Il Bertorelli
Restaurant: Il Bertorelli
Address: Clifford Street
Average Meal: £20-30
Rating: ****
Il Bertorelli is actually a restaurant chain so I expected a run of the mill, pizza/pasta type affair on a par with the heinously overpriced Pizza Express. What I got was an authentic and original menu, excellently priced and with a good atmosphere to boot.
The only thing that let this place down was the service: albeit friendly it was rather slow. Our simple but indisputably Italian meal began with deep fried calamari and whitebait. The bruschetta was the high point of the starter course, emphasising the Italian cooking philosophy that simple food cooked well still holds sway.
After such an appetising start, the seafood linguine and vegetable pizza had much to live up to. And despite their unenticing Anglo-Italian names reminiscent of Wetherspoon’s gastronomic delights, they delivered beautifully .
The pasta dish was the best I have ever had inside England. The pizza was commendable too, with just the right balance of crunchy base and rich, powerful flavours of tomato, pepper and artichoke.
The 20 minute wait for our plates to be cleared was more motorway service than silver service but the lemon tart made up for it.
What this restaurant did so well was bring a corner of Italy, albeit in a slightly unoriginal fashion, to a dark and dingy York Saturday night.
Show on map
Loading ...