QP LDN Mayfair
34 Dover St, W1S 4NG
020 3096 1444/www.qp-ldn.com/
Quattro Passi is a 2 Michelin star restaurant in the Amalfi village of Nerano where chef Antonio Mellino plies his trade. Quattro Passi translates as four steps and refers to the distance from the restaurant to the sea. God knows I want to go there. Fortunately for us three years ago Antonio opened a London outpost recently relaunched in January as QP LDN alongside a new Dubai output. I’m excited to have been invited to review the new iteration.
The London restaurant is all about regionality – the food is Amalfi-inspired and we perused the menu whilst drinking an elegantly dry Serre Lovre Valdobbiadene Prosecco. The sommelier recommended wine matching which is always an excellent idea in my book.
I like the interior which is a mix of Mayfair bling with Italian Pop Art on the walls. It’s at moments like this that I wish I was tall and rakishly wealthy with a disinterested model hanging off my arm…I would so suit the place.
Some pre-starters arrived: mildly spicy sausage arancini, deliciously light Focaccia pizzete and clouds of Ricotta stuffed pizza bread. They would all make great aperitivi snacks.
We moved onto a glass of a dry Sardinian white, Silenzi Isola dei Nuraghi, a blend of 50% Vermentino and 50% Nuragus (a native Sardinian white grape used to produce dry wines). It was a great match with our starters – a Yellow fin tuna tartare served with avocado salad (£20.50) where the richness of the fish and avocado was cut through by some mild spicing – and the fresh, crisp crunch of smoked and marinated salmon served on an apple, nut and cucumber salad on a yoghurt sauce (£18.50). The fish was great quality and both dishes were beautifully composed.
Linguine Alle Nerano is one of the restaurant’s signature dishes. Gluten free, al dente linguine with fried zucchini came slathered in a salty Parmesan sauce (£19) – it was a great blend of texture and flavour and perfect with the light cherry tannins of a Bonacosta Valpolicella Classico 2015.
Squid tagliatelle with cauliflower (£18.50) was a standout dish. Narrow strips of squid came steamed in a delicious orange and lemon marinade, washed down by a melony Pietrabianca Castel del Monte 2014 Chardonnay with a long lemon finish. I’m coming back for more!
Halibut is one of the meatiest of white fishes and was served with a herb crust of parsley, mint, basil and thyme (there’s a song in there somewhere) with Cavolo Nero and a Jerusalem artichoke cream (£29). This was a robust and rich dish with big flavours that I loved.
A beautifully plated fillet of line caught sea bass with a wonderfully creamy zucchini cream and a Mediterranean sauce (£33.50) was beautifully cooked with the flesh firm and glistening; it would make a great, light summery dish.
Chocolate and caramel mousse with Passion fruit sorbet (£8.50) was rich and unctuous with the classic passion fruit pairing giving a hint of sweetness.
A warm orange tart with chocolate ice-cream (£9) was a great combo bringing together those bitter and sweet flavours that the Italians love so much. Our glass of Leone de Castris, Pierale Moscato dolce was bursting with apricots and a great way to end the meal.
QP LDN is everything you want from a Mayfair restaurant. It’s a sexy and glamorous with food telling a seductive story of the Southern Italian coastline. I hope it does well because it deserves to.