Murano

Time Out says

Wed Oct 17 2012

Angela Hartnett’s Mayfair outpost will confuse anyone who’s looking for a purely Italian restaurant. The splendid wine list has more from France than from Italy, and the cooking too owes a great deal to France. But don’t let that deter you. At £25 for two courses or £30 for three, the set lunch menu looks like one of London’s greatest bargains given the luxurious table spacing, coolly elegant decor, and precise but cosseting service – and especially the food.

Everything we ate was wonderful, beginning with exemplary breads and slices of salami and coppa as good as any we’ve eaten in Italy. Then starters: a salad of perfect peaches, San Daniele prosciutto and burrata with startlingly fresh green beans; and tortelli filled with ricotta and courgette tucked under generous slices of smoked salmon.

Mains kept up standards, in the form of wild mushroom tartlet topped with a perfect poached egg, and mackerel served two ways (roasted and tartare) with samphire and heavenly grilled sourdough.

Two small complaints: the wine list scorns slim wallets (hardly anything below £35) and the espresso was carelessly made. Otherwise, we have nothing but praise for Murano. Nearby, two casually dressed gents enthusiastically worked through four courses and three bottles of wine. For a special occasion, we’d happily do the same.