Polpo
Eagle-eyed entrepreneur Russell Norman spotted a gap in the market in the early noughties for an Italian small plates chain that would go on to take London by storm.
One of the first restaurateurs to champion sharing plates outside of Spanish, Green and Middle Eastern cuisine, Norman’s cicchetti-focused Polpo chain is still going strong, with sites in Soho, Smithfield, Covent Garden, Chelsea, Notting Hill and Brighton.
Polpo makes its own Prosecco, which boasts a beautiful label of an octopus with its tentacles splayed like tendrils. Order a plate of stuffed fried olives, and pea and basil arancini, sit back, tumbler in hand, and pretend you’re in a bustling trattoria in Venice.
Those seeking to while the night away over copious glasses can go all out and order a magnum.
