Locanda Locatelli, Marylebone, London

I was really impressed with Locanda Locatelli. The service was immaculate and the food fabulous - expensive but definitely worth it for a special occasion.

I’ve been hoping to eat at Locanda Locatelli for years now, and my wife’s birthday gave me the perfect excuse to finally get there (and I get to look generous and thoughtful at the same time - bonus!).

Thankfully the experience more than lived up to my expectations and we had a great meal.

We started off with some ludicrously long and tasty breadsticks and a nicely put together gin and tonic while trying to make a choice from the menu. Eventually I went for the braciole (very much like carpaccio) with some truffle oil drizzled over it and devoured on top of some of the brilliant home made bread we were given, while my wife had the salad of baby spinach, smoked ricotta, red onions and walnut which was tasty enough for me to eat a couple of forkfuls myself.

For the main I went for the sea bass in salt and herb crust, which I’ll say was the least impressive part of the whole meal but was still perfectly cooked and really tasty. Maybe I was a bit disappointed because the roast rabbit leg, polenta and parma ham which was being eaten across the table from me looked so damn good that I had a touch of diner’s envy.

That feeling soon disappeared though as soon as my selection of Italian cheese turned up. While my wife tucked into her Amalfi lemon Eton mess I got to work on eight cheeses, some more of that amazing bread, and eight different honeys to accompany the cheese!

While the service dropped off a little as the restaurant got busier, we never felt rushed, and the staff were brilliant in explaining the dishes and recommending wine. The lighting and the decor all go to making this a really great 'date restaurant’ and while it is expensive (roughly a tenner for the starters and £25 for the mains) the food is bordering on exquisite and worth every penny if you have a bit of cash to splash.

I was really looking foward to eating in this place, i work just round the corner, pass it every day and was hoping good things would amass.

Oh how wrong I could be. I have NEVER experienced such awful service in my life, the staff were rude, unhelpful and obnoxious, we had an awful experience and they tried absoloutely nothing to put it right.
The whole experience stunk of pretentiousness.
We actually walked out - something i think even the staff were a bit shocked about - you pay for the experience, and i certainly would not spend another penny in this place.

If you want michelen starred food there are tons of places in London which are better than this - for better service you could probably try the KFC around the corner.

Certainly not recommended.

Highly recommend this restaurant but it is expensive, so best saved for a special occasion.

Not your average italian restaurant (don’t expect pizza and lots of pasta). Risotto, some pasta dishes, fish and game.

Everything we ordered was delicious and perfectly executed. The home-made bread basket was divine and the complimentary amouse bouche was wonderful too. We left here absolutely full but wanting more.

Good wine list (not many cheaper bottles though). Service, excellent.

A very good restaurant, yes it is very expensive, but if you appreciate good food and ingredients that cannot be improved bettered, then just like a Rolls Royce it is worth it. For us it is the kind of place that we only go to every few years for birthdays.

Their mainstrean Italian dishes like parma ham, breads and so on are second to none. However if you choose something that is not mainstream Italian like the Dover Sole fish then you will be dissappointed but then if you go to a chinese restaurant and choose a non chinese dish you would also be so.

All in all a great experience but unless you are seriously loaded it is best to keep it as a special treat so it stays special.

It takes all sorts to make a world, but this restaurant seems to appeal mostly to the very rich denizens of Edgware Road and environs. The food is not memorable, and the beigeness of the decor is rather oppressive. Also pricey!

Went for lunch here today and was pleasantly impressed without it being out of this world. The place was heaving and almost full, so I’d advise booking if you wish to go, even at lunchtime.
Food was very well presented and service was very professional and mostly very good (the waiting staff seem to be mostly very authentic Italian, so there were a couple of small mix-ups, such as a decaf expresso instead of a double expresso, that sort of thing!)
All-in-all, I had a very pleasant afternoon there and all things on the menu there (there were four of us) being very good without being amazing. As Italian restaurants go, I’d say Quiranale, near the Houses of Parliament, is just as good, but this is a solid restaurant that didn’t disappoint.

Locanda Locatelli is part of the the Churchill Hotel Group,but it seems to do have a mind of its own and does its own thing.Its very smart,swanky tastefully decorated with wood heather and spotlights.
It is virtually impossible to get in without a booking and you usually have to wait months because its always busy. Locatelli is a celebrity chef but the his reputation is based on and continues to grow because he uses the finest ingredients and marries them up with a traditional style of Italian cooking.
After having consumed the anti-pasta of delicate Langoustines in a Garlic and Chilli sauce with Pappardelle,Broad- Beans in Tomatoe sauce,we started on the mains . Having chosen the chargrilled rolled Pork it was nice to find that it was bursting with herbs and served with deep-fried Courgettes in batter. We also had a dish of grilled Tuna with Rocket Salad simply served with a wedge of Lemon,all this enhanced the flavours of the raw ingredients with a subtlety which was pleasent to taste. The side orders consisted of roast potatoes pungently infused with sprigs of Rosemary and the Foccacia and breadsticks were pronounced excellent.
A chocolate tasting dessert combined with a Parfait ice-cream gave the Amadei dish all the finesse it deserved.Perfect Vanilla Pannacotta with Berries,Redfruit sauce and the Stracciatella(Chocolate Chips) ice-cream on a biscuit base hit the right spots in the mouth. Coffee was as good as you would expect and came with a Chocolate Truffle and an outstandingly good Amaretto. Other than the Champagne the wine list is all Italian and the whites and reds are thoughtfully arranged by region and feature well know growers like Guia Antinori. Wine by the glass is good value at 3.50 or there abouts.