Last Updated on January 27, 2026
Hartnett’s New Place Cicoria Fails to Hit the High Notes
3.0 out of 5.0 starsHere at London Unattached, we are always pleased to hear about a new restaurant from chef Angela Hartnett OBE. Hartnett has become something of a National Treasure, honouring her Italian roots whilst being a stalwart of the London restaurant scene. She worked at Aubergine, Zafferano and L’Oranger before becoming head chef at Petrus. After winning a Michelin star at Petrus, Hartnett went on to open her own restaurants, including the Michelin-starred Murano in Mayfair and its sister restaurant Cafe Murano in Covent Garden. Now there is Cicoria in the Royal Opera House.
Cicoria, an ‘Italian-inspired restaurant’ focused on the Emilia-Romagna region, and the adjacent Bar Cicoria, a Turin-style all-day rooftop terrace bar, both sit on the 5th floor at the Royal Opera House. We are regulars at Covent Garden, covering opera and ballet productions, which are central to our mission of offering our award-winning, informed and comprehensive arts coverage of the London scene. The bars at the opera house are perfect for a light cold bite, smoked salmon sandwiches or salads, but sometimes something more substantial is required. So, it made sense to make Cicoria our latest Restaurant of the Month, a slot in which we investigate new openings of interest.
Cicoria doesn’t seem to be signed either outside or inside the opera house, so we hopped inside, taking the lift to the 5th floor. It’s quite zippy; a friend of mine lost her skirt in it many years ago, with the velocity getting the better of her loose-fitting fabric. The 5th floor has entrances to the opera house’s Amphitheatre, and we were ushered by staff along a photo-lined corridor with the sound of the singers ringing in our ears. Then through the Amphitheatre bar, with its stunning view of the Paul Hamlyn Hall, and finally through heavy doors into Cicoria.
The restaurant is surprisingly large, given that it doesn’t seem to be trying particularly hard to attract the opera audience. Cicoria just about avoids the cavernous feel of a hotel dining room. Last orders are at 9.30 pm; there is no interval dining, and pre-opera bookings are advised to be made 2 hours before curtain up, which means 5.30 pm or even earlier for Wagner. Opera house regulars have been upset about the loss of the much-loved Amphitheatre Restaurant, which allowed for meals to be finished in the interval. However, it’s an attractive space with warm, muted colours. There are flutée wooden panels and pillars, wooden floors, soft lighting, a copper effect ceiling, fabulous hanging light fixtures, marble style composite tables and some quite firm Belle Epoque era shaped chairs. There are lovely rooftop views of the area and a balcony for warmer months.
The menu features cicchetti-style snacks and antipasti, vegetables and salads, pasta-based starters, fish and meat main dishes, sides, desserts, and cheese from La Fromagerie. Just the thought of opera (or anything) makes me thirsty, so drinks were ordered. A crisp sparkling white made from Turbiana grapes by the Metodo Classico in Lombardy, ‘Cuvée dei Frati’, Ca’ dei Frati, had citrus and apple notes and an energetic mousse. A Truffle Vesper was a more heavyweight offering, blending Truffle-infused vodka, gin, and dry vermouth. The signature Vesper gin/vodka combo is always interesting, with the gin’s botanicals giving a little spark to the earthy truffle tones.
We chose a couple of dishes from the antipasti menu to start. Vitello tonnato is a summer’s dish, and whilst the thinly sliced veal was delicious, the tuna sauce was underpowered with just a few capers and anchovies sitting on top adding saltiness and acidity.
Similarly well-mannered was a plate of citrus-cured halibut with the classic Italian salad combo of fennel and orange. The fish was sweet-tasting, but there needed to be more acidity in the cure, with the dill fronds and tasteless red flecks not adding much to the dish.
Clearly, more drinks were required. We moved on to a classic white Burgundy, Rully, Maison de Montille, with its peach and apple notes.
For my main, I chose a Cavolo Nero risotto with mozzarella and confit tomatoes. The rice was just al dente, the texture creamy from the starch and cheese, and the flavour pleasingly vegetal. This was a great dish.
Breaded lamb cutlets were robustly flavoured and tender, with the breadcrumb almost too thick. An accompanying Sicilian caponata was vinegary in a good way.
A salad of Castelfranco, a less bitter-flavoured heirloom radicchio, had some crunch from hazelnuts, which provided a contrast to the softness of cubes of Robiola, a cheese from Piedmont, with a mild dressing not adding much excitement.
The Hartnett Tiramisù was a perfect balance of cream, booze, chocolate, coffee and sponge. It had a properly squidgy mouthfeel for which I was genuinely thankful.
I’m a bit worried about Cicoria. I’m not sure who will go. With a food offer that is pricy, uneven and not particularly exciting, and service that verged on the over-eager, it feels disconnected from the bustle of Covent Garden. It doesn’t seem to be serving the opera house’s clientele. Maybe it’s designed to soak up a tourist crowd. Time will tell.
Cicoria
Bow Street,
Covent Garden,
London,
WC2E 9DD
020 7212 9254.
Other new openings that have caught our eye this month include:
Harry’s Covent Garden
We like the Harry’s group of Italian restaurants, owned by Richard Caring’s Ivy Group, which has sites in Knightsbridge, Marylebone, Victoria, King’s Cross and now in Covent Garden’s Piazza. With a splash of la dolce vita and Venetian-inspired interiors, the 190-seater restaurant, with its large outdoor terrace, will bring even more glamour to Covent Garden, along with a well-curated menu of classics. Don’t forget to try Harry’s Toadstool for dessert!
Harry’s Covent Garden
11-12 Russell Street, London WC2B 5HZ
Maset
If, like me, you have happy memories of eating turbot and drinking Txacoli at Donostia and Lurra, a pair of Basque restaurants in Marylebone, then the same owners are now opening a new place in Chiltern St that majors in Southern French coastal cuisine with forays into North African and Spanish flavours. I’ll be going. Anyone for bouillabaisse croquettes?
Maset
40-42 Chiltern Street, London W1U 7QN
0203 822 0808
74 Charlotte Street
Chef Ben Murphy received plaudits for his stint at D&D’s Launceston Place. His new place is in Fitzrovia, in Charlotte St, on the site of Masterchef’s Monica Galetti’s Mere. The restaurant opens at the end of the month. Watch out for the sharing Beef Wellington and the ice-cream trolley!
74 Charlotte Street
74 Charlotte St., London W1T 4QH
0207 326 3802
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