Apsleys, the new restaurant at London’s Lanesborough hotel, has been branded as an Italian identity crisis by the Evening Standard’s Fay Maschler.

Maschler, who praises the service at the restaurant calling manager Pasquale Cosmai a “treasure”, finds the food confused, saying English head chef Nick Bell cooking an Italian menu might be at the heart of the muddle.

Meanwhile Jan Moir finds the exact opposite at Apsleys, saying the dishes show “much promise”, while the service is “exhausting”.

“Nick Bell is a good cook, but the service and the food don’t quite go together here. If he was cooking in a proper restaurant, I’d go straight back tomorrow,” she says. 

For the reviews in full and more see What’s on the Menu? >>

By Kerstin Kühn

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