First date dining can be a conundrum; do you go for full-on romance or a more chilled and relaxed vibe? Three courses or champagne and appetizers? Rustic Italian seafood restaurant, Pescatori, offers both and in a dining atmosphere that meets perfectly in-between all-out romantic and relaxed and informal, making it perfect for a first date.
Located down a quiet street a short walk from Goodge Street station, Pescatori is a semi-fine dining restaurant where couples and small groups of friends go to escape the Friday after work crowds that spill on to the streets, even more so on an unseasonably warm January afternoon.
Upon entering Pescatori dinners are warmly welcomed, their coats hanged and swiftly seated.
The ambiance is pitch perfect for a first date; lights dimmed - but not too low.
There is a rustic romantic feel as opposed to full-on formal.
There's wooden floors, pebbled walls and the kitchen staff can be seen flurrying about at the back of the room.
Try and book a curved booth, which is spacious and comfortable, and will give you the freedom to talk without being heard by an adjacent table.
To whet our appetite we said yes to the basket of bread and bubbling prosecco offered to us as soon as we were seated.
The bread basket, which comprised of three different varieties, was delicious and accompanying it was a bowl of huge green olives served on ice as opposed to the usual garlic and oil marinade.
Our waitress - a bouncing and bubbly Italian girl - upon our request, chose our wine for us and brought over two glasses of Trebbiano chardonnay umani ronchi igt marche.
Pescatori's menu reads like a dream - lobster, rabbit, rustic soups, an abundance of fresh fish and steak.
So eagerly we ordered our starters: Lobster ravioli served with rabbit salad (£12.
50) and Ribollita Toscana, winter soup of root vegetable and cavolo nero (£6.
50).
Starters we're served swiftly and the portions sizes neither too large or too small.
The lobster was served in a small amount of sauce and had an unexpected smoky flavour to it.
The pasta was cooked to perfection and the rabbit tasted delicious, but once eaten they seemed like an odd pair to accompany together and perhaps enjoying the flavours separately would have been better.
The rustic soup was hearty and nourishing but slightly over-loaded with chunks of bread, a problem that can be solved by asking for your break on the side.
Looking forward to our mains - Roast Scottish monkfish, wrapped in Parma ham, leeks and truffle vinaigrette (£20.
50) and Butternut tortellini, spinach, pecorino, pine nuts and sage oil (£14.
50), with a side order of garlic mash (£3.
50) - but happy to rest slightly between courses, chat and enjoy our wine we had what we thought would be a brief interim.
It turned out, however, to be a slightly longer than expected wait due to a large table in the hireable room below.
We didn't time it, but a clean and fresh glass of Pinot Grigio Tenute Porer Trentino was consumed as we waited, which made up for the wait, and we were apologised to repeatedly by the manager Fabio himself.
When the mains arrived, slightly merrier than we expected to be, we tucked in eagerly.
The monkfish was neatly parcelled up and cooked just right, a little more sauce could have accompanied it; but otherwise it didn't fault.
The Butternut tortellini was, however, the better dish.
Slightly smaller in size, it was full of flavour, perfectly al dente and quite virtuous.
The garlic mash, which accompanied the fish, was delicious too - extremely garlicy (just make sure your date is sharing too!) and of excellent consistency.
For pudding we tried chocolate & roasted hazelnut torte with vanilla ice-cream (£7.
50).
This pudding isn't for the faint hearted; it's rich, heavy and may even be too much for a chocolate obsessive.
Perhaps try sharing this one.
We also tried the cheese selection, which came as a very genourous selection of hard Italian cheeses.
Rather refreshingly for an Italian restaurant they have a wide variety of cheeses on offer that diners can choose from, something usually reserved for French restaurants only.
During our meal at Pescatori one question kept popping up; on a date which is more important - food or ambiance? Is it more important to have above average food or have middle of the range dishes but be comfortable in a restaurant's atmosphere making it easier to enjoy your date? Pescatori is a winner in first date ambiance, the waiting staff are exceptionally friendly and accommodating but the food is only slightly better than average but its prices are on the higher end of the scale.
It's brilliantly located a stone's throw from Goodge Street station and walking distance from Tottenham Court Road Odeon, so perfect for a dinner and a movie date.
If a full on meal isn't what you and your date fancy, you couldn't go wrong stopping off for Prosecco and oysters - perfect for a second date before heading to the cinema or post-cinema for a friendly discussion about the film.
Either way, Pescatori will provide you and your date a warm and cosy shelter from the wintery streets of Central London.
Closest Tube Station: Goodge Street Address: 57 Charlotte Street, London W1T 4PD Tel: 020 7580 3289 Focal points: Central location, walking distance from Odeon cinema.
Special prosecco, lobster or steak menu with pudding for £17.
75.
Opening times: Monday to Friday 12:00pm - 3:00pm 6:00pm - 10:30pm Saturday 6:00pm - 11:00pm