Aurelia

Our restaurant specialist Pippa Wadey reviews Mayfair’s atmospheric new Italian

On a street dominated by the darkened windows of art galleries, this new Italian, which opened in November 2011, is optimistically positioned around the corner from Mayfair stalwart Cecconi’s. This area is home to many high-end restaurants and, while Italian cuisine certainly has a strong presence, Aurelia is a welcome addition which could quickly and easily become irreplaceable.

Guests are welcomed inside an impressive entrance – with bright white exterior walls, a white tiled mosaic doorstep, warm lighting and a gold, italicised name placard – by glamorous, smartly dressed female waiting staff who whisk away your coat. Spread over two levels, the ground floor has a long bar on the left-hand side, while small tables fill the rest of the room. Here, you can enjoy the full à la carte menu in a spacious and relaxed atmosphere.

Downstairs, there’s an open kitchen rather than a bar, where rotisserie chickens and ribs of beef rotate slowly. Although the main concept of the restaurant revolves around sharing platters, there are very few large tables (two tables for six in total) – this avoids too much noise being generated, since the low ceilings can make it quite loud. Table arrangements are intimate enough for easy conversation, but roomy enough to not feel cramped, as can so often happen in a tapas or sharing-style restaurant.

Despite wanting to order everything on the menu, my three companions and I restricted ourselves to a selection of nibbles, charcuterie, starters, mains, rotisserie choices and sides. Of these, the prosciutto di San Daniele is the most tender Parma ham I have ever tasted. Similarly, the burrata with datterini tomatoes and basil, tuna tartare with oscietra caviar (made with a raw quail’s egg), and salt marsh leg of lamb with anchovies and salmoriglio sauce are all standout dishes.

It is rare to find a restaurant serving such fresh ingredients, but this is where Aurelia excels, most evidently in the vegetable crudités platter with anchoïade (an artichoke, anchovy, mayonnaise, garlic and olive oil dip). It is unusual to enjoy raw vegetables – a dish usually reserved for ‘healthy nights in’– quite this much. The radishes are sweet, the romaine lettuce has no trace of bitterness, and the hard-boiled egg adds a smooth creaminess to the combination.

With Aurelia, Arjun Waney (the entrepreneur behind Il Baretto and La Petite Maison), has expanded his empire, bringing ex-Roka chef Rosie Yeats to preside over the kitchen. Open from Monday to Sunday, it also has a wonderful breakfast menu. This is served from 7.30 to 11.30am and includes a wide range of European-style dishes, as well as the typical full English. The duck egg à la croque, truffle and soldiers is particularly impressive.

This relaxed but elegant restaurant is a must-try for business meetings, smaller intimate dinners (quiet corners can be found), or a get-together with friends. While the white tablecloths suggest fine dining, it is not the type of venue in which you will find Michelin-starred food – but it is fun, atmospheric and sure to be a huge success.