The founders of sourdough pizza chain Franco Manca, Bridget Hugo and Giuseppe Mascoli, are set to open a new fresh pasta restaurant in September at Kerb’s Seven Dials Market in Covent Garden.
Hugo and Mascoli have also teamed up with pasta specialist Andrea Beccaceci to open their new restaurant called Strozzapreti. The name, which translates as priest-choker, also refers to a type of pasta typically served in dishes in the Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany, Marche and Umbria regions of Italy.
With a focus on “high-quality, big flavour pasta”, the restaurant will serve up simple antipasti dishes, fresh pasta made from durum flour and organic English spelt and “twists” on classic Italian desserts.
Dishes include fennel, apple, sweet caper and walnut salad with a ricotta dressing; Cavolfiore (spaghetti, garlic oil, creamed cauliflower, olive powder, chilli and toasted almond flakes); Caponata (strozzapreti, aubergine, celery, red onions, green olives, raisins and pine nuts); Ragu (pappardelle, rabbit and thyme ragu and rosemary Marsala livers); and bostock frangipani with crème fraîche. Details of the wine and drinks list has not yet been revealed.
Commenting on the opening, Hugo said: “Tasting and designing is the most creative and fun part of producing food and I’ve taken a lot of inspiration working with Beccaceci and Mascoli to establish these entirely new pasta dishes. After a decade working in Italian cooking, I am still always so impressed with how Italians seem to know better than anyone what good ingredients taste like and how to make them work in a simple and healthy way.”
Kerb’s Seven Dials Market is set to open in September and will be home to 26 independent food businesses. Already confirmed are Club Mexicana, Yum Bun, Ink, Square Root, Rice Guys and Pick & Cheese. Kerb, which launched in 2012, is also responsible for five other street food markets across London in King’s Cross, Paddington, the Gherkin, St Katherine’s Dock and West India Quay.
