Hello,
The second of my weekend food adventure is Jamie's Italian in Kingston Upon Thames, of course this is one of Jamie Oliver's restaurants and when this place first opened up a couple of years ago, it had queues every night for months. This must be my 4th or 5th time I have gone back there and will continue to go there for many years to come!
It is situated across the road from the Rose Theatre and what will soon become Kingston's high street for restaurants. I love this place so much that when I had my graduation last december at the Rose Theatre, Jamie's was my celebration meal straight after.
Here are a few photos of the special day (I have a beard now):
I must just say that as an Italian who can never find a good local Italian restuarant, Jamie's is fantastic (and he's from Essex)! Gennaro did a great job in teaching Jamie the way of Italian food, just a shame Gennaro's orange tart is missing from the menu! Bring it back please, it truly was something special.
But one thing that cannot go unrecognised is the service, the staff are always very knowledgeable about the food, the ingredients and their origin, very attentive to the table and the customers, very good at recommending dishes and wines and lastly they are remarkably friendly.
For starters we shared a small bowl of large green olives (3.75) which we were told were from Puglia, served on ice with a black olive and sun dried tomato tapenade and 3 pieces of crisp bread. The olives were very meaty, the tapenade was lovely and was a very nice addition to have. Unfortunatly the bread basket was missing due to an issue with the bread delivery company to which the waiter sincerely apologised for, if you do visit and are able to get hold of the bread basket please do because the lemon and rosemary bread is not to be missed. It is served with matured olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
Next were 3 medium sized smoky scamorza arancini (4.95) filled with buffalo mozzarella which had a wonderful smokey flavour, porcini mushrooms and a sweet slightly spicy tomato and herb sauce, topped with parmesan cheese. The arancini were very crisp and the mozzarella just oozed out perfectly not salty either.
Lastly was a starter sized portion of the rabbit ragu pappardele (7.15). The pappardele was freshly made, very heavy and wholsesome due to the egg content which was delicious. The rabbit was slow braised which made it melt in the mouth. The mascarpone gave it a nice creamy texture, there was also a hint of lemon which was not overpowering but just right, breadcrumbs were also mixed in to give the dish a bit of chrunchiness. I also noticed that almost every table had this dish and I recommend that people continue to order it.
On previous visits I usually have the crispy squid with a garlicky mayo which is also very nice.
For the main course we started with a large British feather steak (13.35) which has been pounded with sage and prosciutto, it was served with mixed red and yellow cherry tomatos and strips of beef tomatos on top and wild rocket on the side. The steak was flash grilled with a nice charcoal, flame grilled taste, succulent and plenty to enjoy. I must say I was expecting a small steak even when flattened, however I was pleasently surpised to see how big it really was. To accompany the steak were 5 sweet chilli peppers (4.45) stuffed with tuna, anchovies, capers and topped with salad and balasamic vinegar. These were really nice, they were like an overfilled tuna sandwich stuffed in a chilli pepper (not to play it down with the tuna sandwich relation), I would have preferred the chilli peppers to have a bit of a heat kick to them. There was also a portion of 'posh chips' which were chips with truffle oil and parmesan, they were tasty but the truffle oil was not very distinctive however there was a slight earthy aftertaste from it which works well with the chips.
The next course was on the specials menu so make sure you try it before it's gone forever! It was Italian sausages in a honey and tomato sauce with mixed peppers. To accompany it we had 'funky chips' (3.25) with parsley and garlic and some flash cooked courgettes with a chilli and garlic sauce. There were 2 sausages but the size of them were too good to be true, absolutely massive! The sausages were one of the best Italian style sausages I have ever tried, the honey really brought out the flavours especially that of the peppers. The funky chips were great, I think I they were better than the posh chips to be honest and the courgettes were equally as delicious. They were not soggy, they maintained a good firmness and the chilli and garlic oil was in desperate need of that missing bread basket to soak it all up.
Lastly was a plate of 4 shell-roasted Brixham king scallops (15.75) wrapped in pancetta, served with chilli, a tomato salsa, fennel and lemon salad. The scallops were cooked perfectly, the pancetta really gave the scallops a nice flavour and saltiness that does not spoil them.
All 3 courses and side orders were not to be faulted, we enjoyed every mouthful!
With just a little bit of room left (well a lot for me but I couldn't eat the whole restaurant, or could I? Hmmm)....we ordered dessert. Now I must stress this again, the absence of Gennaro's orange tart was devestating, this is the point where you could see a grown man almost break down in tears.
With just a little bit of room left (well a lot for me but I couldn't eat the whole restaurant, or could I? Hmmm)....we ordered dessert. Now I must stress this again, the absence of Gennaro's orange tart was devestating, this is the point where you could see a grown man almost break down in tears.
We had a slice of walnut tart with espresso creme fraiche, orange zest and hazlenuts (4.95). The walnut tart was lovely however the espresso creme fraiche had a bit of a sharp and tangy taste which I'm not sure if it was down to a bad mix between the espresso and orange zest or the creme fraiche was on its way out. Either way, I don't think the espresso creme fraiche with orange zest was an appropriate choice.
Next was a tiramisu with orange mascarpone and chocolate (4.95) which was much more enjoyable, the orange mascarpone worked very well and the tiramisu was light and fluffy.
The final dessert was an 'ultimate chocolate and raspberry amaretto brownie' with vanilla ice cream (4.95). I usually have bad experiences with brownies because I'm not much of a chocolate dessert person and they are usually hard and taste quite artificial. Luckily, this one truly was an ultimate brownie with a distinct amaretto flavour, soft, rich and smooth. It doesn't look like a typical brownie which surprised me, as soon as I saw it I thought that this is a browniw I think I will enjoy rather than the hard sticky square ones. It looked more like a devilish chocolate muffin which I think looked brilliant.
The Verdict:
I almost feel like I should shout guilty because I enjoyed it too much. With great authentic Italian food, passionate chefs, dedicated and knowledgable staff, Jamie's Italian is one of the best restaurants I have been to. I am even more pleased that it's local.
Although it may be a bit pricey for the average person, it is definatly a perfect choice for a special occassion. However price is not too much of an issue if you stick to some of the cheaper options which are equally as good, for example the arancini, a pasta dish and even a dessert with a cheap drink could be about 23.00. Although typically you are looking at 30-35.00 per person.
The service was impeccable, very attentive to the table and always checking to make sure we were happy. They are very well informed, so don't hesistate to ask questions and really know what you are eating and where the ingredients are coming from.
The atmosphere is very dim-lit and smooth almost with tables at the front and back of the restaurant (the back is better) and some nearby the kitchen. There are many photographs of Jamie on his travels and experiencing Italian food with the locals, this really demonstrates his passion and the fact that Jamie knows what he's doing.
Not much I can really fault here, so all I can say is check where your nearest restaurant is, there is one near Covent Garden I think for tho close to Central London and have a great time.
I'll give it a special 8/10 (minus one point for Gennaro's tart not being on the menu).
Thanks for a really good night out, I hope you like the review!
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