South Kensington, Italian Restaurant Guide

“A throwback to old-school dining” – this wittingly old-fashioned chain (created in the last 10 years) channels an imagined La Dolce Vita lifestyle into its “enjoyable if slightly stuffy” mix of chic Italian cafés and restaurants (if you are of a certain age, think 1980s Tatler). They look “pretty” and are “attractive in their own way”: “not bad if a bit overpriced”. That’s the kind view anyway: harsher critics say they “could do better” and “don’t deserve a revisit”. But they must be doing something right, as in July 2021 they opened in St John’s Wood.

This “welcoming neighbourhood spot” on a Chelsea corner “won’t win awards – but it won’t let you down” with its “reliably tasty” Tuscan cooking. “The only downside is if you go late, the noise level is high.”

Celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, this family-run Italian on the Fulham Road is “everything you’d expect in an upmarket Chelsea restaurant” – although the service, led by host Lucio Altana and his sons Dario and Mirko, “is rather better than you might anticipate”.

Family-owned Italian near the Albert Hall that’s “a good option for getting away from the chains”. Open for five decades, it was apparently a favourite lunch haunt of Princess Diana, who would bring Princes Wills and Harry for pizza.

This “family-run bustling Italian with a loyal clientele” near Chelsea & Westminster hospital is “the locals’ favourite – I could eat here once a week”. The food (especially the pasta) is “well above average” (“bring a hearty appetite as portions are generous”) and prices “reasonable”, but it does get “very hectic” to the point of being “too noisy in the evenings” .

This “treasured Chelsea local, tucked away in a cosy basement off the Fulham Road ‘beach’”, inspires a devoted following from its regulars, looking after them with “classy and delicious” Italian dishes and an impressive wine list. Tourists and casual passers-by are unlikely even to notice the all-but-hidden entrance, adding to the clubbish appeal.

2022 Review: This Fulham Road newcomer on ‘The Beach’ opened mid-lockdowns with a contemporary Italian offering. It’s the brainchild of Leandro Longo (La Caricatura) and chef Ignacio Fuggiero (The Met). You can opt for an eight-course tasting menu (as well as two-course, three-course and à la carte options) but the approach has strong, traditional Italian roots.

2021 Review: Hit and miss feedback on this Italian three-year-old, in a posh side street opposite the entrance to the Chelsea & Westminster hospital. On the plus side, all reports rate the cooking as good or better. But it can also seem pricey for what it is, and meals don’t always run like clockwork: “the management and the regular clientele were treating the place as the most remarkable restaurant in this part of the world, but our service was very up and down, to the extent they gave us free puddings”.

2021 Review: “Neapolitan influences are evident in the choice of ingredients, and the wood-burning oven makes for good, chewy, charred crusts, unlike most high-street pizzas” – so say fans of this global chain, whose HQ is indeed in Naples. Not everyone is impressed, though, and ratings are dragged down by those who feel it’s merely an “everyday” choice: “OK for a bog-standard group, but not great”.