Enoteca Turi is an Italian restaurant in Putney, that came highly recommended by a couple of foodie lads, and is referred to by the more handsome one (sorry Mr Harris) as arguably the “best Italian in London”. Big shoes to fill, Phil.
When a bread basket that damn fine looking is placed in front of you, the shoes are already starting to fill up. Those spindly sticks are sheer joy. Stick it to me. Again. And again.
At Enoteca Turi, the produce is all wonderfully fresh and the dishes are well-crafted and thoughtfully presented. The entrées are generous. A little too generous for my liking, but for value for money, one cannot complain (set menu, three courses for £21.50).
Vitello Tonnato is a heap of baby-softness with a lovely contrast between the docility of the veal and the clang of the tuna sauce.
I have the squid served on chickpea purée; tender and I enjoy the sharpness of the chickpeas against the subtlety of the squid (£9.75).
I am a rabbit fan. I get excited if rabbit is on the menu, and apart from Italian restaurants, it rarely is. Why hasn’t rabbit made the grade in other mainstream cuisines? Poor little stigmatized bunnies. I’ll eat you. Roast rabbit filled with pistachio and rosemary and wrapped in lardo di Colonnata, with braised rabbit and a trio of pan-roasted peppers (£19.75). This dish is hearty and is full of punchy flavours thanks to the rosemary and the lardo (cured strips of fatback).
I have food envy. Not only visually, as Darling Chris’ pasta is pretty-pretty-princess-pretty, but in terms of taste too. The ravioli filled with beetroot and buffalo mozarella with smoked ricotta, butter and poppyseed sauce, is a delicate balance of flavours I adore. There is earth, smoke, cream, zing. Gah! I shed a small tear to a small violin that’s playing, as I return to my rabbit.
Full up, as the portions have continued to be molto generous – “You so thin! Eat! Eat!” – we decided not to have dessert. Then we decided to share one. Then we decided after seeing desserts served to a nearby table, to order another. Hello fatties! The strawberry millefoglie (mille feuille) is classically spot-on; crunchy pastry, rich custard and sweet berries.
I ordered the tiramisu with pistachio, cherry compote and maraschino liqueur. I am a cherry lover. There’s something very sexy about cherries. Unfortunately, it’s a little dry, however the flavours work well together.
The liquid side of lunch worked a treat with a Gavi di Gavi “La Minaia” Doc (£42.50) Made from 100% Cortese grapes, it is dry, but not so much it chafes, and it has a gorgeous crispness from the underlying fruit.
A couple of glasses of grappa never hurt at the end of a lovely lunch, and the beauty of having them at lunch is, they won’t hurt you the next day either…
Service at Enoteca Turi is polite and polished.
I eagerly look forward to dining here again, and ordering some of their super scrumptious pasta. Is it the best Italian in London? I cannot confirm
