Reading, Italian Restaurant Guide

This romantic, high-end dining room has brought a slice of Italy to Henley’s waterside since the mid-1990s; “the space is not large, but the extensive use of mirrors makes it feel airy” while the crowd-pleasing menu is always “reliably good”. Given its popularity, it can get “very noisy” – particularly during the local Regatta, which lends its name to one of their many specials (the latter “significantly more expensive than the standard menu offerings”, which are a bargain).

2023 Review: “A brilliant location” – on a picture-perfect stretch of lush Thames riverbank – is the justification for maintaining the listing of this Thames Valley veteran, on the fringe of Goring. On a sunny day, there are few nicer places to be. Its “classic Italian menu”? Not much commented on (nor, to be fair, criticised) and not the main point.

2022 Review: This ultra-stylish boutique hotel reopened in late 2016 after a multi-million-pound, two-year renovation. Its “lovely food choices” run the whole gamut from Japanese dishes through to sourdough pizzas, and a large garden contributes to what's “an ideal spot on the way to Henley”.