Holland Park, Italian Restaurant Guide

2021 Review: “Go for the wine: there’s a great selection” focused solely on Italy at this Kensington yearling, with bottles lining many of the walls. Even fans can note that the food (pasta, cheese and meat boards, salads) “is not as good”, but it avoids any harsh critiques. Brunch here is also a possibility.

“Roberto, Francesco and Alberto are finally back” (after a prolonged closure during Covid) and “really go out of their way to make you feel welcome” at their “wonderful neighbourhood Italian” in posh Holland Park. Its large local fanclub sometimes acknowledge that “prices are too high”, but don’t mind because the food (including a number of Sardinian specialities) is “tasty and well presented” and the overall performance makes it “dependable for any occasion”.

“Such traditional, family-run restaurants are quite a rarity in London these days”; and the Chiavarinis have maintained this “quintessential”, “old-fashioned” trattoria, opposite the Design Museum, for over 50 years. Fans say the food is “terrific, albeit a bit pricey probably because of its posh postcode”. But there is a less charitable school of thought, which says results are “uninspired, but it’s always busy, possibly because the locals don’t know how to cook…”

This tasteful backstreet 1980s Italian, with interesting art on the walls, sits in the no-man’s-land between Kensington and Olympia; and has become less well-known since the death of Michael Winner ten years ago (who used to plug it remorselessly in The Sunday Times as his favourite restaurant). Its quiet virtues as a high quality and authentic venture have changed little over the years: “still love this venue, but best to go in the week when the kitchen isn’t too busy”. Top Menu Tip – go for fish and seafood here.