By chance on a rainy bank holiday looking for nosh pre a Tate tottle, we enetered Amano. The decor and vibe were right up my alley and I was excited about the yummy looking dishes in front of people and the great aromas wafting through the air.

We took our own seats as it was rather busy and we didn’t have all day. We then went and got our own menus. After deciding what we wanted we waited, furiously waving at any member of staff who got within range. No luck. I went to the counter to place my order 15 minutes into this role play and were told the surprisingly cheap menu we had picked from was the wrong one, and it was replaced with a heftier brunch menu. Deciding the prices, although now doubled - many of the items the same, were still stomachable with £8-10 for a pizza, £5-6 for a breakfast.

We grabbed an unsuspecting waiter clearing a table nearby to try and order again - eggs benedict and brunch pizza which sounded rather intriguing (apologies family in Italy!). A waitress returned rather rapidly and although she was met with thrilled faces, on hearing that they were out of eggs, among other things, she lost a few popularity points. On a brunch menu, being out of eggs is slightly less than catastrophic and with our skimpy choice we went for two other pizzas.

The food wasn’t bad to be honest, and loving the vibe of the place I think it’s unfortunate such shoddy service (no one ever came to clear away the remains of the meal before ours) let the place down. But this is fixable, so there is hope.

This is the type of place I should like more than I actually do. There’s something a bit odd about the vibe and the food service during the day.
I think it’s at its best after work where the crowds pour in to drink wine and consume vast amounts of the handmade pizzas.
If you’re looking for a breakfast meeting venue in SE1 this place could work but be warned that it is very noisy.
The free wi-if is great.

A nice place to visit after seeing the Tate Modern, since it’s just outside. Comfortable and trendy. Some really tasty wood-fired oven pizzas on offer, and some unusual locally-brewed beers (including a stout and a wheat beer). The background music was appropriate in taste and volume, making this an excellent place for a good chin-wag.

I go here usually in the evenings after work and I have to say I like this place...As a place to meet for drinks it makes a welcome change from traditional pubs. There are always seats, you can hear what your friends are saying, the decor is comfy, there is a range of food; nachos good - fritatas not so good, wide choice of wine and other drinks to choose from, subtle background music. All your needs met really. Ooh and during the day they also do a range of deli food.

Keep Amano in mind next time you are in the area.