Clapham’s Northcote Road is famed for boasting some of the finest and most unique restaurants outside the city centre. Osteria Antica Bologna is one of the reasons why this street attracts so much attention.
Located in the heart of Northcote, Antica Bologna appears humble from the outside – but don’t be fooled, their menu is as extravagant and confident as any on this Clapham strip.
The traditional Italian has stood here since 1990 and, although my partner and I arrived at 12:30 on a Saturday to find it completely dead, by the time we left it was bustling with families and friends enjoying the relaxing surrounds of a newly refurbished restaurant.
On weekends Antica Bologna offers its a la carte menu and what an extensive menu it is. Deep-fried calamari, white bait and courgette felt a bit heavy for us so we shared a Stuzzichini (Olives and fascinating pane carasau) and gambled on the deep-fried courgettes to start with.
Assuming we’d see disks of lightly heated courgette, I was more than surprised to see a bowl of chips land on our table – only to realise the long strips were a vegetable delicacy well worth trying so long as you share it. A whole bowl of those things to yourself is dangerous indeed.
Accompanied by a bottle of Menabrea beer and the sights and sounds of Northcote (we sat outside in the sun) our antipasti went down a treat before the mains arrived.
Antica Bologna is hosting a special charity dinner on 14 October in support of Save the Children. A set menu is followed by a charity auction, with wine and restaurant vouchers up for grabs.
While my partner opted for Tortelloni di zucca al burro e salvia (pumpkin ravioli) I selected the rabbit leg sat on mushrooms and spinach from the specials board.
Pumpkin can be difficult to get right, for the flavour often strays to either overpowering or negligible. Thankfully, the ravioli burst with flavour but maintained that buttery, wheaty taste – a sign of good pasta. Although it could have done with some added vegetables, the plate was worth its place on the menu.
The rabbit, meanwhile, needed no gravy or sauces as its tender meat complemented the glazed vegetables and fungi.
While the waiting staff busied themselves with an ever-increasing number of customers, we sat back in the pleasant surroundings and contemplated desert. A coffee for one and affogato for the other, we also shared a nibble of Antica Bologna’s secret Ask a Sicilian delicacy.
It turned out to be a pleasant, if not overly inspiring, cannoli – a traditional folded pastry filled with cream. If there was one down point on the dining experience it was my disappointment I didn’t try the tiramisu, which looked divine sat on the table next to us as I looked on with my finger-sized bite.
Antica Bologna is hosting a special charity dinner on 14 October in support of Save the Children. A set menu is followed by a charity auction, with wine and restaurant vouchers up for grabs.
To book at Osteria Antica Bologna call on: 0207 9784771 / http://www.osteria.co.uk/info.html
Photo courtsey of by padraic collins, with thanks.
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