London’s love affair with Italian food isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. With over 2,000 Italian restaurants scattered across the city, it’s safe to say we can’t get enough of the stuff. Which is all well and good – until it comes to working out which ones are actually worth booking. That’s why we’ve dished up the top ten trattorias in town – from twirling truffle-topped tagliatelle to polishing off al dente pasta you cannoli dream about.
18 Thayer St, W1U 3JY
Nina, Marylebone
Best for: bluefin tuna e melone.
Nina is one of the hardest tables to get your hands on right now – and it’s easy to see why. We’re still dreaming about the smile-shaped slice of melon, stacked with scarlet slivers of sashimi-sliced bluefin tuna and splashed with a citrus-spiked ponzu sauce we had. Or the uber-buttery duck ragu bianco.
56 Dalston Ln, E8 3AH
Angelina, Dalston
Best for: Italo-Japanese food.
Anyone who’s anyone has heard of Angelina – it’s easily one of East London’s best restaurants. Feast your eyes – and your palate – on this fusion restaurant’s 13-dish tasting menu (that’s the only thing on offer) which changes more often than the British forecast. One second you’re slicing through silky sashimi, the next slurping spaghetti – and somehow, it works perfectly well.
Cantinetta Antinori, Knightsbridge
Best for: truffle and tiramisu fans.
Truffle fans, this one’s for you. This Tuscan treasure on Sloane Street has a whole menu dedicated to the stuff. Its homemade fettucine, folded through perfectly aged Parmesan and finished with theatrically shaved truffle tableside, has been a firm favourite since it opened. So has its veal fillet escalope, submerged in a silky lemon sauce. But pace yourself: you’ll also want to polish off the pillowy pistachio tiramisu.
4 Harriet St, SW1X 9JR
40–41 Rathbone Pl, W1T 1HX
Circolo Popolare, Fitzrovia
Best for: people who like to post their pasta.
Go Big Mamma Group or go home – or better yet, head to the OTT Italian brand’s OG in Fitzrovia. With walls lined with 20,000 bottles, spaghetti carbonara spun inside a 4kg pecorino wheel, a ten-layer lasagne, a six-inch-high lemon meringue pie, and a cocktail list longer than its waitlist, this Italian has impressed – and featured – on every foodie’s Instagram feed.
Padella, Borough Market
Best for: pasta worth the wait (and the walk).
Eight dishes. No reservations. Always a queue. This wildly popular pint-sized pasta bar in Borough Market is proof that less is more. There’s an emerald-green spinach tagliarini tangled with nettles and a golden egg yolk nesting on top – hand-rolled by chefs who can’t seem to catch a break. And there’s you, waiting patiently outside – knowing good things come to those that wait.
6 Southwark St, SE1 1TQ
9–15 Pavilion Rd, SW1X 0HD
Sale e Pepe, Knightsbridge
Best for: Amalfi-inspired flavours.
Sale e Pepe is where you go after a shopping spree at Harvey Nicks and Harrods. It’s also where you go to spoon every last drop of the gamberi scottati: warm red prawns lathered in an Amalfi lemon and EVO oil sauce. Then, lap up the lobster linguine – tossed tableside and made for two (if you can bear to share).
