Carrying a celebrity name like Jamie Oliver definitely sets the expectations bar as high as it could be, making it likely that people would say "I had high expectations but was disappointed". I think
it's best to go expecting casual Italian food (that's what it is).
Lucky 15 min wait on Saturday 8pm for fiveLuckily we got a table within 15 mins because we waited by the counter for no-shows.
Deep fried three cheese gnocchi with arrabbiata sauce - Great starter to go with beer!
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Deep fried three cheese gnocchi with arrabbiata sauce - Great starter to go with beer!
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Spinach & taleggio croquettes - The taste was quite unique for a croquette
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Spinach & taleggio croquettes - The taste was quite unique for a croquette
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Crab and avocado bruschetta - Super weird combination - ''sourdough'' taste like biscuit
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Crab and avocado bruschetta - Super weird combination - ''sourdough'' taste like biscuit
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Apart from the crab and avocado bruschetta,
all the starter were pretty good - great for sharing. We also ordered risotto balls and the simple green salad. Nothing amazing about the risotto balls, though they did have a nice spicy kick to it. The
salad leaves (though normal)
were very fresh.
Our famous tiger prawn linguine - Tastes good but quite typical too
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Our famous tiger prawn linguine - Tastes good but quite typical too
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Truffle tagliatelle - Tastes good but quite typical too
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Truffle tagliatelle - Tastes good but quite typical too
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Tasty though unmemorable pastasI did have higher expectations for pastas here but the two I ordered – Truffle tagliatelle and Our famous tiger prawn linguine
were not extraordinary – which is what I hoped they would be. They use homemade pasta here which I usually hate; but somehow they did a great job in keeping the pasta very al dente! The sauces were generally delicious, my main complaint would be that they are slightly common (which is not such a bad thing to be fair).
Lamb lollipops - Very well cooked (to medium rare) and good quality meat used
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Lamb lollipops - Very well cooked (to medium rare) and good quality meat used
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Polenta chips (came with the lamb lollipops) - Tastes good!
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Polenta chips (came with the lamb lollipops) - Tastes good!
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Lamb lollipops with polenta chipsWe love our meat medium rare and hate it when restaurants over cook! The lamb chops were cooked perfectly here and meat quality was good and fatty. I’d say it was a bit more rare than medium rare usually is - so make sure you emphasise well done if you don’t like raw meat.
The condiments were the key to this dish. The lamb was served with delicious herby red onion, yogurt and polenta chips (pictured below), which made it so you can’t say “they’re just lamb chops”!
Fish in a bag (on a bed of cracked wheat - kind of like rice) - Favourite dish of the night
- full of natural flavours
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Fish in a bag (on a bed of cracked wheat - kind of like rice) - Favourite dish of the night
- full of natural flavours
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Fish in a bag The fish in a bag doesn’t look very good but was definitely
my favourite main dish of the night. The fish had definitely been cooked at a perfect temperature – the texture was moist and soft. It’s served between a bed of cracked wheat (which tastes kind of like rice) and a layer of fiery arrabbiata sauce. There were were also cockles, mussels and other herby things in the wrapped foil, sauna-ed the whole package with strong flavours. Highly recommended by me!
Lemon meringue pie - Delicious!!! Highly recommended
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Lemon meringue pie - Delicious!!! Highly recommended
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Lemon meringue pie Comments on Instagram mentioned that desserts were generally better than the mains here. I definitely wanted to wipe the plate clean of the lemon meringue pie – the crunch and orange zest definitely added a thin layer of sophistication to the dessert. I’d definitely come back for this!
Epic brownie - A little too sweet and ''epic'' to me!
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Epic brownie - A little too sweet and ''epic'' to me!
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Great service, some great dishes and reasonably priced – give it a go if you’re lucky to avoid a long wait!If you call, they’re probably fully booked. If you walk-in, they’ll tell you to come back later (at 8:30/8:45/9:30 that kinda thing). If you’re happy to come back “later”, they put your name down and you’ll probably get your seat at that time. For us, we thought there are bound to be groups of people leaving their names down but ditching! It was 8:00 and we hoped there’d be no-shows and luckily got our table for five at 8:15!
I had heard bad things about logistics and service, but the above arrangement was not a disaster at all. Our server was polite, attentive and let’s just say we were willing to tip well. The menu and food is not exquisite or fine – it’s pretty casual but there are some really delicious dishes – croquettes, lamb lollipops, fish in a bag and lemon meringue pie - that are worth coming for.