Bottega Prelibato

Friendly American waitress was about the only positive in this place. Stay away if you appreciate good Italian food, the antipasti and pasta’s were beyond bad. Reasonably priced for bad food though.

Really great meal and fun unpretentious atmosphere. Caution as tables can be close together, but we met a wonderful young couple this way and had a ball chatting with them. Food was amazing. Especially the mushroom gnocchi.

First time eating here since it’s a popular place so need to book ahead for a table.
The restaurant is cosy and pleasantly rustic-​urban inside and the staff were really friendly and helpful. Good cosy ambience as well.
The different home made pastas were reviewed and the menu is on a board.
I ordered stuffed courgette flowers for starters. It was nice enough but with a batter that was a tad doughy and surprisingly heavy so didn’t have the lightness I was expecting.
For mains I ordered a pasta with mushrooms and truffle oil. It was OK but the truffle oil flavour was too overpowering and the dish was quite oily. My companions pastas (lamb ragu) and mixed pesto, tomato and mozarella were also noted to be OK but not too exciting. The pesto /​mozarella dish in particular wasn’t balanced and the melting cheese sticking the pasta together and thick pesto and tomato made for a heavy dish both in texture and flavour. The lamb ragu was less ragu and more cubes of lamb and the meat wasn’t super tender as you might expect. I see others really rated this place much more highly so maybe our combination of choices from the menu wasn’t the best one. I would be interested to visit again though.
Overall 3 stars from me for food, service and value.

Small intimate but lovely restaurant with a great cuisine. Starter were sharing plates which were charcuterie and some sort of vegetable matter my friends had. Nice and enjoyable. Perversely enough I opted for the Scottish Steak — I mean really in an Italian restaurant?! But I have to say it was excellent. Desserts were sublime as one can only expect from an Italian restaurant. All washed down with some quite reasonably priced Italian Chianti. Service was attentive but had some patchiness hence the loss of one star. I would definitely go back. PS gluten free pasta options available! That’s good btw.

Have now been here twice in the space of 3 weeks. Great cosy atmosphere, friendly staff and fantastic food at good value.
I can’t pretend to recall all the different types of pasta they had available, and I’m no Italian but let’s just say there’s variety. Like true aficionados, they come over to your table with a board of different pastas so you can see what you’re getting — like cuts of steak at Gaucho but with pasta. And they’re not afraid to make a recommendation.
Each truffled gnocchi as satisfying as the last to sink your teeth into, but my true favourite is the squid ink pasta with crab (whole claws of meat) and scallops. Just excellent.
While £15 might seem expensive for a bowl of pasta, this is no student food. The ingredients are high quality and you will leave stuffed.

My favourite Italian in London hands down.
The food is amazing, the portions are massive, the wine list is beautiful.
I’ve been here with friends and on dates and the atmosphere suits both. It’s cosy and full of Italian produce everywhere. All the staff are Italian and friendly, and you can ask them anything about the food and wine.
Did I mention I’m Italian?
I’m always looking for real Italian places, with real Italian ingredients, and not British places that make spaghetti with meatballs and pass it off as authentic Italian.
Try the seafood, the pasta, the wine. They’re all excellent.
This place ticks all the boxes and I couldn’t recommend it enough.

Excellent restaurant in the heart of Shoreditch that combines simple, delicious Italian food with a warm atmosphere and considerate service. It feels like you’re a bit continental eating in Bottega as the sounds from busy Rivington St are quieted upon arrival.
The shared starters are a really nice option is in anything off the special board. Don’t hesitate to go.

Restaurant spécialisé en fruits de mer.
Leur menu change régulièrement. Les produits sont frais. Les plats absolument succulents.
Beaucoup d’attente même avec une réservation.
Ça en vaut la peine.

This Italian Restaurant is lovely! Their menu changes every day so that they can serve seasonal food. The waitresses kindly explain their menu and translate it into English! They also have a little sample of each of the various different pastas being served that evening. The food was gorgeous and the atmosphere is lovely! Our waitress was so friendly and made us feel really welcomed! They also have a sister restaurant in Wapping which we hope to try soon!

Visited here a few Saturdays ago, it was very pleasant. There are no menus, just marked up blackboards that the waiters talk you through. We shared a starter which was a kinf of deep fried cheese. It was perhaps a bit overpriced for what it was, but then we were given extra bread without hesitation. The pasta mian courses were delicious, extremely rich. My wife’s dish was actually a bit too rich/​creamy for her so she left some of it. Which I tried to finish! £15 for a plate of pasta maybe sounds a bit steep but you get a substantial amount.

