If it’s authentic Italian food you’re after then you’d best keep looking; Bertorelli is just another mid-priced eatery in Central London that falls short of the mark.

The Venue
Located along St Martins Lane, the location of this restaurant is the envy of many Central London establishments. Easy to spot, it’s located just a few doors down from the hustle and bustle of Leicester Square and the glamour of the St Martins Lane Hotel and various theatres of the area. However, that’s as far as the interest of this place goes.

As you might expect from yet another reasonably priced restaurant in the Leicester Square vicinity, Bertorelli isn’t anything to write home about. A clean, wooden decor with neutral colour scheme is all that greets you. The tables and chairs are packed in fairly close to each other although the seats are particularly comfortable - leather seating that you literally sink into. The paintings that adourn the walls show off Italian imagery and tries to add some charm to the venue, but doesn’t do enough to add any life.

The Atmosphere
As with many nearby restaurants and bars, Bertorelli is filled with tourists and pre or post theatre goers. On a Friday or Saturday night, couples on dates and groups of friends catching up before painting the town red fill the restaurant. The rest of the time, the atmosphere is wholly dependent on how busy it is. Go on a quiet night (Sundays and early in the week), there isn’t really any atmosphere, the venue being as close to dead as it’s possible to get in such a central location.

The staff are professional, although they don’t go that extra mile that you may see at the competition nearby. Weak smiles, pleasantries and your plates brought to your table in a timely enough fashion is all you get - which is enough for such a venue, but may leave you feeling a little empty.

The Food
The food at Bertorelli is Italian fare whose quality is dependent on what you have - the luck of the draw will ascertain how much you enjoy your meal. The prices aren’t extravagant - £6 for a starter, £8 for a pizza, £10 for pasta or £15 for a main (or ‘secondi’) but you can soon rack up quite a bill if you’re going for a couple of courses.

The garlic and rosemary pizza bread is not particularly bad, but not overly gastronomically pleasing. A little hard and flat, the flavours of the rosemary and strong seasoning from the garlic is all that saves the dish and makes it palatable.

For mains, the recommended cannelloni d’antra con fungi made with shredded duck in a parmesan and bechamel sauce is a decent dish - the creamy sauce working surprisingly well with the strong meaty flavours of the generous portion of duck. The fishcakes are also pleasant, if a little bland. However, the real disappointment is the spaghetti con polpette made up of meatballs in a garlic, tomato and chilli sauce. Unfortunately, with the parmesan shavings, it’s all a bit too stodgy. The sauce ends up as a congealed conglomerate of pasta that gloops in the mouth, although the meatballs are decent - crumbling nicely. Also poor is the spaghetti marinara, with squid, prawns, clams and mussels, served with spaghetti in a wine, chilli and garlic sauce. Although the sauce is light with a nice accumulation of flavours, the amount of seafood in the dish is definitely skimped on - three prawns is not enough. What seafood there is, is a little bland and, in some cases, chewy. A real disappointment.

The Drink
There’s a decent selection of wine that will appeal to most tastes and budgets, ranging from £15 to £70 a bottle. There’s even a decent choice of Champagne, including a bottle of Dom Perignon for £125. However, be sure to read the menu carefully, there’s a selection of wine by the glass and carafe - and it’s an easy mistake to try and order a carafe and then end up with a bottle, which is more expensive. The large choice of wines by the glass and carafe, however, is a good addition to the restaurant and allows parties to order as much as they need, rather than overindulging on a whole bottle.

The Last Word
It’s unfortunate that so many venues in Central London are serving poor quality Italian food. Bertorelli could be a truly decent place to visit if you’re shopping or going to the theatre along St Martins Lane, but as it stands, you’re better off going to the Pizza Express up the road.

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