Tenore's authentic Sardinian cuisine awakens travel memories. Photo credit: whl.travel

Italy conjures up the tastes of pasta carbonara flecked with salty pancetta, soft mozzarella dripping with pesto and layered with basil and ripe tomatoes. Plump figs from a farm on the Amalfi coast are placed in a turquoise bowl on a terrace overlooking the Mediterranean Sea—their beautiful, gooey purple centers oozing with every perfect bite. Warm pizzas bubbling with cheese are lifted from wood-fired ovens as the smell of freshly ground coffee for perfectly concocted cappuccinos wafts through the air from a street-side café.

Italy is food perfection. The fresh ingredients, the vibrant colors and awe-inspiring smells are ones that linger long after your departure. There aren’t many places in the world that you can find Italian food that is any comparison to the real deal. Most major cities have Italian food and London is no exception. Some are sub-par and some bring you back to that Italian vacation with a simple bite from a perfect pizza. Hidden and unassuming—a small yet classy joint on Islington’s Barnsbury Road, just a few blocks from Angel tube station, Tenore restaurant does just that.

One step in and you are greeted with a buon giorno from the friendly Italian wait staff. The walls and floors are a deep oak and photos of Italy in the fifties line the walls. In the background an open kitchen boasts an authentic wood-fired pizza oven. The restaurant is comfortable and unpretentious in a way that screams we know Italian food and we know it well, but don’t need to brag about it with unnecessary flair.

The menu is mainly Sardinian and showcases a wide arrange of choices. From seafood dishes like sa burrida—marinated rock salmon, in white vinegar and walnut pesto—or pasta with baby clams and bottarga in a creamy yet surprisingly light sauce.

The pizza list is extensive and delicious including items like the Sarda pizza with tomato, mozzarella, Sardinian sausage and Gorgonzola. The ricotta pizza is layered with fluffy ricotta cheese, fresh tomatoes, arugula and melted mozzarella with a perfectly accompanied chewy crust. Some of their salad items like the pear and walnut salad with iceberg lettuce could be better executed, but the pizza and pasta more than make up for the lack of ingenuity in their salads items.

The menu, which boasts a vast array of hard to find Sardinian items keeps you wanting more.

The prices are a welcome treat with pizzas big enough for two starting at £6.80 and pastas at an average of £10. Like the reasonable prices, Tenore is a welcome respite in a city which boasts delicious food that often falls short.

Tenore Restaurant
14 Barnsbury Road
London N1 0HB
020 7278 6955
www.tenore-restaurant.co.uk

Related Posts:

• June 18, 2010 -- Mexican munchies in London: a look at the city’s beef burritos
• May 30, 2010 -- The Fig and Olive: as colourful as its food
• April 7, 2010 -- Angel’s cozy cafe: Candid Arts Café
• March 31, 2010 -- The Entrecôte Experience