I’ve been on the hunt for a good Italian restaurant in the City to replace a much-loved restaurant that closed it’s doors a few months ago and stumbled upon Vinoteca di Sartoria, which is located in the heart of London’s financial district right across from Cannon Street Station in Bloomberg Arcade.
As well as serving delicious pasta dishes, Vinoteca di Sartoria is also a great destination for wine lovers with its cosy and relaxed wine bar atmosphere offering a carefully curated selection of over 200 wines from around the world. And if there’s a wine you particularly like then you can simply buy a bottle to take home with you from the restaurant’s Wine Shop.
The floor to ceiling windows let in lots of natural light giving a bright ambience to the place with the tables well-spaced out so you’re not sitting right on top of other diners. Then throw into the mix the welcoming and friendly staff and you have the perfect recipe for a relaxing lunch or dinner with friends or work colleagues.
The main menu is straightforward and thankfully not overwhelming unlike some restaurants, with something for everyone. For example, how about starting with an Italian Meat Board (£18) or Italian Cheese Selection (£18) to share. Alternatively, you could choose a Cold Veal Carpaccio with tuna and caper sauce (£12), Tuna Tartare (£15) or how about a Carpaccio of thinly sliced centre-cut beef fillet with rocket and Parmesan crisps (£18.50) or the Chicken Liver Pâté with cherries gel on focaccia toast (£12.50).
When it comes to choosing a main, it really depends how hungry you are as they do a very nice Veal Milanese accompanied with a tomato and lettuce salad (£34). There’s also a Tuna loin served with tomato sauce, olives, chilli and capers (29.50) or a Bavette Tagliata flank steak with a rocket and parmesan salad and salsa verde (£25).
If, however you are a pasta lover like me then you won’t be disappointed with the choice of Rigatoni Carbonara (£19), Tagliatelle Bolognaise (£20), Tagliolini with beef and pork ragu (£18.50) or the Paccheri with Mazzara prawns and seafood sauce (£29.50).
Do try and leave some room for one of their rather naughty but nice desserts, as they have a tempting offering that includes a classic Tiramisu (£12), Double-baked chocolate (£10), a spiced Panna Cotta with mandarin sauce with walnut crumb (£9.50) or a selection of ice cream and sorbet.
In addition to the main menu, there is also a good value Set Menu, which is what we opted for, with a choice of three starters, three mains and three desserts at £25 for two courses or £30 for three courses with all of the items taken from the main menu. We started with the superb Chicken Liver Pâté with cherries gel on focaccia toast followed by the excellent Rigatoni alla Carbonara. Although I was tempted with the Corn-fed chicken breast with tomato sauce and olives. The dessert choice was equally as appealing with the Tiramisu being the star of the show, hotly followed by the Double baked chocolate cake. Alternatively, there’s a choice of ice cream or sorbet for something altogether a little lighter to round off your meal with.
As already mentioned, wines are a big thing here at Vinoteca di Sartoria, so as you would expect there’s plenty of choice with a good selection of wines available by the glass, starting from £10. You really are spoilt for choice with labels from Italy, France, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Austria, South Africa and the USA. However, we thought that a nice rosé would go well with our pasta and chose a superb dry and fresh 2025 Italian Primitivo Rosé ‘Tramari’, San Marzano from Puglia (£11). Wines by the bottle start from £37.
Good news for those of you who like to start the day with a decent breakfast or like early breakfast meetings, as Vinoteca di Sartoria has just launched today, 19th October, a new breakfast menu, served between 8:00am and 11:00am. They’ll even offer you a complimentary coffee with every sit-down breakfast as an introductory offer.
As well we the main restaurant and bar there is also a private dining area in the mezzanine space overlooking the restaurant which is ideal for business lunches, team meetings or birthday celebrations and private dinners with food and drink options that can be tailored to the occasion.
And if you want to catch up with colleagues or friends after work then why not take advantage of the Sip & Share Happy Hour every week day from 3:00pm to 7:00pm with an Italian-inspired aperitivo accompanied with a sharing board of Italian-inspired bites, including Arancini Arrabbiata, crispy mature Cheddar Crocchette and an Italian meat selection, paired with two glasses of wine for £25 or a bottle for £40. They have a great selection of hand-picked whites and reds, including Trebbiano Fonte della Vigna, Anciens Temps White, Sospiro Rosso d’Italia and Anciens Temps Red.
The Details
Vinoteca di Sartoria, 21 Bloomberg Arcade, London, EC4N 8AR, England.
Tel: +44 (0)20 3150 1292
Website: www.vinotecadisartoria.co.uk
Email: city@vinoteca.co.uk
Vinoteca di Sartoria is located right across from Cannon Street Station in Bloomberg Arcade and is a 3 minute walk from Bank Tube station on the Central, Northern, Waterloo & City lines and the DLR. Mansion House Tube station on the Circle and District lines is also just a couple of minutes’ away. The restaurant is open Monday to Friday from midday to 11:00pm and closed on Saturday and Sunday. Breakfast is served weekdays from 8:00am to 11:00am
Type of Restaurant: Italian Restaurant
Price Band: Medium to high
Insider Tip: Try and make time to visit the London Mithraeum underneath the Bloomberg building which is free to visit. Situated on the site of Bloomberg’s European headquarters, this cultural hub showcases the ancient temple, a selection of the Roman artefacts found during the excavation and a series of contemporary art commissions responding to one of the UK’s most significant archaeological sites. For more information, please visit: www.londonmithraeum.com.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9/10
Author Bio:
Simon Burrell is a UK-based travel and motoring journalist and editor, a former member of The British Guild of Travel Writers and professional photographer.
Photographs courtesy of Vinoteca di Sartoria
Be the first to comment