Via Italia

I’ve always had a bit of an issue with Italian themed eateries, the price of a bowl of pasta in many of these places boggles my mind whilst most of the things on the menu I can make a decent fist of myself in the kitchen. That said I needed somewhere to eat after a few jars that was on my walk back to Central so it seemed like a good time to try something new.
I wasn’t really sure what was expecting when I walked in. I go by it everyday on my walk home from work and it always looks fairly lively. In essence it’s a bit like Subway in that you pick a carb and a protein and then pile on the veg. After a bit of confusion about how I was meant to order I plumped for a Sweet Chilli King Prawns with Fusilli and Arrabiata Sauce. The portion was generous however I was more than a little taken aback at my £7 bill. Seven quid for blinkin’ fast food pasta! It really serves me right for not having done a big shop yet but come on… Anyway price aside I found it very tasty as I sat at my table doing a bit of people watching. The pasta was cooked well, the sauce had enough of a kick to it and the prawns tasted of prawns (an achievement not to be sniffed at). I’d also recommend getting the peppers as one of your veggie options they were pretty good.
Overall a really tasty and generously portioned pasta dish. However my mental issues with pasta pricing mean I can’t give it five stars. Sorry, not sorry.

Also touristisch italienischer geht es wohl nicht. Es wurden alle Klischees erfüllt. Von der Kleidung der Mitarbeiter, über die Bilder, Dekoration, bis hin zur Eros Ramazzotti-​Musik. Das System mit der Bestellung ist leider nicht sofort verständlich. Grundsätzlich kann man zwischen Pasta, Salat und einer Art Wrap wählen. Dazu sucht man sich die Sauce aus, sowie Salat-​Toppings. Es gibt auch kleinere Menüs, die man wählen kann. Ich hatte Fussilli-​Nudeln mit Sauce Bolognese. Man wählt das vorgekochte Essen aus, welches dann erhitzt wird, das gibt leider Sterneabzug. Zudem gibt es nur Plastikbesteck. Das Service-​Team ist nett, erklärt aber nicht wirklich einem das Bestellsystem, wenn man fragend davor steht. Preise sind dafür unterer Durchschnitt. Alles in allem für einen Snack zwischendurch absolut ok.

Visited here for lunch yesterday having heard about the pasta burrito wrap, also known as a paneada. Also known as carb loading that oddly works.
The concept of the wrap, is choose your pasta, sauce, protein, vegetables and dressing. I had a crispy chicken with penne and goats cheese and spinach and tomato with arabiatta sauce and green pesto. It shouldn’t have worked but it really really did. Eating it neatly was slightly difficult.
A bit pricey at £6 for a wrap but it filed me up all day and was a nice change from salad.
The coffee is apparently quite good according to people in my office!