Given the current economic climate and the rising popularlity of "staycations"*, Mr Messy and I have made a pinky pact for 2009 to explore more of the UK and Greater London rather than automatically looking at overseas destinations. So, on a bitterly cold London morning, rugged up like little eskimoes with coats, jumpers, gloves and beanies and weighed down by camera gear (me!) we ventured to Bath which is about 1 1/2 hours on the train from Paddington Station. Apart from the glorious Bath Abbey, steaming Roman Baths (which looked wonderfully inviting to my frostbitten tushy), beautiful River Avon and Pulteney Bridge, one of the main attractions of Bath was the chance to try out Jamie's Italian which opened in Bath in October. The Bath branch of Jamie Oliver's new "simple, rustic Italian" venture was the second to open (the first was in Oxford, and there is a third in Kingston) and is tucked down a small alleyway in a redeveloped Georgian building in the heart of the City. There is, however, absolutely no chance of missing it as the crowds waiting for a table in peak periods (which was, oh, just about all day the day we went!) snakes out onto the main road alerting punters to the Jamie's Italian phenomenon.
Having attempted a lunchtime visit and having failed miserably (there is a no-bookings policy for groups less than 8 people and we didn't relish an hour+ wait outside in the freezing conditions), we headed back at 4:40pm hoping to have enough time for a relaxed meal before catching the 6:43pm train back to London. Obviously the cold weather and early fall of darkness encourages the appetite and early dining as we were informed that there would be an hour wait for a table in the dining area! With my eyes spying a classic bellini on the bar menu and the promise of a warm, comfy seat out of the Icelandic cold (yeah, I know I am banging on about it but it was -4 degrees!) we were happy to wait. Ensconced in the bar area, which is entirely separate from the restaurant (the restaurant remains a mysterious Narnia-type destination until you get the call-up from your waiter to enter its realms), we were able to watch the action at one of the work/prepping stations. The mood is young, fun and family oriented with warm lighting (hell on the camera's auto white balance-sorry folks!), lots of lovely blonde-ish wood, a stunning red leather banquette, turquoise feature wall, Italian deli items placed oh so casually, twinkling tea light candles, legs of parma ham and salami hanging from the bar and ridiculously good-looking waitstaff (just the thing one needs to feel good about oneself after stuffing oneself with all the Christmas trimmings!). This is one of those fit outs that looks effortless but has obviously involved meticulous planning.
With one bellini under my belt (peachy, proscecco-y goodness) and a bottle of wine to share, we settled in to wait for a table- which we did for just a shade under an hour. Bar snacks (olives, spicy roasted almonds, bruschetta) are available if you are feeling peckish but we decided to save ourselves for the main event.Once we were summoned (much to the envy of newly arrived patrons) and seated at our table in the cosy restaurant, the service and food were mostly flawless- our waiter was friendly without being overly so, enthusiastic, knew that we only had limited time for our meal and made sure the kitchen was aware of that. He was also very easy on the eye;-) After sharing a basket of basket of breads (a selection of "top Italian breads" from Jamie's bakery) with some grassy olive oil and well-balanced balsamic, I had the truffle tagliatelle. It was heaven — fresh strands of tagliatelle slippery with olive oil and butter, parmesan, nutmeg and a generous shaving of black truffles (admittedly my arteries felt just a teensy bit more congested following the meal!). Mr Messy had one of the specials- seared pork loin cutlet with breaded eggplant and a small pile of roasted potatoes- which he declared nice but not as good as my pasta (I menaced him with my fork each time he tried to snag some of my tagliatelle).
To finish, a chocolate banana brownie with vanilla bean ice-cream to share. It was everything a winter pudding should be- warm, gooey and comforting. A perfect way to end the meal.
With full tummies and ruddy faces (I suspect a combo of the heating, alcohol and our poor, overworked metabolisms) we stumbled out of the warmth of Jamie's Italian and raced to the station for the train home to London. Hmmmm I could definitely get used to this staycation caper...and Jamie's Italian. Happy Days indeed :)
Bar area (below):
Have to say that I still haven't had a bellini quite as good as my first ever (a few years ago at Locanda Locatelli restaurant in London) or at my favourite drinks spot in Sydney, Bambini Trust Bar (feel homesick now :(( LOVE that place!!).
*according to Wikipedia, a staycation is "a period of time in which an individual or family stays at home and relaxes at home or takes day trips from their home to area attractions".