This family-run Italian restaurant seems an unlikely survivor in Victoria, what with the incessant mania for steel-and-glass redevelopment in this area. Il Posto certainly bucks the trend here - the exterior is almost a pastiche, with whitewashed walls and carefully placed stonework in the facade, under what is clearly a Victorian building!

But inside it's cosy, and the decor is thankfully rather more restrained. The food is classic Italian, with both pizza and pasta and a wide range of authentic meat and fish dishes. It has a decent wine list, and a drinkable house red at £10.50.

It can get busy on week-day evenings, so booking ahead is advisable. Two reasons why it doesn't get all five starts from me: the staff are incredibly friendly and attentive, but for me a little overly so; and the interior feels a little claustrophobic, as most of the restaurant has no view of the street. But overall, a good place to escape from chain restaurants.