La Collina

We went to La Collina twice recently. The outside garden makes this restaurant a great choice if you want to enjoy a relaxing evening out with some friends or with your other half.

Foodwise, it is by far the best Italian in the Primrose Hill / Camden area and one of the best local restaurants in the UK. I am passionate about Italian food and have tried many hyped Italian restaurants in London. Most of them lack the authenticity and simplicity that is typical of Italian cuisine. At La Collina the chief knows his stuff as we realized when we devoured the amazing pasta dishes , not to mention the beautifully simple way he prepared fish just as you can eat on the Italian seaside. The service is attentive without being intrusive. Nobody has ever hurried up us at the end of the dinner.

Wine list: very good choice at reasonable prices. Prices are overall very honest considering the quality of the food, and quite cheap in relation to similar places across London.

Definitely recommended to true lovers of authentic Italian food.
Comment on this reader review

alessandro
10 Overall rating
Food 10 | Service 10 | Atmosphere 10 | Value for money 10
Wednesday, August 05, 2009

We went to La Collina on Saturday night and were very disappointed.

When we arrived at 7.30 the restaurant was empty except for two tables, and the waitress insisted on putting us on a very cramped table on between the two occupied tables. When asked, she said that it 'wasn't possible' to put us anywhere else. We eventually moved to another table and over the course of the evening saw them try to seat 3 other couples in the table which we had rejected, despite there being plenty of space elsewhere in the restaurant. When a table has been rejected 3x surely its time to stop asking people to sit at it?

Overall the service was poor. The waitress got our drinks order wrong and kept removing the olives even though we asked 3x for them to be left on the table.

The food was passable. I had the sliced beef for my main course and it tasted only of rosemary and the oil it had been cooked in, not of the meat itself which was a shame

We also thought the food was expensive given what it was. We paid £75 (including a 12.5% service charge added to our bill!) for 2 starters, 2 mains, 2 glasses of house wine and a pudding. There are many other places within 100m of La Collina where the food is better and cheaper.

We will not be going back
Comment on this reader review

Frances
5 Overall rating
Food 5 | Service 5 | Atmosphere 5 | Value for money 3
Monday, August 03, 2009