Without any hesitation, I’m giving this restaurant a five stars. The atmosphere is welcoming and cosy. I felt very relaxed and it wasn’t noisy. The food choice is very italian but not the typical sort of pasta (carbonara, frutti di mare, etc.) and other dishes. I had pumpkin gnocchis with mushrooms and truffle oil (£16) and they were just unbelievably delicious. Didn’t want the plate to get empty. The choice of wine is very good. I would recommend the Montepucliano red wine. And the espresso is good and very reasonably priced (£1.50). They also have a good selection of starters which we didn’t have.
I definitely recommend this restaurant and would go again without hesitation.

This is a very quaint little restaurant in Shoreditch. The place has only about 10 or so small tables, so if you want to try it out, make a booking first. They change their menu daily, so the menu is written on two pieces of large blackboards that are passed around to diners.
There is a good selection of starters and the shared plate of prosciutto, burrata, olives etc. looked divine. But we didn’t get that, we got the fried stuffed zucchini flowers. It is a typical Italian dish and, based on my previous experience, quite delicate. It is not like that here, as the flowers were covered in a thick pillow of flour and were actually quite doughy. I didn’t enjoy it.
They had 5 different pasta dishes and the waiter brought a board showing you the different types of pasta, which was quite helpful to me, as I have no clue. I ordered a dumpling filled with potato, cheese and orange sauce, because it was nothing like I have tried before, and my friend ordered pasta with mushroom and truffle sauce. Both dishes were excellent, but the problem was the portion was way too generous. I tried my best and still had 4 dumplings left over!
Since my friend and I were there for a quick dinner, so we didn’t go for their main dishes, which were one beef and one fish. Both looked quite handsome.
I think the best way to eat here is to do family style and share a starter, pasta and a main.

Quick summary: terrible service, delicious pasta.
I really wanted to love this place. In appearance it had everything I was looking for, cute ambiance, tucked away in East London with a cool but romantic vibe… I was wholly disappointed.
To begin, there was no air conditioning and the place was BOILING. It wasn’t even that hot outside so that was an initial bad sign. We sat down around 6:30 and they informed us the kitchen didn’t open until 7, but offered us some wine or olives while we waited. No big deal. We decided to stay and sat near the window to try to catch the breeze, hoping for the best.
We watched as one of the waitresses dropped a glass dish of pasta right in front of the door while everyone else stood around, went about their business, and left the glass shards in the middle of the entryway. When another customer came in, they walked him right over the broken shards of glass and we heard the crunch. It was comical.
At 7 we ordered our food of a VERY overpriced salami plate and two pasta entrees. We waited nearly 45 minutes for the salami to come before asking about it. While we were waiting, the restaurant filled up and no less than two tables had already received their appetizers AND main courses. When we asked, they said they would check. A few minutes later they came back and said it was on its way and that they were just slicing the salami. Really? 45 minutes to slice salami? That’s not even something that requires a kitchen. Theoretically we could have ordered that before 7pm. I call bullshit. And from that point on, our waitress seemed to make a point of ignoring us. We dealt with two others for the remaining duration of the night.
On top of the ridiculous wait, the 20 quid for the selection was more than I would have paid for what it was. 3 salami selections, small slices of average brie, some melon, and some cold, poorly seasoned mushrooms. £12 would have been more reasonable.
After more time waiting in the extremely loud restaurant (inside and out — there was a huge group of people drinking champagne on the street just outside the window where we sat) our entrees were delivered. The pasta dishes were both delicious, which is the only saving grace of this restaurant. The pasta was fresh, the sauces were hearty, and the portions were large.
But that wasn’t enough to outweigh the horrible service at this restaurant. To top it off, when I went to the bathroom there was no toilet paper in sight (i looked in every cabinet) and no hand soap. The room downstairs next to the bathroom was easily twice as hot as the upstairs. I can’t believe people were actually sitting there.
Extremely poor service, long wait times, the boiling hot temperature of the room, and the necessity to yell across the table to be heard could not be overlooked by the excellence of the pasta. Given the experience as a whole, we will NEVER return.

