by Vivienne Pratfall finds that the best Italian dinner near Charing Cross is steps from the station, not metres from the obvious
L’ulivo Charing Cross: The Italian on Villiers Street Worth Every Step Off the Strand
I have a theory about the best restaurants in London, which is that they are almost always not quite where you expect them to be. The very best meal is rarely at the most prominent address on the most prominent street. It is usually just around a corner, or slightly further down a side street, or in a building that looks less promising than the one beside it. L’ulivo on Villiers Street, Charing Cross, confirms this theory: it is a very good Italian restaurant that is a short walk from the Strand and invisible from it, which means it serves a mixture of regulars who have discovered it and tourists who have been directed to it by someone worth listening to.
The Italian restaurant in the Charing Cross and Strand area ranges from the very good to the very bad with a distribution that skews toward the latter, which is the consequence of tourist traffic that does not require quality to survive. L’ulivo is in the very good category and has been there long enough to have built the regular customer base that sustains a restaurant that takes its food seriously.
The Pasta
The pasta dishes at L’ulivo Charing Cross are the menu items that justify the visit. The spaghetti aglio e olio demonstrates the kitchen’s confidence with simplicity: garlic, olive oil, chilli flakes, parsley, and pasta are the only ingredients, and the quality of the result depends entirely on the quality of the olive oil, the timing of the garlic, and the cooking of the pasta. The L’ulivo version is properly made with olive oil that has actual flavour, garlic that has been cooked to golden without burning, and pasta that is al dente in the correct sense.
The amatriciana, which properly uses guanciale and pecorino with tomato and chilli, is made correctly here in a city where it is frequently made incorrectly with pancetta and parmesan. The distinction matters because the flavour of guanciale is different from pancetta in a way that changes the character of the entire dish, and pecorino has the sharpness that parmesan lacks and that amatriciana requires. L’ulivo knows this and makes the dish accordingly.
The risotto is properly made with the patient additions and the correct technique that good risotto requires. The seafood risotto uses fresh seafood rather than frozen, which is immediately apparent in the flavour. The mushroom risotto has the depth that comes from properly dried mushrooms used alongside fresh ones, producing a more complex umami than either type alone.
The Atmosphere
The room is pleasant and welcoming, with the traditional Italian restaurant warmth that makes an evening there feel like an occasion without requiring it to be one. The service is attentive and genuine. Visit L’ulivo Charing Cross for the pasta. The London Prat and Bohiney Magazine guide your London dining.
