REVIEW: Piccola Cucina, Kensington Park Road, Notting Hill

I’m told that this New York born and loved concept has a fantastic following in the US so opening up in food bustling London doesn’t come as a surprise. It also has some strong backing from restaurateur, Andrea Reitano who has part ownership in the Rome born venture – Assunte Madre in Mayfair. Here at Piccola Cucina they have gone all out when it comes to sourcing produce from Italy – I mean everything. From daily fresh food produce, the staff, the decor, the tables – everything. While it’s not exactly the most striking of dining rooms it certainly evokes homely Italian charm. Nestle yourself away back from the door you can quickly forget which country your in. The only menu I’ve seen was in Italian – which hopefully gets translated to English. Sadly us brits can barely speak our first language, let alone a second. We started on our way through this Sicilian feast with a stunning tuna tartar with avocado puree. It looked absolutely stunning, and it tasted it too. The tuna was some of the freshest I’ve eaten and was incredibly soft to the bite. A fantastic showcase of ingredients which shouldn’t be sniffed at.

What you have to rember coming here to Piccola Cucina is it isn’t really designed for carnivores or vegetarians – it’s for lovers of all those tasty creatures of the sea. Sea bass tartar was next up and it was equally as stunning. Laced with a fruity, slightly acidic sauce, its freshness again couldn’t be meddled with. The fish was bursting with such a purity you’d have expected it to still be flapping around on the plate. Seasoning and presentation was very well balanced and refined.

Other dishes such as this langoustine carpaccio were a strange affair but one which I couldn’t help but falling in love with. I’ve not eating langoustine served this way before so it was a real treat for me. The thinly sliced flesh was a little sticky to the touch, juicy when bitt into and its flavour sweet and tasting of the sea – it was gorgeous. Why every restaurant across London isn’t serving langoustine this way is beyond me – they’re missing a very clever trick. In case you’re wondering the langoustine head on the plate was for nothing more than decoration. If you really didn’t want to leave a thing I suppose you could grab a napkin and suck out the juices from its head – with grace.

If things weren’t good enough already, what turned out to be my favourite dish arrived. Octopus tentacles served with fresh herbs, red pepper, a copious but well balanced amount of seasoning and a lovely deep grilled smokiness – this was easily the best octopus I have ever eaten. We had a spoon to serve it which I thought was a ridiculous idea but when you quickly realised that even the weight of it would cut straight through a tentacle you had to wonder – what trickery was this. Well no tricks were played here it was all down to the utter freshness of that octopus. It was awe inspiring that octopus couldn’t melt in the mouth the way this did. The dish tasted of Italy and it also showed exactly what Italy is capable of with a little care and good sourcing.

Blue fin tuna, from Italy of course was coated in a vibrantly coloured pistachio crumb – also from Italy. I’ve heard fishing for blue fin tuna is completely out of control in Italy and as much as I wanted to care for a cause – it was too good to agree on a ban which the rest of Europe have put to the country so many times. Grilled delicately on the outside and very rare on the inside it really is the only way to cook tuna if you want to get a real taste of such an incredible fish. The tuna was coated in a generous helping of pistachio crumb, straight from Sicily. Served with a side of fried purple potato it was a perfect way finish up before we delved into desserts.

An Italian feast is never nearly over until tiramisu is served. It’s a classic staple to many Italian homes, and us British have adopted it like it’s our own. Served in a jar this version was very much as expected. A nice balance of coffee but perhaps just a little too much cream and certainly not enough sponge to soak up all the juices those sponge fingers let loose. For what sounds like such a simple dessert, it’s so hard to get right and every person has their own favourite version and recipe of making this dish. And for those of you who don’t like tiramisu, send me you IP address so I can block you ever reading my website again – or alternitively make it for you, whichever you prefer.

Out of everything we ate here this dish (pictured above) looked the most suspect. A little messy, and that chocolate cake reminded me of something you’d most likely find in a BHS café, and if you’ve been there recently you’ll know what I’m talking about – fighting past all those zimmer frames. Sometimes looks can be deceiving and this was one of those occurrences. A devilishly moist and rich chocolate cake literally fell apart to the touch and was as light as a feather in the mouth. A spoonful of this cake, topped with a helping of those white chocolate shards, and a dollop of ice cream – words left my mouth. Advice? Go eat it now before everyone else in Notting Hill finds out.

Our epic Italian feast quickly came to an end and with it came this panna cotta topped with a red fruit coulis. I never like to refer to anything as the best (although I’ve reffered to it numerous times in this review already), but this was the best panna cotta I’ve ever eaten in England – hands down. Piccola Cucina is certainly a new gem in London. With all the positive comments aside my real worry is, will this place go on to become an undiscovered gem? It’s in a strange area just off the beaten track in Notting Hill and sometimes location can mean a lot. The owner here is only 21 and has a real passion for food, but the guys here really need to tone down the slightly snotty service and this place will be great – I’m all for Italian charm but I’m not fluent in it. Best Italian food in Notting Hill? Most probably.

8/10