Evening Standard
When this restaurant’s purist-baiting pitch first came to his notice, Jim Famurewa dismissed the whole enterprise as clickbait – “winking Britain camp” and “a silly play for virality”. But when he tasted the cooking from ex-Boca di Lupo chef Alex Purdie, he realised there was more to the enterprise than provoking rage in Milan.
‘Britalian carbonara’ was a case in point. Cream-laden and topped with a fried egg, it has indeed created a stir in the blogosphere. But in fact the dish is “a consoling, subtly magnetic rib-squeezing hug of pure comfort, ravishingly pan-fresh and a total showcase for Purdie and his team’s palpable experience.” Ditto ‘zuppa inglese’, “a prettily layered, Italianate trifle featuring boozy sponge, luxuriant custard and a crowning sprinkle of toasted almonds”.
Jimi concluded that Café Britaly is in fact a “sensitively rendered, keenly priced, modern rewiring of the neighbourhood bistro” and “a perfect showcase for the bravura intensity of Purdie’s cooking”.
Jimi Famurewa - 2024-06-23
