Ci Tua Osteria Romana

Portobello area, November evening. Booked Citua Osteria Romana mostly out of curiosity—what are the odds of finding authentic Roman food in London anyway.

Nice evening, I'll give them that. We spent hours chatting with the staff about music, the differences between Italy and the UK, the usual stuff. Relaxed vibe.

Then the food arrived and things got complicated.

Supplì: meh. They're pricey but you get two generously stuffed ones. Problem: they're not crispy. And the flavor is pretty bland, sort of shapeless. The mozzarella stretches nicely, sure, but a supplì without that shattering crust on the outside... well, that's just not it. I'd say somewhere between a 5 and a 6.

Carbonara. I got it with Gragnano spaghetti, though you could've chosen tonnarelli. Pasta cooked perfectly al dente—spot on there. Silky, creamy sauce, check. Except the pepper was basically nonexistent. And the guanciale... look, that was honestly a bit of a disaster. Sliced way too thin, like pancetta strips, and worst of all, burnt. Overdone—you could taste it.

Back in Italy I'd give it a 6, maybe 6.5 if I'm being generous. Being in London, the score bumps up a notch by local standards, but that guanciale mistake is still pretty serious. Too serious for a place calling itself "romana."

Forty quid for just me—not exactly cheap. But the atmosphere counts for something, and the company too. If you're after the perfect carbonara, skip it. If you want a pleasant evening with Italian faces, it'll do.