West Brompton, Italian Restaurant Guide

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”.

“Spot-on pasta” is a key draw at this “excellent local Italian” near Chelsea & Westminster Hospital “that welcomes kids” and “always delivers with charming service”. It’s the sort of place regulars “go to at least once a month, love it!” – which means it’s typically rammed.

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.

2023 Review: 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.

Fans of this “old-fashioned” and datedly glam trattoria near World’s End in Chelsea (est. 1966, and the haunt, in its heyday, of folks like Jack Nicholson) say it may “not be tops for food, but the atmosphere and ambience are addictive”(especially in its adorable garden in summer). Fears that it’s becoming too long in the tooth have been around for years, with sceptics suggesting “they’re just painting by numbers nowadays”; but true believers insist this view is “just snotty – the food is delicious and the service charming”. Top Tip – for a blast from the past, “the dessert trolley is an attractive feature”.