Caponata is a traditional Sicilian salad made from fried aubergines and celery, seasoned with sweet vinegar and capers. Taking the hearty dishes name, Camden’s Caponata restaurant is offering a very reasonably priced carte for Cupids…

The Valentines Day banquet begins with oysters on the half-shell, then lobster and blood orange with watercress and walnuts, or purple sprouting broccoli tart with pert Tallegio. The man act includes hare and juniper spun tagliatelle or King of the sea, turbot poached in olive oil with shellfish and Swiss chard broth.

Dolci are obligatory, and choice includes a surprisingly leavened, chocolate and passion fruit parfait, and heart-shaped, wispy millefoglie with yoghurt mousse and raspberry coulis…

(£35 / three courses; £40 for four).

www.caponatacamden.co.uk

3-7 Delancey Street, Camden. NW1 7NL

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Valentines Trivia

The most substantial physical expression of love must be India’s Taj Mahal. Built by Mughal Emperor Shahjahan as a memorial to his wife, construction lasted 22-years and involved 20,000 workers from across India and Central Asia.