Il Portico — Restaurant in London

Just a stone’s throw from the Design Museum and Holland Park, Il Portico is a charming, family-run Italian restaurant and has been on my list since Giles Corin wrote about it in the Times in 2023.

It offers a handful of outdoor tables and more formal indoor seating, complete with white tablecloths and an old-school feel. Prices are on the higher side, but the food is mostly worth it.

We started with the asparagus Parmigiana from the specials menu — a simple, well-executed dish. The standout starter, however, was the prawns: beautifully cooked and served in a rich, garlicky lemon oil. At £17 for just four prawns, it felt a bit steep, but the flavour was excellent.

Just after our starters was complete my fellow dinner finished her glass of water to find a piece of cling film on the water glass. Was a slight odd find and asked for the glass to be change however there was little acknowledgement or apology for the incident which was would deem below the expected standard.

The duck (also a special) was a highlight — tender, perfectly cooked, and served with an outstanding mushroom sauce. Unfortunately, the accompanying mushroom was somewhat gritty in the mushroom sauce. The spaghetti con vongole came with French clams and a generous, fragrant olive oil-based sauce. A satisfying dish overall.

Drinks were solid — the Negroni was a house special version and well balanced.

We finished with a complimentary baked ricotta cheesecake topped with blueberry sauce. It was a thoughtful gesture, though the dessert itself was a bit too sweet for our taste.

Service was warm and welcoming throughout. Sitting outside on a summer evening was a treat, though the interior was quite busy and a little noisy. Overall, a lovely experience with a few small flaws, one of them being that there was a piece of cling film in the water glass of my fellow dine with little acknowledgement but other than that, was well worth a visit for traditional Italian fare in a...

Excellent restaurant in all regards.

My partner and I dined at Il Portico on the 16th of September after hearing about the restaurant from friends and colleagues. The menu is concise yet has great options, accommodating both vegetarian and classic tastes. Given that I am vegetarian, the restaurant offered to swap any pasta sauce for one of five options. We ordered Strozzapreti Romagnoli (with a cheese sauce that was very rich and flavoursome) and Cappellacci di Ossobuco; both dishes were served in a very timely manner and tasted delightful. We did not order any wines, so I am not in a position to make an informed comment on the wine list. The desserts included a scrumptious lemon cheesecake topped with a berry compote and luscious coffee panna cotta: very soft indeed. Please do try Il Portico’s desserts as they were gorgeous.

Besides the excellent food, the service was commendable. While the ambience of the venue is peaceful and unhurried, the restaurant was at full capacity for our visit. Despite this, the staff were always on hand to recommend dishes to the indecisive guest and at no point were we waiting. At the end of the meal, the owner himself, James, stopped at our table to briefly chat with us. He revealed himself to be a very down to Earth and kind gentleman; we are very grateful for this, James.

Il Portico is an establishment that I have already recommended to friends before writing this review. So if you are looking for a great Italian restaurant in London, with highly knowledgeable and kind staff, consider paying Il...

I was first at this restaurant 20 years ago when when I was young and on holiday with my parents from the States. I had been back many times in my travels to the U.K. and it was always my favorite restaurant in London. It been several years since I had been back and I wanted to take my husband to share a memory. I must say I was sadly disappointed. The service was subpar at best.I wasn't given a wine list until I asked what type of white wine they have. No one ever bothered to tell us the specials,which I wouldn't have known they had except that I heard every other table be told them. The waitress who came to open our wine left to answer severely calls eventually asking another server to give us our wine because she had other things to attend to. It was obvious their regular customers were far more important, especially the owner who only paid attention to regulars and didn't even great us. The food itself as a whole was edible at best. You could cut glass with the bread it was so hard. Some times memories are best left in the past. I most certainly will never return to that dreadful place ever again. It is more than evident the new generation of owners has a different management style.

Zev M....