Verbanella

First impressions were that Verbanella was a small and unremarkable trattoria. The menu seemed reasonably priced for Beachamp Place but expensive for the food on offer - pretty standard Italian trattoria fare.

When the starters arrived my suspicions were confirmed - £5.50 for a handful of rocket and some parmesan shavings plonked on a plate! My grilled scamorza wrapped in speck was a little more interesting but the presentation was pretty ordinary - three pieces and some small lettuce garnish.

However when the mains arrived things improved a great deal. A veal escalope with wild mushrooms looked (and tasted) wonderful. My grilled tuna (from the specials menu) was immaculately cooked and came with a deliciously fresh lemon, garlic and herb sauce. The pasta dishes were also delightful. We only sampled two puddings - Tiramisu (declared the best he'd ever had) and Chocolate Mousse (gorgeous apparently).

Two bottles of wine and two bottles of water, coffee all round and five of us were out of there for £150 which seemed excellent value. Everyone agreed they'd be more than happy to go back, which says a lot.
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Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Monday, February 13, 2006

This is a good Italian restaurant run extremely well: friendly service, relaxed management and well-prepared and presented food. Great for a first date! Also good for business lunch.
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Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 8
Tuesday, January 03, 2006

Very nice, friendly, good fun and a good atmosphere and a reasonable price by Londo standars....
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David Litchfield
Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 8
Saturday, December 03, 2005