Lina Stores South Kensington - Italian Restaurant
London
Recenzje
The perfect place for a quick and tasty dinner just before the Proms. Service was professional and prompt. The ceilings are high, making the place feel more spacious. The pasta was fresh and cheese pairings just right. The fried lemon slice with the vegetables was a unique touch
Even on a Monday lunchtime, the place was pretty busy. I was dining solo but got lucky with a table, and took my time working through the 3 course menu. Bright, cheerful interior, delicious food, and friendly staff, this restaurant gets all three right.
Lovely vibe and comfortable seating (important!). Went for the weekday lunch set menu. Great choices and fantastic portion size for lunch time - not too much. Server was attentive and service fast. Restaurant got busy as it’s next to museums I guess.
I have a colleague who is crazy about Lina Stores and I finally managed to get to a branch this weekend. I think it is a good choice if you are visiting the museums and want a bite to eat on Exhibition Road between South Ken tube and the museums. On a Sunday night we managed to walk in without a reservation. Service is good but a little haphazard as we got a different server every time we requested something. That said, there was only one error getting a glass of white house wine instead of red, and no errors on the bill. We ordered the artichokes and carpaccio to share as starters. The fried arichokes were pleasant, but not the best version of carciofa alla giudia I've had in London, never mind Rome. Deep fried artichokes cooked in the style of Rome's Jewish Ghetto should contain a lot of leaves that are are fried to the texture of potato crisps. Removing the chokes while keeping leaves intact makes preparing this dish too much work to attempt at home. The version at Lina Stores were okay, but only contained the hearts, so no crispy leaves. Our other starter of carpaccio was a small portion of beef. It was nice that there was plenty of rucola. The beef was a bit overseasoned for my taste. For main I had the crab linguine. A generous enough amount of picked crab meat gave a pronounced crab flavour. I found it a little too salty. My companion's truffle pasta was excellent. A generous quantity of flavourful truffle shavings. We shared a dessert of sorbets. The blood orange scoop was lovely and fresh with a strong citrussy flavour. The pistachio scoop was too sweet. Decor is warm and welcoming and the acoustics are good in the dining room.
Lovely dinner experience. The atmosphere is spot on—very stylish but relaxed. Friendly service and top-tier appetizers (the Fried Ricotta was a highlight). Portions for the pasta might seem small initially but are actually quite satisfying. Great selection of traditional Italian desserts to finish. Highly recommend for a date or a cozy dinner.
