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Please note, Vini Italiani Greenwich has now closed. However, the Covent Garden branch is still open. Time Out Food editors, September 2019.
A petite, stylish emporium dedicated to wine from Italy and the food to go with it, this branch of Vini Italiani is a little oasis in Greenwich.
Pastas were a particular highlight – don’t miss the plump gnocchi with sunny pesto, or the eggplant parmigiana, which had a lovely rich tomato sauce and arrived under an appealingly stretchy blanket of cheese. The mixed platter of cured meats and cheeses also had some spark: there was an excellent pecorino, as well as slices of pink mortadella (a traditional pork luncheon meat) flecked with shards of green pistachio. Finally, there was a simple but excellent plate of sauce-slathered garganelli pasta (the large, tubular kind), tossed with prawns and courgette.
Less appealing was a selection of overly carby ‘light bites’. Focaccia filled with mozzarella and tomato was decent when it came to soaking up the extensive wine list, but in truth, it was just too much bread. And when the wine’s this good you don’t need any distractions: my chilled Puglian rosé was clean and refreshing.
Tiny tables and hard chairs may make it too uncomfortable for lingering but Vini Italiani is still a welcome addition to this riverfront hamlet.