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Valentina

July 1st, 2009
Posted by gerrod in: restaurants, reviews, uk

Kristy and I ate at Valentina at East Putney last night. It’s a rustic Italian restaurant, and Julian had told us that it “looked like a place where we would eat”. Well, we didin’t want to let him down!

My immediate impression of the place was that it was Carluccio’s, just going by a different name. Kristy disagrees, but:

  • They have the same blue and white coloured banner out the front of the shop;
  • They have various foods for sale as soon as you walk in, including a fresh food deli;
  • Just beyond the food section is the restaurant section; and
  • They serve illy coffee.

Sound familiar? I’ll admit that I’m not sure which brand of coffee they sell at Carluccio’s, but I’m willing to make a (small) bet that it’s illy!

Anyway, on to the food. Neither of us could decipher the wine menu, as everything was listed by region, and none of the bottles were described. Fail! We had to ask one of the waitresses for a recommendation, and ended up with a bottle of one of the house whites. It was actually really nice – not too sweet or dry, fresh, fruity – really easy to drink. Should have got the name of it!

We shared an entrée of scallops wrapped in bacon, served on a salad. I’m sure it was described more nicely than that, but that’s effectively what it was. It was tasty enough, however we were a little disappointed to only find two scallops on the plate – at £7.50 for the dish, it seemed a little pricey.

My main was a whole sea bass with olives, capers and potatoes. The sauce was nice enough but the fish had so many tiny little bones in it that it really ruined the experience.
Kristy had a pasta dish of sorts – a giant parcel containing pork meatballs and tagliatelle, wrapped up in ham, and served with a tomato sauce. It was delicious! I had definite food envy!

Overall the bill was about £50 including tip – not exactly the cheapest night out, and having been disappointed by the size of the entree, and all the bones in my fish, I don’t think I’d rush back. Though if I did, I’d definitely be getting the meatball thing, it was really quite good. gerrod.com rating: 6/10.

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