11 Sandy’s Row, London, E1 7HW www.la-tagliata.com
The successful chains prosper as they do one thing well. It’s a lesson that a lot of independent restaurants could learn, as well as the less successful chains.
Success for a restaurant is generally dependent on becoming synonymous with a dish, a style, a cuisine, a theme, an ethos, a standard of service – something of recognisable worth and quality that appeals to customers. Jumping from pulled pork one minute to apple fried duck livers the next, while asking customers to wear their favourite hat or bring their own wine, is only going to cause confusion and dilute a restaurant’s appeal.
La tagliata, the Italian dish after which the restaurant is named, is a sirloin steak, seared, sliced and served on a bed of rocket, with a pot of potatoes on the side. Pink, tender, perfect, the meat melted on the tongue and the sweet shepherd’s potatoes were a creamy, delicate accompaniment. For reasons only known to the chef, his or her name was signed in a balsamic reduction in the corner of the oblong plate – a style of presentation that went out way before the last government.
The other gripes revolve around cold air through a drafty door, equally cold plates (why? why?! It’s not that hard to warm them up!) and a house white with a somewhat Lambrini taste to it.
This is slight nitpicking though for a restaurant that delivers on the course it wants to be remembered for. The locals love steak and they love it bleeding, and in these frugal times, a £25 lunch of medium-rare red meat and sweet, saucy carbohydrate is going to hit the spot.