I came here for a friend’s birthday the other week. There was about 20 or so of us, so we were allocated the entire downstairs area just outside the kitchen.
The restaurant itself is charming; it’s got that lovely, traditional Italian vibe going for it, although the fact that there is only one toilet sent a bolt of panic through me as I entered. One toilet between 60 people? I don’t like those odds.
The food was great; we had a set menu to save everyone faffing about. It included a few courses of antipasti (mozzarella, ham, bread, oil etc.) two pasta courses (of which I was not able to partake) and then the option of dessert, although by then everyone was completely stuffed.
The waitresses were pretty good, although they obviously struggled with serving all of us and the upstairs too.
The main issue we found (apart from there only being one toilet — can you imagine that? One toilet? The war is over, people!) is that we came here on a hot day, and the room we were sat in was underground and had no ventilation or air conditioning. This made the vicinity rise to a temperature hotter than that dream I had where Olivier Giroud and Jamie Dornan gave me a bath. Everyone was sweating like mad and we kept rotating in turns to go outside and cool down. Obviously, being brought dish after dish of hot (yet delicious) Italian fare did nothing to cool us down.
My thoughts are: if you’re going to have a private dining facility in a restaurant, you should probably make sure that it’s ventilated enough to keep diners comfortable and not sweating like Rolf Harris in the Old Bailey.

Mmm. It should deserve one star less if you are going to eat here once and then go forever, but if you are like me and work in the very same street, you’ll understand why I gave it 4 stars!
Italian cuisine, italian waitresses (everybody but one I think) and italian people in kitchen, good start!
The place is just the exact replica of an italian «Trattoria», a typical family-​run restaurant with simple tables, simple food and lots of italian family love. Here of course you are in shoreditch, so even if the place would like to give you this impression, you’ll always feel like something is missing… but maybe it’s just me!
Menu is on the board (THIS is the reason why this place deserve one more star for usual visitors, nothing best than a place with different plates everyday!!), it’s not really cheap (I can’t really pay 10£ for a pasta, especially in a place where they want to make you feel at home) but still offers some variety, we have pasta, a salad, a soup, 2 – 3 meat/​fish dishes and a vegeterian hot dish. Not bad considering they change it every day (well not everything, but at least 3!).
Sincerely, I ate here different times and quality of food really depends on what you have: the meat is very good, nicely seasoned and tasty, pasta is not bad (well cooked but, for example, I can’t accept pesto mixed with sour cream!), I suggest you not to have any «filled» thing (pasta or gnocchi), as they are VERY similar to Giovanni Rana’s supermarket things… Obviously I’m not sure about it, but the taste is REALLY the same…
Of course you have to try coffee, as in every italian restaurant! here it’s good, nothing special or surprising but a good spot where to have a nice espresso.
In conclusion, if you live/​work here in shoreditch, it’s a good spot where to go because of the rolling menu, but if you are in shoreditch for one day… look for something else!

I made a mental note to visit Bottega Prelibato after noticing it pre-​Tramshed one evening. I’m glad I came back.
As previously mentioned, the menu is written on blackboards and the waitress walks you through everything they have. Yes, it’s slightly overkill but she also came with a tray that had samples of all the different pastas they were serving that night so you knew what all the shapes were.
We started with the seafood platter which was a big bowl of prawns, mussels and clams cooked in a tomato white wine sauce. Very simple but absolutely delicious. Make sure you have extra bread to mop up the sauce. It’s the best part!
Everyone had pasta. The best was the veal ravioli. Lovely fresh pasta in a tasty orange sage butter sauce. We also had the vegetarian spinach ricotta ravioli which was yummy without being too heavy.
Portions were perfectly sized. I was full without being stuffed!
The décor gives the place really nice homely and cozy feel. The waitstaff are also attentive, although one waitress slightly rushed us through our meal, but it’s a small critique. Definitely worth a visit.

The label of this place being a ‘Coffee & Tea, Italian, Delis’ is a little misleading. i’m not sure what goes on their during the day, but if you go their after 7pm this is place would have to be one of the better dining experiences you can have in London.
I always love a restaurant that changes their menu often, as it often gives some insight into the passion for cooking that goes on in the kitchen. The fantastic host (cant remember her name) brings a chalk board menu to the table as well as some examples of different pastas before launching into a detailed description of what specials are in store for you that night based on the the «fresh ingredients the chef discovers at the market that morning»
For starters we shared the sea scallops with butternut purée and smoked salmon with goat’s cheese. Wow I’ve eaten allot of scallops in my life but these were like beautiful clouds of flavour! For main courses we had the gnocchi, steak and seafood linguine. The servings are huge! We all tasted each others food and everything was amazing. i’m sure you could order anything blindfolded and still be able to polish of your entire plate. We washed it all down with a £20 bottle of chianti classico. In the end we spent about £30 each for dinner… wow ill definitely be back!

