Assaggetti

Assaggetti launched in Haymarket in June 2011, with a menu consisting of small plates and matching Italian regional wines and beers.

Assaggetti, which translates from Italian to English as “small dishes”, offers a menu of sharing plates using fresh, seasonal Italian ingredients featuring fish, meat, vegetables and salads, divided into “stuzzicchini” (smaller plates), “dalla fattoria” (larger dishes), “al mare” (seafood), “contorni” (vegetable side dishes) and “dolcetti” (desserts), with an extensive choice of Italian beer, wine, spirits and cocktails.

Aesthetically Assaggetti is a modern, bright restaurant, with big oak tables and flooring, earthy colours and vintage mirrors with aged gilt frames, as well as a colourful feature wall and an impressive large state-of-the-art Phillips and Wood glass chandelier. The design team behind Assaggetti was a collaboration between Grafico and Rory Cashin Design, who drew inspiration from New York restaurants including Pulino's, Perbacco, South Houston, Co-Pane and Public. Other projects from this team includes Esporta Group and Folio Hotels.

Assaggetti is 3, 500m² and seats 120 across the restaurant and bar areas on two floors. Formerly occupied by Metropolitan restaurants Galileo’s, the restaurant offers casual stool dining at large oak tables, as well as the opportunity to dine in a more formal setting in the main restaurant area. It will be open 7 days a week, Monday to Saturday midday to 11pm, Sundays midday to 10: 30pm, and will offer a take away service.

Assaggetti will serve Italian food designed to be shared, featuring appetisers such as squid and mango salad (£3. 75), beef carpaccio (£5. 25), stuffed artichokes and peppers (£2. 95) and a range of “pizzettine” (small pizzas, £3. 75 /5. 25). Assaggetti’s larger sharing dishes include handmade spaghettoni with duck ragu (£9. 50), Tuscan sausage (£9), black risotto with cuttlefish (£8) and handmade ravioli with scampi (£10. 0), with a variety of desserts to finish, from the wild berry panna cotta (£3. 50) to the tiramisu (£3. 50) and vanilla ice cream with Frangelico and chocolate sauce (£3. 50).

Assaggetti offers a wide selection of Italian wines available by the glass, carafe or bottle, including Pinot Bianco Classici Doc Colterenzio (white, £5. 75 125ml glass, £14. 95 carafe, £28. 5 bottle); Montepulciano D’Abruzzo Bianchi (red, £4. 25 125ml glass, £11. 50 carafe, £20. 95 bottle); Arpeggio Rosato, Settesoli (rosè, £3. 25 125ml glass, £8. 95 carafe, £17 bottle); Prosecco Brut Stelle D’Italia (glass £5. 50, bottle £28); as well as Birra Moretti beer (£3. 50 bottle) and a range of Italian cocktails including Aperol Spritz (£4. 95) Martinez (£6. 95 - Gin, Martini Rosso, Luxardo Maraschino and Orange bitters) and Mojitio Sbagliato (£6. 95 - Bacardi, Galliano, Martini Bianco, topped with Prosecco).