Canonbury Kitchen

I had dinner Saturday night in the Canonbury Kitchen. I was on my own so I guess you tend to notice more than if you are with somebody. There was a lovely atmosphere when I came in and throughout. It is nice and intimate, even though tables are fairly close. I was very happy to find this in a great location as have walked past it many times. I've been living around here for 10 years and tried most of the restaurants and was good for a change and be open minded!

The menu looked fairly pricey and limited, but ok will give it a shot I thought.

I asked for sea-bass, side order of "potato-chips" and glass of £7 white wine (pricey). They came back and told me a few minutes later there was none. So I asked for advice of which was the favourite, nothing was really forthcoming (except lamb cutlets) so I went for the safe bet, the Tagliata sirloin steak (£17.50) and changed to a red wine (white wine had not arrived yet). I asked for a glass of water and was given a £3.50 bottle of still. It was lovely water but no price mentioned when it was plonked on the table. Bread was put on the table and looked unappetising (and not free) so I turned it away.

I waited 20 minutes, not a big deal as I had something to read. The glass of red wine arrived. The sirloin arrived another 10 minutes later. It was tiny, it had plenty of rocket and very thin shaved parmesan. I started immediately but it was luke warm. I sent it back. It came back after at least 10 minutes, still not piping hot but edible. The cheese had been replaced and was not cooked, just placed on it afterwards like a cheeseburger.

The chips arrived another 5 minutes later, £3.50 for a handful of chips that were marginally above McDonalds. Tomato ketchup arrived a few minutes after. All in all I felt they were cutting corners and adding to the price at every opportunity and won't be going back unless I hear about a change. Mind you, other guests seemed to be very happy... mostly couples! £34.50 after service charge, no starter, no dessert, one glass of wine, I always give an extra tip but not here.
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6 Overall rating
Food 4 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 4
Sunday, March 25, 2012

Went there for the first time. Service was good, but considering the price the food was a let-down.
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RH - View all reviews by this user
6 Overall rating
Food 4 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 4
Sunday, December 18, 2011

Great food, lovely people and relaxed atmosphere. We have been back about 3 or 4 times and recommend this place to everybody who loves good quality, pure, Italian food.
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Charlotte
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Sunday, October 23, 2011

I rate this restaurant very highly. It is unpretentious and offers quality cooking with fresh ingredients but much more than that the dishes, based on last night were very simple but also had something special - nothing like the old style Italian restaurants of London. Sardines, yes just two sardines salty and with a dab of pesto, but the best I've had outside Portugal. A pork dish which balanced the dryness of pork with a classic Cognac sauce but with a special touch of a soft almost caramelised cabbage bed with Parma ham - and walnuts. A stunning combination. But the piece de resistance was the home made chocolate canolli, yes made there and then ! I have to say they were as good as or better than those from the Caffè Sicilia in Notto Sicily. Don't be put off by the simplicity of this place and forgive the minor inadequacies of service. These can be sorted out by talking to the patron. Prices were very reasonable for this quality.
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Raymond Attfield
8 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 8
Saturday, September 17, 2011

This small, informal restaurant with its own quiet style is finding its feet carefully - in a good sense - with an ever-growing air of confidence and atmosphere, the latter being a key ingredient to a pleasant meal out. The limited menu choice reflects the owner's plain desire to cook from scratch daily with fresh, seasonal ingredients - a big positive for me.

We live nearby, and found the menu choices too limited (small menus need more thought for balance between ingredients and courses) and the cooking erratic at first, and with only a few tables occupied, the place seemed just too bare for ease of enjoyment. The service was friendly and professional however, the wine list fairly priced and well-matched to the brief menu, and we have persisted with trying again, and again...now, the place is warm, lively and relaxed, the tables full (but not crammed together) and the staff and owner smilier. Happiness all round.

The food? Generally, very good. The quality of the cooking has improved. One high spot recently on the regularly-changing short menu was a prawn, courgette and saffron risotto which was up to the standard of the best top-end Italians in town. Cooked from scratch, it was worth waiting for.

The Canonbury Kitchen helps to keep at bay the creeping influx of 'chain' restaurants in Islington, and fills a much-needed gap in the immediate location.
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Fiona
8 Overall rating
Food 7 | Service 8 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Sunday, August 07, 2011

This was a fifth visit to this restaurant but will be the last. We waited half an hour before being able to order even a drink and even then only after asking twice. After an hour we hadn't event got the first course. On inquring we were told off by the waiter for interrupting him while he was dealing with other customers. So we left.

This was disappointing becasue the previous four experiences had been positive.
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Jonathan Birt
0 Overall rating
Food 0 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 0 | Value for money 0
Sunday, August 07, 2011

If you are looking for an Italian with 100+ dishes on the menu then this is not the place for you. However, if you are looking for an Italian with a modest but extremely interesting menu with a few modern twists then I would highly recommend a visit. We throughly enjoyed all of our courses (had no room left for dessert) and will certainly be returning on a regular basis on the evidence of the delicious food we had.

Service was polite and unobtrusive and we also had a pleasant chat with the owner at the end of our meal.

There is a nice little cocktail bar just next door which is perfect for a pre-dinner drink as well.
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Charlie - View all reviews by this user
9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 8 | Value for money 9
Friday, July 29, 2011

Decor was nice and service efficient, but the food really let this place down. Pasta was far too salty, and other dishes a bit uneventful.
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5 Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 5
Saturday, May 28, 2011

Food ok but waaay too expensive. Wouldn't go back -and we were desperate to find a god local venue.
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Lorna
3 Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 3 | Value for money 3
Thursday, May 26, 2011

The restaurant is lovely, with a nice atmosphere, waiter who seated us was friendly and professional, however the meal did not live up to expectations, we went for the two courses for £15 which is a great deal and the simple menu appealed to me, my husband and i ordered the cheese tarts, on arrival however they were not tarts they were more like individual potato dauphinoise and on taste were so salty, i like salt on my food but these were just far too salty, almost inedible and there was not much cheese fondue, they could of been really nice if the chef has tasted what he was making, i then ordered the calves liver and my husband ordered the swordfish. there was far too much calves liver and not enough mash which was not creamy but slightly watery with a hint of sage and the presentation was not great and calves liver was slightly soggy my husband said his fish was lovely but it came out in a sea of what he said tasted like tomato soup with no hint of orange peel at all and four bits of broccoli doted round the plate so overall dissapointing best part of the meal was the wine, it didn't help that the table next to us complained about there food and nothing was done about it so not a great start for this little restaurant.
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6 Overall rating
Food 3 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 7 | Value for money 5
Saturday, March 26, 2011