Roman in London - Palatino Review
Where do you go when you want Roman food in London? That was the question that came to me from a colleague at work (he’s from Rome, so no pressure!). So, looking through the various Italian restaurants in London, I stumbled across Palatino by Stevie Parle, focussing on food from Rome... sounded like a winner!
If you haven’t heard of Stevie Parle, he’s running a bit of a London restaurant mini-empire, with Rotorino, Craft London, Sardine and Palatino, which opened in early 2017. He started out at The River Cafe, Petersham Nurseries and Moro before launching Dock Kitchen, hist first restaurant, all signs Palatino should be good. The Location Palatino is in the mish mash that is the urban area between the Old Street and Angel, where the old and the new seem to mix. Around a 10 minute walk from Old Street and 15 from Angel station, unless you’re working locally or live in the area, you’ll be seeking this place out specifically.
To make an evening of the visit, there’s The Gibson down the road if you’re looking for well-crafted cocktails as a pre or post dinner drink, (just call ahead first), as well as the whole of Shoreditch a short bus ride away. The Space Walking into Palatino, you may be slightly confused that you’re in the wrong place. You’re greeted by what almost seems like an office reception before turning left to see the long dining tables and open kitchen. The reason for this is because Palatino shares the building with a co-working space and bar, which makes a change from most purpose built restaurants. Once you're in though, your focus will definitely be on the food.
Sitting down, the restaurant has an industrial vibe to it; lots of steel, exposed filament lightbulbs, wires and pipes, not quite like a Roman trattoria. Despite that, the place is bright and airy, with the exposed kitchen in the corner and mustard booths adding some colour. It could easily fit the bill for a casual mid week meal or a date night, with the two of you sharing a bottle of red and pasta.
The Food The menu is split into the traditional Italian style; Antipasti (£4.5-£9.5), Primi (£8-16 depending on size), Secondi (£14-26), Contorni (£5), Dolci (£7-8) and Gelato (£3). There’s also a very reasonable Presto (set menu) of two or three courses at £16 or £20 if you’re seated between 12-3pm and 5:30-7pm. As we were a group, we went for a mix and match of the a la carte and Presto menus. We also started out with a Palatino Spritz made up of pine needle and sour cherry, Cynar and Merchant's Heart floral tonic. I was worried it would be too medicinal in flavour from the pine needle, but it was perfectly refreshing with a slight sweet and sourness, ideal for the hot weather!
Food-wise, I opted for the Presto menu, starting with stracciatella, anchovy, toast. Stracciatella is very similar to burrata; it’s almost like the inside once you’ve burst the burrata ball, creamy and rich. The toast was a great way to start the meal, crunchy, with a generous dollop of stracciatella on top, with an anchovy and small piece of lemon to finish. If you’re not a fan of anchovy you can always take it off, but the sharp saltiness works well with the creamy cheese. Slight downside with the dish was the toast had some charring on the edges which added that burnt toast flavour that overpowered the rest of the ingredients... slightly disappointing given toast should be pretty straightforward, and just showed a lack of attention to detail, but still enjoyable for the stracciatella.
Other starters ordered were the spinach and ricotta ravioli. This dish was delicious. The butter and cheese sauce coated the plate, which I could have eaten with a spoon, and the ravioli sat almost floating in it. The ravioli themselves were well done, with a good proportion of filling that you could taste, alongside the spinach-based green pasta adding an interesting twist.
We also had a portion of the fried sage leaves to share. These were coated in a light batter and paired with a honey vinegar dip, something I hadn’t tried before but it was both sweet and sour and worked well. This dish was complimentary due to a wait for the last starter for the group, which was a nice touch, showing an awareness for customer service which was very good on the night.
Onto the mains, which was effectively a round of Cacio e Pepe orders, bar a couple of people (it’s lauded as the best dish so everyone obviously had to order it!). Cacio e Pepe has been making the rounds around London with the buzz around fresh pasta spots that have sprung up. It is literally just pasta (usually similar to spaghetti), cheese and pepper which combines to create a delicious dish. Probably the most notable London establishment is Padella in Borough Market, which has set the standard for affordable, fresh pasta which appears to be a winning formula. Others include Pastaio, Emilia's, Burro e Salvia and Flour and Grape, and I’m sure there’s others I’ve missed out.
This Cacio e Pepe appeared and was served up with a slight lack of affection, instead of a mound it was more a sprawl across the plate, but hey, it’s pasta. Since I was dining with a couple of Romans, I asked their thoughts on the dish. Key takeaways were the tonarelli (similar to spaghetti) was cooked well with an al dente feel that pasta should have. The telicherry pepper was strong, almost to the point where it could be too much for some people. The sauce could also have been slightly creamier, with just a ladle more of pasta water needed to create that perfect consistency. Overall, not too bad though. Not a showstopper but an okay Cacio e Pepe (standards were pretty high though!).
The other main we tried was the gnocchi. Served Roman style, this isn’t gnocchi as you’ve seen it before. Instead of the usual small bean shaped pasta bites, this was served up as islands of soft potato on the plate, topped with tomato sauce, and plenty of grated Parmesan to finish. Again, deferring to the Romans, they were big fans of the dish, and were surprised that it was served in the traditional Roman way. The tomato sauce had good acidity, and combined with the light gnocchi and salty Parmesan, the plate was a palate pleaser.
Lastly, dessert. As part of the Presto menu, I couldn’t resist going for the pear and wine gelato over the tart. Unfortunately, I wasn’t impressed with it. Served as one scoop in a bowl that seemed to be a measuring guide, the portion wasn’t the most generous. The flavour was interesting, but the gelato didn’t have that creaminess you come to expect, particularly if you’ve ever been to Gelupo or Snowflake in Soho. It was grainy and crystallised, either from not being churned enough or having a lower proportion of cream. Not the best.
The alternative option on the Presto menu was a chocolate cake, served with creme fraiche. This was a dense, heavy dessert, that seemed overdone, again, nothing to write home about. The third dessert we tried was chocolate cake, pistachio and honeycomb, from the a la carte menu. This won everyone over! The chocolate was rich, and very similar to the filling of a torte, while the honeycomb and pistachio added a sweet and salty taste. The creme fraiche on the side added sourness to balance out the richness and sugar of the honeycomb. This is what we were expecting and were glad one of the three desserts delivered.
The Verdict Cost: ££ (out of ££££) I really wanted Palatino to be a winner. The bar was raised higher going with two Romans, and in some aspects Palatino cleared it, in others it didn’t quite stand up to scrutiny. The menu was clearly well thought out, with some truly Roman dishes on offer, which you probably won’t find anywhere else outside of Rome (or at least anywhere else in London). The ravioli and gnocchi impressed the table, along with the service. The Presto menu was a great deal, offering three courses for £20, whilst the vibe of the place was also relaxed. Unfortunately the Cacio e Pepe didn't astound, nor the gelato, which are two standard items that should be spot on. I’d definitely give Palatino another chance, and it’s worthwhile visiting if you want to try Roman food, or you're having withdrawals from a past trip to Rome!
71 Central St
London
EC1V 8AB