Polpo Smithfield

POLPO - Venetian sharing plates, simple and humble, always delicious.

POLPO - Venetian sharing plates

We like to stay true to the Venetian way and keep plenty of tables free for those who happen to stumble upon us.

But we do keep a number of tables open for bookings.

http://polpo.co.uk

The World of Polpo in 2012. | London Eater

After taking time out to launch his immaculately designed Polpo cookbook, Russell Norman (and Richard Beatty) are back to open the third arm of Polpo, the first outside of Soho and their sixth opening overall.

The site is either the least narrow of them all or the first Polpo to have a dining room.

I’d found out last month when I visited Da Polpo that it had quietly dropped its article, and now is simply Polpo Covent Garden.

The Smithfield menu looks similar to the format propagated by Da Polpo when it first launched.

Hard to believe it was only a mere 3 years ago when Polpo opened as the hippest restaurant in town which then ‘defined’ a new kind of London restaurant.

Best New Restaurants In East London | CN Traveller

The men behind Canto Corvino, Andrew and Ninai Zarach, own the two Manicomio restaurants in Chelsea and St Paul's - scenes of many a button-popping, expense-account lunch.

In Spitalfields, Canto Corvino is a beautiful, twinkly space, with vintage glass panes, reclaimed wood and blackened steel, reminiscent of French industrial design.

Head chef Tom Salt (sometimes visible in the open-plan kitchen) has loosened up the Italian menu without going too bananas.

The wine list will take you on an insider tour of the Italian regions.

NEXT Address: Canto Corvino, 21 Artillery Lane, Spitalfields, London E1 Telephone: +44 20 7655 0390 Website: cantocorvino.co.uk By Rick Jordan.

Polpo Smithfield | The Third Venetian Bacaro Comes To Smithfield

Polpo Smithfield | Farringdon Restaurant Smithfield, as you probably know, is home to a famous meat market.

It’s also home to Smithfield Market, the last surviving wholesale market in central London, where meat’s been traded for more than 800 years.

And on Monday it gets another one: Polpo Smithfield.

A Venetian bacaro – just like its Soho and Covent Garden siblings – Polpo Smithfield shares their red leather banquettes, exposed brickwork and rustic / industrial feel, but also upstages them with the addition of outdoor seating.

Polpo Smithfield | 2-3 Cowcross Street, Smithfield, London EC1M 6DR   Like great dining experiences?

Polpo Smithfield, 2-3 Cowcross Street, Clerkenwell, London, EC1M ...

About: The Polpo restaurant at Smithfield is the third in the group to open, and as with the others has a 'secret' bar in the basement (the Negroni Bar).

The Polpo restaurant at Smithfield is the third in the group to open, and as with the others has a 'secret' bar in the basement (the Negroni Bar).

So how could we ignore the fine subterranean Negroni Bar at Polpo, Smithfield.

Outdated since the late 70s, vermouth, gin and Campari are enjoying a revival, and so the Negroni Bar at Polpo is in vogue.

Outdated since the late 70s, vermouth, gin and Campari are enjoying a revival, and so the Negroni Bar at Polpo is in vogue.

Polpo Smithfield | London Restaurant Reviews | DesignMyNight

I was so looking forward to my visit to Polpo Smithfield last night for a special celebration with friends but having been completely ignored by staff when I waited to be seated I knew it didn't bode well.

The set Christmas menu was ok but really that was it.

The staff were really doing their best but it was very chaotic but that was probably owing to the large parties in last night.

It was quite a let down but what concerned me the most was the beef which should have been a highlight for a Christmas meal.

I have to return for a company party which I sincerely hope is an improvement on last night.

Russell Norman: the new king of Soho dining | Life and style | The ...

Other similar restaurants followed: Polpetto, above the French House pub in Dean Street, and da Polpo, on the edge of Covent Garden.

Norman will open his sixth restaurant, Polpo Smithfield, near Farringdon station, in early July, and hopes to follow this, pretty swiftly, with a third in Islington.

At Spuntino, the head chef, Rachel O'Sullivan – with the opening of the new Polpo, four of Norman's head chefs will be women – asks us to try a new salad of asparagus and hazelnuts, flavoured with the Egyptian spice blend, dukkah.

Norman insists that this policy – one that has, alas, been widely copied by a new generation of small, groovy restaurants – comes down, not to cash, to keeping tables busy, but to social engineering.

I stood there in those early weeks, scratching my head, thinking these people were not the right audience for the restaurant.

Polpo Smithfield | Restaurants in Farringdon, London

This Venetian-inspired mini-chain of déshabillé bàcari doesn’t seem out of place on a street lined with food industry behemoths, though how long its carefully conceived decor (old Underground-style tiling, tongue-and-groove panelling, Anaglypta ceiling) can maintain the veneer of individuality will be interesting to see.

You don’t have to dress up, the menu of small plates is flexible, food is served all afternoon and until gone 11pm most days, and water is brought to the table without asking.

Fennel is a favourite ingredient, whether it’s the spice featured in salami and meatballs, or the bulb used in salads.

Cicchetti of sweet grilled fennel with white anchovy was a lovely start to a meal that was hard to fault.

Tender pillows of pink-middled grilled lamb came on a juicy basil- and caper-flavoured caponata that was more tomatoey than sweet-sour but delicious nonetheless.