Pizzicotto

This little restaurant is the sister of Il Portico a few doors down, which has been in the same family ownership for 49 years and counting. Tonight I tried a little sample of pasta dishes, all made fresh in the kitchen downstairs: tagliatelle with pork belly ragu, tortellini with mortadella and pork, strozzagareti Romagnoli (twisted pasta strips with crema of Prosciutto, ruccola pesto and squacquerone cream cheese). I liked the ragu, and particularly an off-menu pasta with aubergine (13/20 average).

Nduja pizza with radicchio was unusual and worked well, the bitterness of the radicchio balancing the gentle spiciness of the pork sausage spread. Pizza Napoleone had Portobello mushrooms and Taggiasche olives. The pizza base here is very good, the wood-fired oven adding a pleasing smoky flavour note (easily 13/20).

Service was friendly, the owner a genial host and seemingly always in residence. The bill, with a good Amarone wine, came to £70 a head, but if you ordered cheaper wine then a typical cost per person would be about £50. This is fair value for properly made Italian food

Further reviews: 20th Apr 2019 | 20th Mar 2016