What: A casual yet pricey central London restaurant that serves a menu of Italian cuisine created using Japanese flavours and techniques. Located close to Broadcasting House on Great Portland Street, Itaku is by no means that first London restaurant to attempt to fuse the two cuisines, joining the likes of Sumosan Twiga in Knightsbridge and Angelina in Dalston.
Who: The founder of long-running Cannes pop-up nightclub Frenchman Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini (although he is perhaps better known as Cheryl Cole’s ex husband). His London debut is being headed up by chef Ivan Simeoli, who was until fairly recently the executive chef of Osteria 60 at the Baglioni Hotel in South Kensington (his CV also includes The Royal Academy of Arts and The Wallace Collection in London and Italian three-star Osteria Francescana). The cocktail menu has been created by Nicholas Medicamento, previously a bartender at American Bar at The Savoy.
The vibe: Designed by young Italian architect Maria Morra, Itaku seats 55-covers over one level. Illuminated by a large skylight, the space has a white marble floor, gold accents and a mixture of fixed and free-standing seating. As one would expect given the owner’s background, the evening sees the lights turned right down and the music turned up to create a clubby feel.
The food: As billed, the majority of dishes are Italian with Japanese flourishes but Simeoli’s preference for the stronger end of Japanese flavours means the two cuisines are represented pretty much equally. Split into raw bar, pasta, robata, sea, and sides the menu makes extensive use of premium ingredients but even with that in mind prices are still on the high side, especially given the tiny portions. Raw dishes range from £14 to £29, pasta dishes cost between £21 and £26 and secondi-style meat and fish dishes average out at a little under £25. Dishes include red prawn with Perigord truffle, ponzu and sea aster; wild seabass sashimi, parsley oil, amalfi lemon and n’duja; cappelletti in dashi miso broth, wakame, Japanese mushrooms; and wild sea bream with shiitake mushrooms and red cabbage.
To drink: The wine list is somewhat out of step with the food with just 15 bottles on offer of which four are available by the glass. It’s not clear whether there’s been an issue with procurement or whether the restaurant is pushing its guests towards its five sakes or expansive cocktail menu, which includes the likes of the Affair (Bombay Sapphire Premier Cru Murcian Lemon, yuzushu sake, Limoncello Tosolini and gold); and the Kombu Daiquiri (Eminente Claro, Honjozo Genshu sak and kombu).
And another thing: It doesn’t feel like the right bit of town for such a self-consciously vibey place with nearby restaurants - including Portland and Meraki - taking a rather more low-key approach.