Cibo

My favourite Italian restaurant in London. Great vongole. Amazing fresh fish. Fresh pasta. Italian owned, Italian chef, Italian staff. And very reasonable prices as an added bonus. It’s Michelin rated for a reason. Recommended to all food lovers. The location even has easy parking :)

I would like to call Cibo a nice cozy local neighborhood restaurant, but it’s much more than that.
It’s actually elegant dining with elegant food in a neighborhood restaurant setting.
From the second you walk in, it takes you out of its Kensington environment and transports you to a seaside Adriatic port. You feel like your in Italy. It’s very cool.
The menu and wine list likewise takes you to this authentic Italian place.
But as remarkable as this locale transformation is, the food is the real star. Made with such thought and care each dish is very delicious.
The seafood salad, asparagus salad, liver and onions and seafood pastas were just hitting on all cylinders. Very scrumptious food.
My wife paired a really lovely Italian white wine that made this already yummy dinner even more yummy.
A white chocolate desert with an glass of iced Averna and we left Cibo two very satisfied patrons.
Did I forget to mention the incredible service? Well now I didn’t. The service had this sophisticated attentiveness that only the best restaurant have.
Bravo for Cibo, we will come back!

Those who are regular readers of my reviews know that I am occasionally prone to outbursts of hyperbole when it comes to reviews that could be characterized as negative. That is not the case however, when it comes to my positive reviews. I try to state exactly what my experience was without exaggeration. Let the experience speak for itself.
So, when I tell you that the lunch I had at Cibo on the afternoon of October 1, 2014 was one of the best meals I’ve had in my entire life, and the sautéed mushrooms, one of the single best dishes I’ve ever had under any circumstances ever, you should take note.
Not surprisingly, I have Unilocal to thank for helping me find the restaurant.
I was in the Olympia/​Kennsington area of London to attend a tradeshow at the Olympia London exhibition hall. Tired of forgettable food from the expo hall cafeteria I decided to venture out of the hall in hopes of finding a decent bite. My co-​worker and I debated what sort of food we might be in the mood for and settled on Italian. From there, Unilocal directed us to Cibo which was only .2 miles away. As it turns out, that must have been .2 miles as the birds fly because the walk took a good 15 minutes.
Oh, but it was so worth it!
When we reached the restaurant there was only one other table occupied. By the time we left, I think there was only one table that wasn’t occupied. The restaurant itself is charming and intimate. We were seated by the manager and given lunch menus which offered a two course meal for £19.95 – admittedly on the pricey side – but this is London and Cibo is clearly a cut above other restaurants in the area – or all of London for that matter.
For the two courses you can choose between Antipasti, Carne or Desert. For my Antipasti I chose the previously mentioned sautéed wild mushrooms and for the Carne, lamb. My co-​worker also ordered the lamb, but started with the ravioli. While we waited we had a nice assortment of breads to snack on.
The Antipasti were brought out quickly and even just looking at the dish I knew it was going to be something special. Unfortunately the picture I took doesn’t really do the dish justice (how can it possibly when I’m describing it as one of the best things I’ve ever eaten in my life?) I’m not even sure that I’m a capable enough writer to describe what made the dish so extraordinary. Taste is a qualitative sense. Culinary beauty is in the eye of the beholder, after all.
The selection of fungi.
The exquisite cheese.
The potatoes.
The spices.
Perfection really.
The lamb was also extraordinary and if served on its own I would absolutely be raving about the tenderness of the meat, the understated seasoning, the side dishes, spinach and potatoes, and the presentation. Suffice it to say that when I was done, the only thing left on the plate were the lamb bones which I had picked up with my hands (so uncoooth!) in an effort to get to every last bit of meat.
Much to our surprise, as we prepared to pay and return to our show, we were presented with a plate of mini-​deserts, each of which was also spectacular.
A very, very special meal.
In all my years of traveling for work, from one end of the earth to the other, only one other meal has compared to this. That was at La Fenice in Toronto, where interestingly enough I also had the lamb. You can read the review for that meal here:
. Like my experience at Liberty of London later in the day (read the review here:
) it’s good for the soul to be reminded that exceptional quality still counts for something. I definitely walked out of Cibo that day feeling like I had just been treated to a soulful experience.
What I would do to be able to go back in time and experience that meal all over again.
Bravo Cibo, bravo.

This was the best restaurant that I ate at in London from over 60 to choose from. I lived locally and tried it by chance with my wife and parents. On approach it looks small and not so glamorous but do not be fooled, it is authentic and quaint. The staff were Italian and there were two big tables of Italians– good sign I guess. We did it the Italian way– appetiser– pasta– entrée– dessert and lots of wine. My stand out dish was the Liver, but I was blown away by the quality, as were the rest of the table. Knowledgable staff, extra nibbles and good value. I will go back when I move back to London

Awesome place! So very quaint. 9 people accommodated very nicely, we had lovely trays of olives and tiny pizzas. The antipasto was astounding. Baby octopus and grilled vegetables was a must have. Every one at the table had wonderful dishes, wild boar that was very tender, beautiful sea bass, luscious lamb and duck ravioli. A price performer too. The wine list was fantastic. We may return tomorrow night because everything was so very tasty.

A brilliant little Italian restaurant with blindingly good food, generous portions and perfectly terrible art on the walls! Stuffed with 3 shared antipasti, Osso Buco, Lobster Spaghetti and world class desserts for £50pp incl. 2 glasses of wine, bottled water and service charge. The only problem will be inventing a reason to go every week (happy pre-​Easter Wednesday, darling!) how much I’ll need to work out to avoid diabetes and which bank to rob for the cash needed. Top notch.

I am probably going to be blacklisted by all of my friends for writing a review of this place. That’s the main reason that I am only giving four stars, is I don’t want to draw attention! That, and the lighting could seriously be dimmed.
Otherwise… OMGOMGOMG!!! This is the tiny, overlooked gem of an Italian restaurant I have been searching for in London.
EVERYTHING was tasty. The bread and olives at the beginning were the low point of the night, but they were free (unlike so many London restaurants that charge for stale bread). And even they were, if not to die for, were tasty.
Peach, rocket and goat’s cheese salad was delicious, but the salad with burratina was over the top. The duck ravioli was quickly devoured, and plate licked. Not a single drop of tomato pasta was left. And although both dishes were incredibly simple, they were perfect. Just as Italian food should be.
We almost ordered another entrée after tasting our salads, only because everything was so delicious. But smartly reminded ourselves that there was still pudding!!! (thank goodness we did!)
A Nero D’Avolo blend (by the glass!!) topped of the main meal.
After much deliberation, we finally settled on the Tiramisu and the semi-​freddo with peaches. Yuuuummmmmmmmm! The tiramisu looked a bit like a fluffy lump, but was as light as air, and chilled to the perfect temperature. Both quickly disappeared.
There are some drawbacks… The bas-​relief, semi-​nude, italianate «paintings», the bright lights. But these are more than outweighed by the incredible food, the staff that takes care of you but does not hover, and the fact that we got a table at 8:30 on a Friday night. AND clean bathrooms.
Seriously, I hope no one ever reads this review. If you do, please tell them I sent you so I can always get a table.
I almost forgot… the bill was 83 pounds, we paid 90 and got ten back in change.