Noci Battersea — Restaurant in London

I recently visited their Battersea branch for the second time. The first time was amazing and we loved every pasta dish, but this visit wasn’t and we left disappointed.

The silk handkerchiefs seem to change seasonally, as this time it was a beef marsala one (before it was a green bean one), so we thought to give it a go since we liked the last one. Unfortunately, it was overly sweet, which tasted like they had put too much of the marsala or sweet jus in?

The porcini mushroom pasta had an almost ‘burnt’ flavour, but this could be down to more of an acquired taste. We left a lot of it in the bowl (indicating we didn't enjoy it) and no one asked why in case there was an issue.

Lastly, the special duck ragu. It sounded amazing when the server described it to us, but when the dish turned up, there was only 1 piece of duck in the entire thing and it hadn’t been shredded up either. This one genuinely shocked us (the lack of meat and overall look of it), it looked like someone had just chucked it in the bowl and didn’t care about the presentation (the other two pasta’s presentation was much better). We didn’t know the price of it until the bill came, as it was a special and not on the paper menu, and it was £17.50! It was the most expensive pasta by couple of quid. As for the taste, it was flavourless with little to no sauce. (added a picture of this one, this is how it arrived).

As for the actual dining experience, the service was slow in the beginning as no one came to get our drinks order for a while and we had to keep getting someone's attention. Although the servers were friendly, they were not attentive. During the meal, one of the servers hit my partner in the back of the head with one of those heavy giant black round serving board. He said sorry, but awkwardly walked off so it felt very passive. Thankfully they weren't hurt, but they felt shocked for the rest of the meal.

At the end of the meal, I asked for the service charge to be taken off. They didn't ask why. So I gave one of the other staff members feedback about the pasta and nothing was really said or done about it (again it felt passive). I think we had 3 different people serving us.

As much as we really liked our first visit, we are genuinely disappointed by the second experience (food and service) and feel like we cannot recommend this...

The Good: We started with the seared octopus, and it was outstanding—easily the best I’ve had. Octopus can often be rubbery, but this was cooked to perfection: tender, flavorful, and beautifully complemented by the potatoes and cream. It set high expectations for the rest of the meal.

The Bad: As a coeliac, finding a pasta restaurant in London that caters well to gluten-free needs can be challenging, though there are notable exceptions. Unfortunately, this was not one of them. I was disappointed to learn that the only gluten-free pasta option available was fusilli—a default choice that’s become tiresome in many restaurants. It’s unimaginative, overused, and almost always pre-packaged rather than freshly made.

Still, I decided to give it a try and ordered the veal and pork pasta. My partner ordered the same dish with regular pasta, which they said was decent. However, my gluten-free version had several issues:

The texture of the pasta was too firm, even for "al dente." Gluten-free pasta often requires longer cooking to reach the right balance, but this felt undercooked, making it unpleasant to eat.

The pasta was overly watery, and the water had not been sufficiently salted. While it didn’t leave the dish bland, it felt unfinished—there were no subtle salt undertones to enhance the overall flavor.

The sauce itself was overly sweet, and the lack of salt to counterbalance this sweetness made the dish unbalanced.

Final Thoughts: Given that pasta originates from a country renowned for its exceptional gluten-free offerings, and considering London’s highly competitive culinary scene, serving most likely pre-packaged fusilli that’s poorly prepared feels inexcusable. If you’re going to cater to gluten-free diners, it’s imperative to do so with care and creativity. This experience fell far short of that standard, and it was, frankly,...

I chose this restaurant for Mother’s Day but unfortunately was very disappointed and left feeling very upset. The food portions are very small (particularly the pasta!) and we were not offered black pepper or parmesan. The attention of the staff was very poor and we had to try and get their attention multiple times and ask for pepper, parmesan and then I asked for cutlery for my child since my child was eating with his fingers as no cutlery for him was offered to us. The waiter (Italian with curly hair - refused to give her name) started telling me that it is not usual for restaurants to offer cutlery to children since the parents usually bring it) she said I just have to ask for it if I need it. Then I said that in my experience restaurants offer cutlery for children or at least ask if it is needed. She got quite defensive and said no she always eats out in London and they don’t. I was so surprised that she would start a discussion of this kind with a customer and got upset that her response would mean that I did not say the truth. To make the whole situation worse she then asked me why I am overreacting?! At this point tears were in my eyes and I couldn’t believe she would speak to me like that - particularly on Mother’s Day! This experience left me very upset and although the restaurant manager apologised and offered us a discount it still was a very negative experience on such a special day. The staff should be trained not to argue with customers! If she is of a different opinion she does not need to share it in such a rude way.

Even if this hadn’t happened I still would not return since the food wasn’t great, service was poor and we left hungry after...