Osteria Basilico

Reviews

• Great Italian

  Osteria has been in Notting Hill forever and is the top end of the three restaurants in this group (the others are Mediterraneo and Essenza) with a classic Italian menu, and slightly surprisingly, a sideline in pizza including takeaway. I would avoid the pizza - it's not as good as Luna Rossa's across the street - and frankly if you come to a place like Osteria and have pizza you are wasting the opportunity to eat rather better. The wine list is great and the downstairs seats are particularly cozy in winter. It is definitely pone for romantic get-together. Like all the Italian restaurants in Notting Hill service is probably not why you come here.

  Alexgjohnson
  Review Date: 05/09/2008 Report review
• Nice Italian restaurant in Notting Hill

  Osteria Basilico is located in the heart of Notting Hill, just off Portobello Road. I've only been there once but I liked it very much and I can't wait to go again. The place is small and intimate, with wooden chairs and tables. There are tables downstairs as well, and it is surprisingly nice as there are fireplaces, paintings and a warm atmosphere overall. The food is great, we both had pasta which was delicious and very generous in terms of size! The salads and starters were ok, and they have a buffet with starters where you can squeeze a little bit of everything in one plate. This starter platter is however a bit overpriced (I don't remember exactly how much). It is especially nice in the summer when they have tables outside, as it is located in a fairly quite road, with all the classy Notting Hill residents passing by. Well worth giving it a try, but book in advance if you are planning to go during the weekend!

  Alexandros
  Review Date: 05/06/2007 Report review
• Eh, not so much

  I recently descended on Osteria Basilico again for the first time in many years. From the outside, very little had changed. Same crowds, same queue (even during the week between Christmas and New Year), and pretty much the same menu. I remembered this place as being cosy yet lively, with very good food, and decent value for money.Well, to be fair, maybe I'm what changed, but after my last visit, I was none too impressed. The food was respectable, but certainly nothing to write home about. I started with a beef carpaccio, which was ok but the beef lacked flavour. And I continued with grilled calamari, which was passable but over-spiced (not to mention over-small as far as the portion went).The service was pleasant, if inattentive. The food was ok, if not great. The overall experience was, well, mediocre.Which would be fine... except at £15-19 for mains, you don't have to go far to find better-than-mediocre Italian.And I suppose that's precisely what I'd recommend that you do: go elsewhere, do better.

  Alevy
  Review Date: 12/12/2006 Report review