Como Garden Brings Lake Como vibes and tasty Italian-Style tapas to West London

Sitting neatly, almost discreetly, off of the luxury Kensington High Street is Como Garden, the relatively new much-lauded Italian restaurant. Bringing the outside in, Como Garden’s faux olive tree is its centrepiece accompanied by its ivy walls, statues, and patio furniture all to allow customers to imagine they’re on an Italian terrace overlooking Lake Como.

Como Garden is perfect for those who love tapas-style eating but the beauty is it’s with delicious Italian food. Similar to your typical Italian menus it follows traditional antipasti, primi, secondi format, as such, to get a real flavour of everything you’re looking at three meals per person.

For our first meals, we had the recommended Arancini which they’ve taken to a new level thanks to Como Garden’s unique touch. The addition of honey on the arancini, which is something we’ve never had before, went against its traditional roots but was a delicious touch. We now never want to eat arancini without a drizzle of honey! The zucchini fries were also a great antipasti treat, especially with a drop of olive oil.

If you’re a truffle-lover then you’ll be in heaven. There’s a selection of truffle-infused meals including the Truffle & Parmesan Tagliolini which is a creamy dish that we’d recommend for all big pasta lovers. Their ravioli is a mouth-watering treat thanks to its savoury and sweet mixture thanks to the addition of walnuts.

If you want something hearty their Chicken Milanese with Fried Egg & Parmesan Fondue is perfect. There’re those who doubt the chicken and cheese combination but Como Garden’s Chicken Milanese will turn doubters into believers. The breaded chicken is of high quality, fried egg and parmesan create this perfect tasty trinity.

If you’ve got the space and want a bit of a palate cleanser then you must have their chocolate-filled doughballs with warm Nutella and caramel. Como Garden are generous with the number of doughballs they offer you, so we’d recommend sharing this between two people. For drinkers, their cocktail selection is vast offering an array of Italian cocktails and your classic cocktails too. Their signature cocktail, Lecca-Lecca is the one we’d implore you to try. Mixed with vodka, amaretto and lemon juice; it’s a rare cocktail that’s sweet but still tastes like alcohol.

All in all, Como Garden is a restaurant everyone needs to tick off their best-places-to-eat in London. It’s great for a first date, especially if you can go on an evening as the music and lighting provide the perfect date-night vibe. Booth seating is a nice intimate touch if you’re going for a date too. But in the same breath, it’s very nice for a catch-up over lunch with a friend or a cute family lunch, particularly if you go in the summer as you can eat al fresco. Como Garden has a very attentive service, making the dining experience feel like a special occasion. From the setting to the tableware, to the food on it, everything was simply beautiful and showed the attention to detail that Italians are known for to create a lovely atmosphere and experience.

Location

37-45 Kensington High St, London W8 5ED

When’s best go?

Evenings for dates, lunchtime for groups

Price

£55pp for three meals (not including dessert)

Find out more here.