Roma

With 100 seats, morning to night service, and three dining spaces, there’s a lot going on at Roma, restaurateur Con Christopoulos’s homage to the city of Rome. The menu, by executive chef and co-owner Matt Wilkinson (ex-Pope Joan, Circa, Vue de Monde) and head chef Anthony Thalassinos (ex-Park Street Pasta, Grossi Florentino), draws from both key Roman recipes and London institution The River Cafe, known as much for its Italian fare as its respect for produce.

Mornings are all about the terrace, where Roma’s breakfast menu makes a convincing case for the return of brunch after years of overwrought cafe dishes. Rome comes to the fore at lunch and dinner. Dried pasta, extruded through gold dies for a porous texture that’s a sauce magnet, is imported from Italy and used in canonical dishes such as bucatini all’amatriciana, already a signature. Another pasta of chicken liver and mushroom (paccheri alla Baronessa) is inspired by a version Wilkinson ate at Trattoria al Moro in Rome. There’s also a fresh ravioli made with nettles Wilkinson has been refining since his Circa days, tossed in caper and sun-dried tomato sauce.

In true Italian style, there’s a bit of theatre to any visit. Meat is displayed in a glass fridge, seafood is stored on ice in chrome drawers that face the dining room, and a marble antipasti table anchors the room, piled with items such as anchovies, mozzarella, fresh tomatoes and cured meats. Guests point while a waiter makes up their perfect plate.

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