bellissimo bellaria

 

“The pleasure of eating the Italian way”

Bellaria was the venue for a birthday and early mothers day meal last Saturday.

Absolutely, charmingly unique. From street level, Bellaria seems like a simple Italian restaurant with bright and simple décor. However, a few steps below and guests are transported to a whole other world.

Romantic candle lit table

Very cosy atmosphere

Dining inside the arches

Bellaria’s basement truly is straight out of an ancient fairytale, its bare stone walls with their arches, nooks and crannies complemented by a warm, cosy atmosphere with candle light.

Our lovely table under the arches

Look what I found in one of the nooks and crannies!

Bellaria's menu makes good use of Italy’s most coveted produce in well-presented and elegantly creative dishes ranging from pastas and risottos to steaks and fish. Surprisingly they had a large and extensive cocktail list.

For starters we all chose different dishes...

Beef carpaccio with rocket salad and pecorino cheese

Fresh calamari lightly fried with courgettes and homemade tartare sauce

Crab and avocado mousse

Asparagus with butter and parmesan au gratin

I had the asparagus for starters and regret not getting the beef carpaccio. The asparagus was lovely but wouldn't have minded an extra few more stems!

For main we all went for different dishes again...

Calamari, prawns and whitebait lightly fried with homemade tartare sauce

Platter of chargrilled veal, lamb cutlet, beef and chicken with baby roast potatoes

Pan-fried veal cotoletta served with tomato and basil tagliolini

Papparadelle with king prawns, fresh chillies; garlic and cherry tomatoes

Rib-eye steak with porcini mushroom sauce

I had the mixed fried seafood. It was good but I got bored of the taste after a while. The whitebait was a tad too salty, it would have been better as a starter. Their homemade pasta was al dente and the tomato was tasty with a kick of chilli. I was told all the other dishes tasted good as well.

By this time, after 2 glasses of red wine, I was pretty full but couldn't resist trying their desserts.

Vanilla pannacotta with red berry sauce

I went for the vanilla pannacotta and this was probably my best choice of the night! Smooth, rich and creamy with a nice amount of vanilla, the berry sauce was sour and contrasted well with the pannacotta but frankly I would have happily eaten the pannacotta on its ow.

Overall it was a lovely meal and the staff were friendly and welcoming and the atmoshpere in the downstairs restaurant was lovely.

Beautiful spring flowers for mummy!

Bellaria Restaurant and Wine Bar
71 Great Titchfield Street
London
W1W 6RB
020 7580 8075
www.bellariarestaurant.co.uk