Elizabeth Street is one of those elegant locations you occasionally stumble across in the capital, and it is also home to the foodie empire of Sardinian born Mauro Sanna in this characterful Belgravia neighbourhood.
Walking around the area which is dominated by eating and drinking havens and sophisticated shopping locations you might think you are suffering from double vision because the name Olivo keeps cropping up. Don't worry however, you are not in need of an urgent visit to the opticians because Sanna has cornered this village area for his business empire.
He opened his first Olivo restaurant opened in 1990 and over the years this little piece of SW11 has become Sanna's own with a collection of establishments, all just a few minutes walk apart, that comprise of four restaurants, a delicatessen and the newest addition to the Sardinian's collection, an ice cream shop, which opened in September.
Having previously been impressed by the quality of the traditional cuisine served up at the original Olivo, in particularly a stunning crab linguine, on this occasion I decided to try the slightly more sophisticated Olivocarne, where the menu is dominated by meat in a myriad of varieties, for a lunch date.
You are immediately struck by the cool décor and complimentary colour themes as you enter the long narrow airy restaurant. The eye is immediately taken by a striking showcase wall covered with a terracotta bas-relief representing a whimsical flock of sheep crafted by Sardinian sisters Stefania and Christina Ariu.
We settled down at a seat with views over the street through the large glass frontage window and commented how comfortable the suspended upholstered banquette and cushions were and accompanying black dining chairs. There is also an elevated dinning area towards the back with striking décor by designer Pierluigi Piu, who animates each of the Olivo sites with his unique treatments.
As we nibbled on the complimentary breads and olive oil – a nice touch – we ordered a bottle of the house Sardinian red wine, which was light and smooth to the taste and a splendid snip at £22.50.
From a classic menu reflecting many Italian favourites things got off to a good start with my gutsy earthy starter of immaculately cooked chicken livers sautéed with flavoursome pancetta in a silky rich and tangy balsamic sauce, offset in terms of colour and taste by a generous mix of fresh spinach leaves (£9.80).
Fiona tucked into a healthy portion of Carpaccio Dimanzo (£14) with exquisite slices of flavoursome raw beef, rocket, great tasting parmesan shavings and delicate hints of truffle oil to bring the plate together. I bagged two big mouthfuls and can certainly vouch for the quality of this dish which was wonderfully refreshing to the palette.
Cotoletta Alla Milanese (£21.50) was a must for me and the classic breaded veal escalope was as good as it gets. It was a monster piece of meat, virtually covering the entire plate, with the thin veal moist and beautifully cooked and coated in perfectly light breadcrumbs.
It needed no more than a big squeeze of lemon juice to further lift the taste of a simple but well executed plate of food. It was served with hand made chips and a side of well cooked sautéed spinach (£4).
This is a 'mouth smacking dish' proclaimed Fiona of her pasta shells sautéed with robust and meaty sausage in a perfectly seasoned tangy tomato sauce. It was just one of those simple rustic dishes that the Italians do so well with memorable flavours that linger on the tongue long after the final mouthful.
Desert was a gamble in the form of a Sebada (£8) a traditional Sardinian cheese fritter drizzled with light honey and recommended by our affable Scilian waiter. It arrived looking like a flying saucer had landed on the plate but once I dived in I was met with a melt in the mouth taste explosion of sweet, savoury and the slightly salty taste of the cheese.
It was actually a match made in heaven and a gamble I would certainly take again.
Fiona played safe with blueberry frozen yoghurt and nougat ice cream, made on the premises, and declared it top class and flavoursome. She no doubt will pay a visit to the gelateria down the road at some stage.
My toughest decision now is what part of the Olivo empire to visit next as rest assured, I will be gradually working my way through them all over time.
