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[Non-photo review] For full review, please see: http://wp.me/pwXBH-UF THE LITTLE BAR THAT COULD Summary:Il Baretto aims to project a sleek and modern image, which it pulls off just fine in terms of aesthetics, but the food underlying its somewhat perplexing menu groupings is generally classic Italian fare. Overall, the dishes we had were fresh, well prepared and some were bursting with flavor (it's all about the burrata), although none of it save for a rather unusual dessert was particularly adventurous. It is a nice place to go if you fancy a fancy Italian meal and don't want any surprises, and the staff is generally very welcoming and professional plus you may find it interesting for people watching. I liked it and appreciated the skill in the kitchen, but wasn't bowled over. The phantom floor So that's it, we're officially residents of New York. Given America's love affair with all things Italian especially the food I thought I'd start off my Stateside blogging with a little review ('little' by my standards, I suppose) of a restaurant run by Italians and managed by a London-based restaurant mafia boss. That would be Il Baretto on Blandford Street, just off Marylebone High Street and seconds away from a trio of restaurants beginning with 'L' (L'Autre Pied, La Fromagerie, Le Relais de Venise) and other interesting places such as Trishna and The Providores. The location has, so far as I am aware, been an Italian restaurant for a number of years (I think it was called Giusto in its last incarnation). Arjun Waney is the man behind Il Baretto, who decided to add the restaurant to his growing portfolio of higher-end eateries in 2009 he is also behind the likes of Zuma, Roka and La Petit Maison. Il Baretto apparently means the little bar in Italian at least according to Google Translator and not a type of gun, as I had first envisaged, which screwed up my original choice of title for this post (I can hear your sighs of disappointment). And a little bar it is, on the face of it at least. The defiantly dainty but certainly swanky small ground floor room does have a little bar at the back, as well as a few close-to-the-floor tables and a row of stools along a small counter that face the window looking out to the street. Perfect for a glass of prosecco and a snack maybe a pizza or some cicchetti but not much more than that. You will almost definitely be met by Italians when you check in at the little reception desk immediately past the door so far as I could tell, there were only Italians in the front of house. And the ones at reception will probably be very tall and glamorous looking women. While I had sampled some of their pizzas on a previous occasion in the upstairs room it was my good friend the Phantom Medic's birthday, and he really likes it there, you see I had never been to the underground lair that lay below. As one of the aforementioned Italian models led us down the narrow staircase, I was surprised to find a rather large and pretty slick formal dining room in the subterranean space, replete with a semi-open kitchen. I was told by the Phantom that it tends to be quite a scene down there at night. And I can confirm that during our meal an A-list Hollywood star was indeed sitting in the corner near our table so the good doctor doesn't tell a fib. As it happens, I had been invited to dine that evening by said doctor as a sort of send-off before moving to the US. It is one of his favorite haunts and he had wanted me to try it out for some time. Confusing menu, simple food After being greeted by a slew of Italian waiters each one welcomed Dr. J as if he was their long-lost best friend and asked after him, his family, his cat all par for the course when dining out with this guy while I waited in the recesses, wondering when we could sit down and order some food! :) I found the menu at Il Baretto to be slightly odd. There was one page of 'Starters', which included a fairly random assortment of dishes (many were not your typical 'antipasti') and a selection of salads; then there was a page with 'Carpacci' at the top and 'Primi' below (were the carpacci Starters or Primi, and what exactly was the difference?); then a page which I assumed to be main courses, which included the sub-headings of 'Kitchen' and 'Robata Grill' (hmmrolling concepts out horizontally across the group, are weRoka anyone?). Anyhow, I found it difficult to figure out how many of what type of dishes to order and so forth, but luckily there wasn't really a problem as the Phantom knew the menu well and we devised a tasting regime of sorts for ourselves, with the help of the friendly and proficient waiter. Once we had ordered, we briefly chatted with the sommelier to select a bottle of wine that might suit the rather fishy direction the meal had taken and ended up with a bit of a gem. 2007 Sauvignon Blanc, Quarz, TerlanoA special meal deserved a special wine, after all, and I was very happy to be drinking Terlan's 2007