One of my go to spot for Italian b/​c it’s intimate and authentic Italian ambiance. Love the chalk board menu and how the host goes through each dish. For first timers, it’s a great way to intro the restaurant and make you wanting to keep coming… it worked for me!
I think the starters are way more tastier than the mains. The jamon platter with burrata is amazing. Portion is great and tastes so fresh and scrumptious. It’s really perfect in my opinion. The crab with asparagus is real nice and the egg w/​portobello mushroom is delicious. I’ve had the mixed seafood pasta main and the shrimp pasta and it was ok. Not much flavor or wow factor like the starters. Tasted a bit bland. Also had the steak and also so so. Came out a bit dry and not too much flavor… maybe needed some salt upon cooking. If it got some more TLC… has potential… it’s a shame for such a big portion of a steak not to be juicy, flavorful, and fully enjoyed.
Must make a reservation. Staff are very friendly.

Charming and cozy restaurant with FRESH pasta! Service was very friendly and fast upon arrival. They brought out the types of fresh pasta for the day and also explained every menu item on the chalkboard.
We tried the spicy broccoli and chicken livers, lobster bisque with scallops, gorgonzola truffle raviolis, spicy seafood spaghetti, and the apple ricotta cake with salted caramel ice cream. The first course was great but when the pasta came out .my eyes bulged and mouth dropped to the ground. It looked and tasted amazing!
I was a bit disappointed as after we finished our meal we were waiting for the staff to discuss dessert with us. After about 20 minutes we flagged someone down and said what we wanted. The waitress made mental note but seemed to forget until i made eye contact with her about 10 – 15 minutes later. The restaurant was very busy so I get they were running around trying to service customers the best they could. Without this blip in service I definitely would have given this a 5 star review.
No doubt the food is delicious and we will be back for more amazing food!

Bottega Prelibato is literally what my Unilocaly dreams are made of…
After striking out at Tramshed (no reservation, joke’s on us!) we peeked across Rivington and spied the wonderful unassuming, quaint, warm, beautiful Bottega Prelibato (herein referred to as «PL» going forward) — we stopped in, were greeted by a very friendly (and very beautiful Italian!) man apologizing that they wouldn’t have a table for another hour or so. Given hope and faith by the menu and his genuine nature (I truly believed he was really sorry there was no table available!) we agreed to come back in an hour or so and headed elsewhere for a drink. Good choice.
We made our way back, and even though a table wasn’t quite ready… I was so impressed with our host’s good nature. He sprung to action, allowing us to have a glass of wine at the «bar» and offering us tastes to try things. A few minutes later and we were shown to our wood-​topped table near the front window and all was well with the world. The big chalkboard menus were brought out (each table gets one!) with the day’s specials (every day it changes!), bottle of water brought out, more wine… things going very well.
We chose:
Starters: Beef, portobello & chard (delicious), sausage & apple casserole (piping hot and absolutely fantastic and a light mixed salad they made special for us. They say they are «small portions, only for one person» but truly as far as starters go they are easily 5 – 6 bites each and very filling/​good.
Main Fresh Pasta: Rigatoni with Lam Ragu. Beautiful. Enough for leftovers, which were devoured this morning.
Main Plate: Seabass (pan-​fried) with spinach, and butter sage pumpkin gnocchi and balasamic reduction. Out of this world. The gnocchi was some of the best Iv’e had, literally bringing «pillow pasta» phrase to LIFE.
Nightcappucino: dusted with chocolate, the perfect not-​so-​indulgent dessert.
Regrets: That we didn’t order the Truffle Burrata Platter with Parma Ham, olives and greens. The table next to us had it and it took all my restraint not to ask for a bite. Next time, it’s on. Also we had no room left for dessert but that slab of tiramisu they were doling out was insane looking.
All of this for about 80 quid + they don’t AUTOMATICALLY add the service charge. But, you’ll want to tip your ass right off folks, because the service is stellar, genuine and expedient and every staffer in the joint is fixed on making you feel at home. You’ll happily spring your wallet to make them feel appreciated. We did, anyway.
Brilliant place, so happy to have it in my area… couldn’t scream it any further from the rooftops how great it is. And Britt X says they do a mean lunch as well (3.50 for a fresh sandwich, wha?) so Ill be back for that.
*make a reservation.

A lovely intimate Italian restaurant to go on a date or catch up with a friend.
The wine selection proves to be a good one, while the food itself is absolutely delightful. The prices are fair for such delicious and fresh dishes, making this a great choice for those who want to try something new in London.
I completely recommend this restaurant to any and all.