L'Arte di Cucinare

Not impressed at all.

Asked for a bottle of white wine and it was not cold - they did give us another bottle, but tried to hide this 'FREE' bottle when the bill came amongst the rest of the bill.

I looked for a seafood pasta (shellfish) and they don't cook one (is this an Italian restaurant)?

The party I was with ordered two mixed salads and they were the most boring and tasteless salads ever.

The main courses were not cooked as requested (Rare meat was requested not overcooked) - this was replaced by 'SAFE' smoked salmon.

In general the food had no resemblance to quality Italian food and was not cooked well at all.

Finally when the bill came they tried to hide the free bottle of wine in with the bill and stuck on a service charge (which was not paid).

No Not Impressed at all.
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martin - View all reviews by this user
5 Overall rating
Food 4 | Service 6 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 2
Saturday, March 30, 2013

My wife and I went to L'Arte last night with friends who had spoken highly about it. As we entered the restaurant and saw that it appeared filled with about 30 guests who had clearly come for a function. We should have turned round and left at that point.

The restaurant was noisy and lively (excellent) but shortly after we sat down at our table we heard music come from the opposite corner of this fairly small area. This was followed by a fully amplified singer hired to entertain the group in the opposite corner from us who we had seen at the outset. The noise was such that any attempt at talking was impossible.

The restaurant owner thought it was all rather amusing and it did not seem to occur to him that a restaurant can either caters for diners or for functions but that to permit the latter affects the enjoyment of the former. Unfortunately, in this instance greed ruled and my annoyance was not reduced by him agreeing to waive the charge for our bottle of wine.

The singer then handed over to guests who gave long speeches through a mike that was turned up so that the speakers could drown out the rest of us in the restaurant.

On to the food. The menu looked enticing and my starter of stuffed calamari was ok, if a bit salty but my wife's minestrone soup was pretty dire. A small amount of liquid covered some rather tired looking vegetables and it was, she said, almost without taste.

Onto the main courses which were fully priced for a suburban restaurant. Her roasted halibut (£18.90) was served dry and had lost most of its texture. I had the calf's liver (Fegato di Vitello) (£16.80) which came with a "potato puree'.

As a keen home cook I know a potato puree when I see it and this was no more than a very ordinary mashed potato with a serving of liver that was somewhat on the mean side at the price. In fact the meal, if properly described was no more than liver, mash and gravy.

We passed on desserts but had teas and coffees to finish. My expresso was fine but my wife's "mint tea" had a pale yellow colour and contained what appeared to be a few small leaves rather than sprigs of mint.

We asked for the bill and were annoyed to find that it was incorrect - £18.90 had been added for desserts that we had not had. When I pointed out the error the bill was taken back and returned corrected without any apology.

A sour end to one of the most depressing evenings we have spent in a restaurant for along time.
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Peter Jay - View all reviews by this user
1 Overall rating
Food 1 | Service 1 | Atmosphere 1 | Value for money 0
Friday, December 21, 2012

I've dined at L'arte quite a few times since it opened and find the food varies from very good to exceptional. The service is always superb and friendly. Not the cheapest place to eat but excellent value for money considering the quality of food they offer. I have recommended L'arte to a number of friends and will continue to do so.
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Nicky - View all reviews by this user
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 10
Wednesday, October 10, 2012

We recently visited this restaurant and feel that the strongest element was the service, which was polite and attentive. However we felt that the food was under-spiced and thus rather bland. The fact that the dishes were only served with one vegetable meant that we needed to order extra, and this added to the cost of the meal - which was on the expensive side. It was also quite noisy and difficult to converse. I think that better value, and a better dining experience is available in North London.
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foodbuff - View all reviews by this user
6 Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 7 | Atmosphere 6 | Value for money 5
Saturday, September 15, 2012

I been with my family few times,i can say i had a lovely meal and staff look after us all the times
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Mrs.Gordoni
10 Overall rating
Food 8 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Thursday, July 05, 2012

I have been to L'Arte Restaurant a few times now, I must say that it's one of the best places I have been to in a long time. The decor is contemporary and the staff is very friendly. I have not been anywhere of late where I have had such good food at a reasonable price.

This is a very good family run Restaurant that will suit any occasion, the only set back is the parking, but that's London! I would recommend L'Arte to any of my friends.
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10 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Saturday, June 16, 2012

Excellent service and yummy food - ambience is romantic and you feel well looked after by authentic italian staff.
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9 Overall rating
Food 9 | Service 9 | Atmosphere 9 | Value for money 9
Tuesday, June 05, 2012