There are over 350 types of pasta in the world with all kinds of shapes and sizes. Have you ever wondered why you can’t have your favourite pasta with your favourite sauce? Well you can if you visit the charming Italian restaurant, Pasta Remoli at Finsbury Park.
This relaxed concept restaurant was started by chef Simone Remoli, who has worked at top restaurants in both Italy and London including Barrafina and Bocca di Lupo and previously he had been making his homemade pasta, which he supplied to leading London restaurants like Quo Vadis and famous chefs like Aldo Zilli.
Pasta Remoli is in a very unassuming part of Finsbury Park with casual burger and kebab takeaways as neighbours, but it is in close proximity to Park theatre and is perfect for pre or post theatre meals. The decor is sharp and attention-grabbing with colourful murals on the wall espousing the virtues of their homemade pasta and how it is created.
The pasta and sauces are made fresh daily using high quality ingredients. It is this dedication to making the best possible tasting pasta, which makes the restaurant very popular with the local residents. Even if you are not a seasoned food critic, you can taste the bounce in their pasta and the chew from the perfectly timed al dente cooking. The truffle and mushroom ravioli with creamy mushroom sauce will have you in funghi-heaven, although the truffle tastes could have been slightly stronger.
Duck breast carpaccio doesn’t appear regularly on restaurant menus; perhaps guests fear a raw gamey taste to the meat. Their version is light and delicate and attractively garnished.
For the main course, I tried one of their daily special, which was the lobster linguine. The crustacean was somewhat petite in size, but they did include chunks of lobster meat in the pasta too as well as presented in the shell. There was a strong, sweet and tangy taste to the dish from the appetising tomato sauce.
Italians are passionate about their desserts: the lists here is longer than the starters on offer. Gelati is a speciality here, as well as tiramisu with disaronno jelly and a fine selection of cakes and tarts. I had their indulgent looking pannacotta, which was filled with silky smooth chocolate and a strawberry and served in a trendy macchiato cup.
They already have another branch in Westfield Stratford, but expect Pasta Remoli to pop up in more places around London very soon.
baldwin@townfish.com