Spaghetti House - Southbank

Always keen to investigate controversial venues, tonight Adam and I decided to check out the long established but heavily criticised Spaghetti House at Southbank. Despite all the feedback online, it was still exceptionally popular on a Saturday night dinner, with a considerable line to get in and reservations are definitely recommended.

 

There was a fair selection of pizzas, pastas and sides that you would want from an Italian restaurant. 

Kicking off with a Bellini, the fruity raspberry and refreshing prosecco blended together for a tasty drink. I really enjoyed it and it took a fair amount of self restraint not to order seconds.

Despite being fairly understaffed and with almost a full house of customers (on top of takeaways and deliveries), food came fairly quickly. Our shared starter comprised of the Polpette Con Pomodoro, a traditional Italian Pork and Veal Meatball with rich tomato sauce. I found these to be quite enjoyable. The meatballs were large and generous with a crumbly meaty texture. The parmesan crisps added sharpness to the dish and the sauce was tangy and fresh.

Although the entrees were enjoyable the same could not be said for mains. Adam ordered the Truffled Macaroni Cheese. This turned out to be bland and very floury. Although we did order a dish which didn't come with meat, I think that there should have been some sort of centrepiece to the dish, or at least a sharper cheese could have been used to add more flavour to it.

Not one to deviate too far from my favourites, this was the Lasagne. Tasting far better than the Truffled Macaroni, I offered some of it to Adam. The sauce was thick and meaty, there is hardly anything better than a tomato and cheese combination, and it was abundant in flavour. My only criticism of this is that it was fairly overcooked with crunchy edges to the pasta which I didn't particularly like. The rocket on the side wasn't overly fresh and there was a little too much cheese on top.

Not a particular fan of desserts, so I let Adam do the choosing and I had a taste only. He decided on the Zeppole Marmellata de Fiche. The ricotta doughnuts were fairly large, each the size of a child's fist. they were served hot but very floury and doughy on the inside without much by way of bounce in texture. Ricotta was delicious and though.

Price Range: $40 - $60pp

Taste: 5/10
Value: 6/10
Service: 7/10
Environment: 7/10