Nove Restaurant Reviews
"Being french, we know very well about good cuisine ! And Nove restaurant didnt disappoint us at all !
The dinner was excellent, in a very pleasant and friendly atmosphere. I recommend it."
Nove flourishes thanks to very good food and positive staff.
The Venue
The name Nove means nine in Italian, and this nice ristorante, pizzeria and cafe is open for breakfast, brunch, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner and an earlyish supper. Sackville Street is that handy cut through from Savile Row and Vigo Street on to Piccadilly if you prefer to avoid the throngs of shoppers on Regent Street and around Piccadilly Circus. There are only a few shops on Sackville Street, including an antiquarian bookseller nearby which might mean that there is not too much in the way of passing tourist trade, but there are enough offices and other businesses in the area to keep the customers coming to Nove. It has a convenient take away service and in the good weather there is outside seating, too.
Inside the decor is plain but modern and also very attractive. The predominant colour on the walls is dark green against which are hung some brilliantly evocative photographs of the Amalfi coastline which will make you want to book a holiday immediately. The furniture comprises good and solid wooden tables and upright chairs with banquettes against the walls.
The Atmosphere
Even when it is not very busy there is a nice feeling about Nove. It has the ambience of a local place even though it is set in the heart of London, a bright spot in a rather soulless street. Simplicity seems to have been the byword here so that nothing shouts out at you. The seating is comfortable at tables that are well spaced apart, and there is a delightful lack of loud music, although there may be a little discreet background accompaniment just for atmosphere’s sake. You can have a perfectly good conversation without being drowned out or overheard.
The Food
Nove is already on a winning streak even before the food has arrived. The menu announces that all the food is freshly prepared and cooked to order and all the pizzas are homemade. In fact, there are a dozen different types of pizza (£6.20 - £8.50) including Diavola with spiced salami, Capri with tuna and onions, Mexicana with hot chilli, while the house pizza Nove has cream and cheese sauce with porcini mushrooms. There are also two calzones. Pasta dishes (£6.15 - £8.50) offer penne, tagliatelle, spaghetti, ravioli and lasagne with a variety of sauces, plus a couple of risotto dishes, with mushrooms or courgettes and prawns. Several main course salads (£6.75 - £8.50) include chicken, Zingara with tuna and beans, Positano with prawns and egg and Quattro Stagioni with ham, artichokes, mushrooms and mixed lettuce.
Starters (£4.20 - £6.50) include bruschetta, mozzarella and tomatoes, antipasto all’Italiana, Bresaola cured beef and minestrone soup. The avocado e gamberetti (£5.85) is a brilliantly attractive plate of individual prawns and slices of avocado nestling on a bed of salad. It looks so appetising that it seems almost too good to eat. It is, nonethless, quite delicious. Calamari fritti (£5.80), rings of squid deep-fried in a crisp batter, are piping hot, crunchy and satisfyingly moreish. With a salad garnish and a squeeze of lemon, they are the perfect start to a meal.
Main courses (£7.50 - £14) present chicken in various ways – as an escalope with spaghetti, or diced and cooked with olives and spicy tomato sauce alla cacciatore, or grilled with chips and salad, or served on panini bread with chips and salad. There’s a hamburger all’Italiana, bistecca (grilled sirloin steak) and gamberoni (king prawns in olive oil and garlic). Otherwise there’s veal escalope with spaghetti or the Saltinbocca alla Romana (£14). This is a classic Italian dish and at Nove it couldn’t be better. The succulent veal escalopes are pan-fried with tomato sauce, wrapped in Parma ham and mozzarella to make a terrific combination of ingredients, with the flavours of the meat, the ham and the cheese and tomato all melding into one exquisitely tasty dish. Another marvellous meal is the Gnocchi alla Siciliana (£8.50), a nice alternative to pasta. The little dumplings are made of potato baked with tomato, mozzarella and aubergines which, when combined, are suffused into a spectacularly good but simple dish, nicely flavoured with the added aubergines.
Desserts (£3.50 - £4) present a good cross section of the traditional and the not so familiar. They include a homemade tiramisu, lattice apple pie, chocolate fondant cake, a Neapolitan tart of ricotta and orange, plus a selection of ice creams and sorbets. The Torta della nonna is a toothsome mixture of cake and pastry infused with fruit, while the Cheesecake brulee is exactly what it says, a real treat that combines the best and lightest of cheesecakes with the creaminess of creme brulee.
The Drink
Italian wines here are de rigueur and here are seven whites, eight reds and a couple of pinks. Prices are from £12.50 to £19.50 for the whites, and £12.50 to £54.50 for the reds. There are a couple of half bottles at £8.80 and house wine by the glass from £3.25. The house red and white are both very acceptable at a very reasonable price. Italian beer and mineral waters are available with other soft drinks at under £2. An enormous cup of very good Italian coffee provides a great finish to an excellent meal.
The Last Word
In its own quiet way, Nove is providing fine food in attractive surroundings with attentive and friendly service but without any fuss or pretension. This is sound and solid catering and is welcome at any price.