Review: Pescatori Mayfair

I am very rarely a fan of a brightly lit restaurant. However there was something reassuringly warming about the glow from Pescatori on Dover Street as we stepped away from the dark rainy evening outside.

We were welcomed by reassuringly Italian waitresses and seated at a cheery little table complete with vine tomatoes to taste while we perused the menu. We settled on the fresh crab salad and the goat’s cheese and chicory to start. The crab was plentiful and very fresh (as one would expect in a seafood restaurant). The goat’s cheese, chicory and walnut salad was delicious and just the right amount for a starter – although I could have eaten plenty more of it! I went for the salmon for main course (I’m a little bit of an amateur when it comes to fish so I play it safe for the most part) while he chose the wild sea bass. Both were delicious – as was the spinach accompaniment. We washed it all down with a bottle of Soave Classico, a decent mid-price bottle which complimented the food.

We rounded off the meal with a cheeseboard – these can be hit-and-miss – especially when you don’t have the opportunity to pick the cheeses yourself. Served with a tiny bowl of walnuts, honey and some crackers, these were a lovely way to end and perfect sharing food for a date (an easy point of discussion when your date’s conversational skills are otherwise lacking).

The bill was reasonable and the buzz of the restaurant combined with good food would entice me to return. The lack of personality in terms of the decor and ambiance is the only factor which lets down this otherwise very competent Italian – a safe bet on an otherwise risky Dover Street.

Review: Homeslice Pizza, Covent Garden

The Homeslice tagline is "Pizza, wine and beer" - and that is precisely what it delivers. Tucked in the charmingly hippy Neal's Yard at Seven Dials, the interior is all shabby minimalism - a sure fire way to know the food is the star of the show. Tables are packed in closely side-by-side - you may want to pop to the loo before the adjacent table receives their pizza - the sheer size of it makes climbing past an obstacle too far for me to bother.

The menu is far from ordinary with a blackboard of offerings ranging from basic margarita to oxtail and bone marrow. Pizza can be bought by the slice or as one giant (and I mean giant) pizza - one pizza fed five girls at my table so don't be tempted to over order. Diners are welcome to go half and half on toppings - we opted for a Caprese (torn buffalo mozzarella, tomato and basil) and a chorizo, corn and coriander half. For those of you fortunate to have visited my favourite pizza joint Franco Manca, the pizzas taste similar, with a lovely sourdough chewiness and not too much cheese to hide all the wonderful flavours. Ordering wine here is novel and gimmicky enough to win me over, with a magnum brought to the table for you to drink as much as you wish. The bottle is measured with an old school ruler at the end to work out how much you need to pay - a dangerous concept in the hands of some.

When our bill arrived at the end we felt like we were robbing the place - a fiver each including tip. Not bad in today's otherwise overpriced and queue heavy London pop-up scene.

Homeslicepizza.co.uk