Olivelli

Nice, casual ambiance. Friendlyish wait staff. Mediocre food. Small wine menu.
The antipasti board was OK.
The linguine al sardo was bland, with clumpy sardine sauce/​topping. I didn’t taste the fennel or pine nuts listed on the dish. I asked for lemon wedges, fresh chilli and pine nuts, which they brought to me, along with Parmesan dust. It wasn’t enough to fix the dish. The staff probably should have asked if it was OK or if I’d like to order something else. I could have asked, but couldn’t be bothered to wait for a new dish.

Well that was disappointing. Vitello Milanese plated very simply; single leaf of lettuce, cherry tomato cut in half with a small piece of crumbed veal alla Milanese. Menu suggested accompanied with potatoes instead I got a side of chips. Not much effort put into this dish.

Well that was disappointing. Vitello Milanese plated very simply; single leaf of lettuce, cheery tomato cut in half with a small piece of crumbed veal alla Milanese. Menu suggested accompanied with potatoes instead I got a side of chips. Not much effort put into this dish.

My husband and I LOVE this place! We eat here several times on every trip we make to London! It’s almost embarrassing how often we eat here! The staff are so kind and attentive! You can’t go wrong with anything on the menu. The pasta is done perfect! The pizzas are amazing! Also, try the grapa (sp?).

We we stumble upon this place I was lucky enough to get a table! Can I say is the best lasagna I have in London if not anywhere! We will be back

No bread while waiting. Service was not notable and the only response to, «what do you suggest was a wine; it tasted a little sour to me. No salad or other offering — I shouldn’t have to try so hard. Tortellini was decent but tasted like little more than very hot pasta with a jarred cream sauce.
Very disappointed with the food but it may be my palette because the owner/​manager seems to be passionate and offered something else.

My husband and I ate here during a brief trip to London. We had pizza and salads. The food and service were excellent, and we enjoyed the neighborhood in which the restaurant is located.

I thought it was quite average and overpriced. The house wine is quite appalling. Pizza was super salty. My pasta was OK but nothing special for Italian. Linguini with scallops but I think I found two small scallops. Service was good. Evidently a favorite spot in Bloomsbury. London — at least Central London is just too expensive.

Walked in randomly early on a Thursday evening. Staff were friendly and efficient, if occasionally a little quick to clear plates. We had the antipasto vegetariano and calimari fritto to start, followed by spaghetti pescatore and pizza salsiccia e friarielli. The squid in the spaghetti was perfectly cooked and the tomato sauce was delicious. For me the pizza was a revelation — the fennel seed sausage and napoliton spinach was amazing! Great food and bustling, authentic atmosphere — highly recommended!

After an evening of lackluster Italian food, we ventured back to St. Christopher’s Place for round two of the Italian restaurant experience. We went there partly because one of our group couldn’t really eat anything but soft food (e.g., pasta), and we weren’t prepared to give him a slice of bread soaked in warm milk. Thankfully, we stumbled into Olivelli.
We were seated at the very back of the restaurant, which was crowded for a Wednesday night. Right away, without being served or waited on, I heard various tables next to us conversing in Italian. I told the group that we were clearly in the right place. I firmly believe that the test of whether you’re in the right restaurant is whether the locals eat there. That extends to ethnic restaurants as well. For example, if you’re looking for Chinese food, you walk into a Chinese restaurant, and the place is mainly filled with Chinese folks, that’s the place you should eat from. Same thing here. This was an Italian restaurant, filled with Italians, eating and enjoying the food, so we were in the right place.
Our server was very attentive and took good care of us, despite the fact the restaurant was crowded.
Our leader ordered a red wine that was really pretty good. I couldn’t tell you the name of it, but damn… it was good.
We ordered a starter of garlic bread — one with cheese, one without. It came out piping hot, like pizza crust, with bits of sea salt and rosemary. It was delicious. I ordered a pizza that had sauce, cheese, pepperoni, mushrooms, sausage, and spinach. When it came out, it was fantastic. I think it was cooked in a wood-​fired oven, and the crust was crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside. I threw some chili oil on it and got to work…
Did I destroy it? Yep. Did I get cajoled for destroying it? Yep. Did I enjoy it? HELL YES. Will I be back? Umm… shhhyeahhh!

I stopped by Paradiso with two of my friends for a quick bite to eat. It was a sunny Sunday and the outdoor patio was amazing. We ordered three dishes to share: caprese salad, goat cheese salad and pasta with mussels. The mussles were great, large and tasty. YUMMMY! All the dishes were fresh and flavourful. The service was a bit slow; it took us about 20 mins to get the bill. But over all good place to go!