The swan in Chiswick

This is not the first time I have been to this pub but this blog didn't exist when I went before.

I've never sat inside because in summer they have a nice garden, so the environment is simple and it could be improved. We ordered a starter of mixed salami, ham and crostini to share. It was a quite big portion, we didn't expect that and we enjoyed it quite a lot. Salami and ham were good quality and Tuscan crostini were well cooked.
After that I had a steak which I really liked. It came with baked potatoes and it's a shame they were not great because everything else was very good. We had a coke and we spent 20£ each.
Rate: 7 out of 10
Link: 

Pentolina in brook green

After almost a year I finally managed to book a table at Pentolina, a small cosy Italian restaurant with a posh atmosphere, apparently very small but with more tables downstairs. Pentolina is always crowded and it's quite difficult to find a table. My expectations were quite high.
I ordered tomino baked cheese with almonds and honey as starter. It was quite good but too sweet, better as a desert rather than a starter. As main I had home made pasta with burrata and spinach. Pasta was very good even but the sauce was not very tasty.

The restaurant is good but I expected more.

Rate: 7 out of 10

Link: Pentolina

English food in Heathrow

It's time to leave the country for Christmas holidays which means it's time to review a restaurant at the airport. The one I wanted to try is . They advertise outside they make traditional English food and because I'm a big fan of English cuisine we decided to eat there. It's a modern restaurant, it looks almost like a with e bar, the sits are soft and comfortable and the stuff is extremely friendly and polite. We ordered soup of the day which was cavulflower soup and it was very good. As main we asked for salmon and eggs with toast, which was ok, and we also ordered steak pie which was good, it came with mash potatoes and peas, the side was not very good, quite plain taste.
I didn't have high expectations from a restaurant inside the airport but I quite enjoyed the overall experience and next time I go to Heathrow airport I think I will eat there again.
We didn't order any wine and spent 27£.
Rate: 6 out of 10.
LinkHuxleys

The new Pizzica in Fulham

Pizzica is a small successful Italian restaurant in Fulham, the owner is from Puglia a region in south of Italy. A few months ago they opened a new restaurant in fulham road and I was very keen to try it.
When we arrived I immediately liked the environment, there are wood tables with a small flower on each of them, there is soft music and the restaurant is painted with warm colours. They make home made bread, the same kind of bread you would eat in Puglia and pizza. We ordered two starters, burrata and carpaccio. Both of them were quite good even if carpaccio was not a proper one in fact it was coppa which is a kind of salami from Italy. As main course I ordered ravioli with monk fish and asparagus and my friend ordered pappardelle with porcini mushrooms. I tried both of them, pappardelle was cooked with tomato sauce and probably butter, it's not easy yo make it right, sometimes it can be too dry but this one was perfect and delicious. Sadly I didn't like my dish, ravioli were crispy which doesn't make sense and provably seafood was not fresh as I can taste the fresh one. From my point of view a restaurant shouldn't serve seafood unless it's fresh from a monger fish.

We also ordered espresso and tiramisu as desert which was very good. We didn't drink any wine and the bill was 43£. Overall I was not impressed, provably I choose the wrong dish but I expected more, next time I want to try pizza there because it looked good.

Rate:7 out if 10.

Link: La Pizzica

Flowers from Provence

We had been attracted by this nice and small restaurant with flowering table cloths and an advert saying 13£ for two courses. After asking if dogs are allowed we got in down to the back with our puppy. I didn't read the name of the restaurant but flowers everywhere and paintings of lavender reminded me Provence, it was not a surprise when I found out its name is La Provence.
My starter was aubergine and olive pâté and as main I had sea bream on a bed of artichoke and fondue. It was delicious and I enjoyed it very much.
Other dishes were great as well. The dessert I had was homemade chocolate pudding with amazing chocolate fondue in the middle. The staff are very friendly and polite and the service is quick.
We also ordered espresso and we paid 20£ each.
This little cosy French restaurant was a beautiful surprise.
Rate: 8 out of 10.

Link: La Provence

Welcome to Brussels

I was in Brussels for a weekend and it was a great opportunity for finding a good restaurant and writing a review. Estrille was the restaurant chosen by me and my friends, I organised the venue for 12 of us and I'm glad I did.
The environment is fine and elegant with soft light all over the dining rooms, some walls are painted and some of them show raw bricks, arches connect one room to the other one. The staff is really polite and friendly, we didn't know anything about the dishes they serve and they have been very nice with us trying to answer all our questions. The food was great, everybody was happy, some of us, included me, ordered Carbonada which is a stewed beef cooked with beer and it comes with French fries.  I was not really happy about the side because I think it would have been better to serve the beef with something else but the meat was absolutely great, soft and tasy. Some people ordered duck breast which was a big portion and a good one.
Some had seafood and some chicken. I also had a starter which is duck pate with smell of orange, it was absolutely great. The bill was  a bit expensive but in my understanding restaurants in Brussels are expensive. We spent 40€ each and we also ordered wine and beer.
Rate: 8 out of 10
Link:Estrille

Good quality Japanese in Soho

After some time without reviewing anything I finally found inspiration. I was with friends, we were in Soho and one of us knew this Japanese restaurant called Binchio. It was quite late and we had to rush and make our order quickly so we decided to ask 4 platters of mixed grilled selection. The portion is not very big, the selection comes with a skewer of chicken, one with a big tiger prawn, one with salmon and then there are mushrooms, asparagus, pork. The dish is simple, well presented, high quality. I really enjoyed it and after eating it I didn't feel heavy but it left a good taste in my month.
The environment is modern and elegant, there are soft red lights and wood tables.
We spent 12.5£ pound each having ordered the selection and 2 portion of mushrooms and chicken rice.
Rate: 8 out of 10
Link: Bincho