The food was such a treat, but what left a lasting impression was the impeccable service. The entire team were so genuinely passionate about the food and drink, and they knew their stuff. The prices are a little on the high side, so I’d definitely recommend it for a special occasion, or to impress a hot date. But either way, definitely put it on your London bucket list!

San Carlo
2 Regent Street St James
SW1Y 4LR

Nearest tube Piccadilly Circus or Green Park

EMILIA’S, TOWER HILL

When I get asked about my favourite London spots, St Katharine’s Dock in Tower Hill inevitably comes up. So much so, that I’ve actually spent several of my birthdays drinking and dining in the area. It’s a hidden London gem, with restaurants and a beautiful old pub lining the marina.

Therefore it’s a surprise that I had no idea Emilia’s existed prior to visiting. It’s a gorgeous spot to embrace the slow Italian lifestyle, taking time over dining and socialising.

We started with the waitress’s recommendations: burrata (noticing a theme here? Burrata is so on-trend!) with heritage tomatoes, ciabatta, green beans and olives. I’d taken my dad for lunch, who got excited over the Italian craft beer selection (I had a sip of the ‘Baladin’ and didn’t hate it, which is high praise from me..). For me? Red wine, because a good glass of red and a big bowl of carbalicious pasta is a love affair that should not be messed with.

The flavours were beautifully fresh, and light enough to whet the appetite before the main affair. My father chose the casarecce with a walnut sauce and chestnut mushrooms, whilst I went with the lamb ravioli. Oh, and a peach bellini, because obviously I had to try a cocktail too in the name of journalism.

I rarely choose to order pasta in a restaurant, unless I’m in Italy. Most people have a usual preference, right? Pasta or pizza, and I’m generally the latter. Pizza is never disappointing, whereas pasta is so rarely up to the standard of classic Italian pasta, and can so often taste too heavy and overly saucy without much actual flavour.

But Emilia’s was up there with it’s Italian counterparts. The pasta is freshly handcrafted and it tastes it, with delicate flavours and sauces that complemented the pasta without being overpowering. My ravioli could perhaps have done with a tad more stuffing, but coated in a buttery sage sauce it was delightfully moreish.

Despite verging on a food coma we managed to find room to share a dessert (everyone knows there’s a separate dessert stomach!). The Emilia’s Special consisted of vanilla ice-cream topped with honey, amaretti, and canuccini biscuits. I’m not a huge fan of vanilla ice-cream, but with all the added extras it was completely delicious.

Saint Katharine’s Docks has always been a must visit London gem for me, but now I’ve tried Emilia’s, it’s got even more to recommend it. It’s a lovely laidback spot for a light lunch, or a romantic dockside dinner. If you squint hard enough (or drink enough wine!), you might just be able to pretend you’re on the canals of Venice…

Emilia’s Crafted Pasta
Unit C3 Ivory House
St. Katharine Docks
London
E1W 1AT

Nearest tube Tower Hill

PUREZZA, CAMDEN

Obviously, you can’t write an Italian dining guide without a pizza place. I could eat pizza all day, every day (this is something I have done, and not all the irregularly..).

But, it’s a pizza place with a twist.

Those pizzas look good, right? Well, what you can’t tell from the pictures is that Purezza is a completely vegan, plant-based pizza restaurant. Whilst I’m not vegan, I’m definitely open to trying more vegan alternatives in an attempt to lessen the negative impact of animal farming, so I was intrigued to give their pizza a go.

The menu looks like pretty much every other pizza menu, at first glance. There’s your Margherita, your Marinara, even dough balls. But there are a few distinct differences. You can choose a wholegrain or hemp sourdough base, as well as a gluten-free option. There are pizzas with aubergine, tofu, lots of courgette and artichoke. All sounding pretty healthy, but not very pizza-ry?

We settled on the ‘Season 4. Pizza. 1’, with artichoke, olives, mushrooms, smoked beetroot, and salad cress, alongside the special, with saffron, olives, sundried tomatoes and spinach, and a side of ‘cheesy’ dough balls. To clarify, the mozzarella is made of Italian brown rice milk. Can rice milk taste replicate the taste of cheesy goodness? I’m intrigued, but dubious.

When the pizzas arrived, I could tell they were going to be good. They looked beautiful, loaded with multicoloured toppings (I appreciate a pizza place that doesn’t scrimp on toppings). And the did not disappoint. Both were so flavoursome, and completely unique to Purezza. They tasted like no pizza I’d had before, and yet I wouldn’t be able to tell if I hadn’t already known, that they were made with vegan alternatives. The cheese tasted: like cheese!

The dough balls were another highlight, oozing with a molten cheese alternative that tasted buttery and delicious. We paired the dough balls with garlic mayo – I have no idea what they replaced the dairy with, but it tasted just like the garlic mayo I’m used to, if not better. We found ourselves getting so full though – the food is definitely very filling!

Luckily the desserts were manageable, as I couldn’t resist the lure of creme brûlée and tiramisu, my two favourite desserts. Out of everything, these tasted less like I expected them to, with distinctive flavours that weren’t necessarily what you’d associate with the two desserts. The tiramisu had a strong coffee taste, whilst the creme brûlée was almost fruity.

I would definitely recommend Purezza to any vegans looking for a great place to eat pizza in London. But honestly, I think I’d recommend it to anyone looking for great pizza. Because, vegan or otherwise, it was just well-cooked, delicious, cheesalicious pizza.

Could I give up my halloumi and mozzarella, and live on vegan alternatives? I’m not sure I’m quite there, but Purezza is making a seriously strong case.

43 Parkway
Camden
London NW1 7PN

Nearest Tube Camden Town