The conversation between my friend, CH, and I went like this.
CH: Do you have a budget for lunch?
Me: Prefer lunch to be under £30. (This is me feeling rich after working.)
CH: Lets go to Sale e Pepe, in Knightsbridge.
I did consider that as it is in Knightsbridge, expensive area ya’ know, will it be one of those expensive and lack of substace restaurants? My heart and mind said probably because I’m quick to judge like that. After a quick google search I’m told that the restaurant has been here for years, so there must be something decent about it. Still, I’m skeptical.
Booked the restaurant for 1:30pm but I am running late for lunch as usual, and we end up strolling into the restaurant at 2pm. Our coats are taken and we are shown to our table, the waiter is friendly, in fact he is the friendliest waiter I have met ever. With the olive oil on the table, this place reminds me of Sicily. I’m really excited now thinking I would get freshly baked bread on the table as the waiter comes over with the bread basket, whilst im on the phone, but he signals for me to pick one piece of bread. ONE PIECE. Anyway I do as i’m told and pick one piece of bread, theres not much of a selection, only two choices. It’s just normal bread. Not homemade bread. Just plain normal bread. Bah.
For starters I chose Melanzane alla Parmigiana, £10.50, it was nice though I was expecting it to be presented in a nice sophisticated way because we are in Knightsbridge afterall. Instead it was just plonked on the plate with tomatoe sauce around it. I can’t quite pinpoint it but the tomatoe sauces i had in Sicily tasted a little bit different. Perhaps its to do with the quality of the ingredients available here and in Sicily. Anyway this dish was nice and comforting but I wished the presentation had been a bit nicer as I had paid £10.50 for it.
I opted for the Tagliolini with Black truffle shavings and parmesan for my mains, £19.90, I’ve never had truffles before so I’m not an expert on whats good and whats not. All I know is that I enjoyed this dish. Tagliolini was al dente, sauce was flavoursome and it was a good dish overall. I did feel it was abit one dimensional but that might have been down to the fact that I was quite full by the end of the dish. The portion was decent for £19.90, especially since it had black truffles incorporate into it. I mean truffles are expensive, no?
Lunch for two costs £60.75, drinking tap water.
Overall, if you have a bit of money and probably after shopping in Harrods it’s a nice place to have lunch or dinner at. The food is nice and the waiters are friendly. I enjoyed it here, my black truffle pasta was nice. Although I personally still like Zucca alot more, I prefer their oliver oil (I am an olive oil freak) and the dishes they offer. In terms of prices, Zucca is slightly cheaper and value for money.
Sale e pepe has its nice touches so I can understand why it has been here for so long and they seem to get alot of returning customers. The waiters are extremely friendly and make you feel welcome, it’s a wonderful place to have a birthday as the staff from the manning the front of the house all crowd round and sing Happy Birthday to you. Along with those points and decent food its a place that can be easily loved.
For now, I will stick to Zucca for wonderful Italien food. Even if trying to book a table for dinner requires months in advance.
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Tags: italian, knightsbridge, london, pasta, Seafood
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