Marylebone, Italian Restaurant Guide

“Classic Italian dishes are executed as well as one could hope for” at Giancarlo & Katie Caldesi’s “long-established” Marylebone stalwart: “the food is always very good – ragu a case in point – and the specials and seasonals can be mouthwatering”. That remains the majority view anyhow, although its critics feel results are “competent if unexciting”. Still, it’s proved a successful base for expansion, as the couple also run a restaurant in Bray (complete with cookery school) and in April 2024 added a new offshoot in Belsize Park: an initial report says the NW3 branch is “a welcome addition, well-designed with friendly staff; and serving a relatively short menu including pizza and pasta, if at West End prices”.

This “pleasant Italian restaurant near the Royal Society of Medicine and Wigmore Hall” serves “quality food” with Venetian touches at a price that is “very reasonable for Marylebone”. It also offers a “surprisingly good lunch deal”.

2023 Review: Carrying the name of Richard Caring’s famous Harry’s Bar in Mayfair (which is still members only), this sub-brand spin-off near Selfridges aims to encapsulate classic La Dolce Vita-style glamour. All of the limited feedback acknowledges decent Italian cooking, but is riddled with quibbles feeding back to the level of expense (“good food but the tables are packed too tightly and we’ll give it miss in future, as it did not have the right ambience for the price…”; “food was mediocre at the ridiculous price…”).

“Good food in generous portions, excellent service and a lively ambience” tick all the boxes at this Italian brasserie – an outpost of the Birmingham-based San Carlo group, which took over this sizeable site – a former Carluccio’s in St Christopher’s Place, near Selfridges – three years ago. Its large outside terrace with 50 covers takes advantage of this pedestrianised enclave, which feels surprisingly tranquil for somewhere just off Oxford Street.

2023 Review: Few restaurants can boast the heritage of this Mayfair two-year-old: the first ever spin-off from a Milanese original of over 120 years’ standing. It’s still a case of promise unfulfilled, though, with reports that are very up and down, despite a general acknowledgement of “friendly service and a pleasant interior” (the latter very classical in style). “Eye-watering prices” are key to the ambivalence felt by diners, despite some dishes that are “clearly wonderful” – if you give it a go, perhaps try the set lunch, which is “exceptional value by comparison to other options here”.

“Classy and sophisticated Italian food” in “a buzzy environment” with a “posh clientele” still inspires a lot of love for Giorgio & Plaxy Locatelli’s well-known destination off Portman Square. “You certainly aren’t transported to the streets of Florence or Milan with the hotel’s sleek decor”, but its moody style is often recommended for a romantic dinner. On the downside, though, resistance to its price-level grew significantly this year, with almost one third of nominations in our annual diners’ poll as the most overpriced meal of the year.

The “beautiful dining room” and “glitzy decoration” ensure this Italian-American-themed Marylebone yearling from the Big Mamma Group is “a great hit on Instagram”. But “that doesn’t compensate for some very average food and utterly ridiculous prices” – many reporters reckon it’s “all show and no substance” – “and not particularly fun” either.

In the fair number of reports on the Fraquelli brothers’ Italian brasseries in Marylebone and Notting Hill, the range of opinion spans from “solid and reasonably priced” to “average and somewhat overpriced”. No-one suggests they are either very good or particularly terrible – “spacious”… “very pleasant”… “perfectly decent” are the kind of descriptions people attach. Business-wise though, they are going great guns, with backing from industry heavyweight Simon Woodroffe (founder of Yo!) and in February 2024 they successfully crowdfunded £1.2m to open a third Brasseria in late 2024, taking over the former site of the confusingly similarly-named ‘La Brasserie’ in South Kensington – which operated there under that name for 30 years – and where they now aim to ‘combine Italian flavour and style with New York service and a Parisian grand brasserie atmosphere’.

“We love the pistachio decor and the spacious seating”, say fans of this expanding chain, which had operated as a treasured old deli in Soho for over 75 years before starting to branch out as a pasta-chain in 2018. Impressions of it are something of a mixed bag though. To fans, its stylised outlets are “very convenient” and “can be trusted for a good-value and enjoyable experience with excellent food” (mostly pasta) in “sensible portions”. On the downside, though, are a fair number of diners to whom it’s a good concept whose execution is “perfectly fine but unexciting” (“starters good, pasta average-to-good, but compared with folk who had raved to me about other branches, I was left with a sense of ‘meh?’”). Still, their backers are enthusiastic and this year they added new locations in Greek Street and South Kensington.

“There’s a fun, party atmosphere with loud music (that might not be to everyone’s taste)” at this Italian yearling in a swish boutique hotel: part of the US Tao Group, who also own Hakkasan and Yauatcha; and who run Lavo siblings in LA, NYC, Singapore and Mexico City. It’s a kind of rich man’s Gloria – you go more for the colour-changing ceiling light feature and to channel ersatz Italian Hollywood glamour than you do to mull over the authenticity of its comfort foodish menu, which takes in pizza, pasta and the likes of chicken parmigiana on the way to the climax of its signature ‘indulgent 20-Layer Chocolate Cake’. Even so, most reports insist it’s “a great addition to Marylebone”.

“Request the elegant first-floor dining room” when you dine at this large Italian in Mayfair, imported from LA (there’s also a ground-floor bar). It opened in late 2022 and reports are still not as numerous as we’d like; but early diners are wowed by the classily ritzy decor and high-quality cuisine. There’s also a cigar lounge and terrace.