Trullo – An Islington Trattoria

Review of Trullo – an Italian in Islington:

It was a grey, wet and miserable weekday and trekking halfway across London for lunch was not really high on my wish-list.  Especially to a part of the Old Smoke I don’t know so well. I have an appalling sense of direction and even with the aid of Google Maps, I find it tricky to hone in on my final destination.  In the end, thanks to a passing stranger, I found the right road, the right restaurant and opened the door.

The first thing that greeted me was a wonderful smell of food cooking on the charcoal grill.  Smokey, comforting and soothing on a damp and chilly autumn day.  The restaurant itself is not large, decorated in trendy distressed style with wooden floorboards and factory style lighting.  Tim Siadatan, a graduate of Fifteen  progressed through St Johns and Moro before working with Jordan Frieda  opening Trullo in Islington –  ‘The idea behind Trullo is to have an earthy, wholesome, neighbourhood trattoria’.  For me, it’s worked.

Now, was this deliberate?  My order of grilled quail with chicken liver crostini from certain angles looked…well…relaxed.  Despite that, it was still greedily  devoured, mostly with fingers, while my companion really loved his burrata with marinated radicchio.

I was quite hungry (or is that greedy?) and I ordered a pasta course.  My ravioli of celeriac with sage butter was sublime.  I hope the photo gives you some idea of the melting buttery tender pasta.

The risotto with romanesque and taleggio la baita looked a little less beautiful, but my lunch date seemed delighted.

For mains we chose one dish from the charcoal grill – dorset lamb rumb with braised rosevale potato, anchovy and oregano and one from the oven, the plaice with baked cannelli beans, swiss chard and yellow peppers.

Both were great plates of food, my lamb perhaps a little fattier than I personally like, but meltingly tender as a result and my companion’s plaice almost a work of art.

I finished the meal with a decadent chocolate and quince tart.

We drank a very fresh bottle of 2010 greco di tuffo which worked well with my lamb as well as with the ravioli and which is a mid-range option on the menu at £36 a bottle.

Prices are reasonable and there’s a lunchtime set price offer.  In any case, the food is good enough that the cost shouldn’t be too much of a consideration.  Highly recommended.

300 – 302 St Paul’s Road London, N1 2LH
Telephone: 020 7226 2733