After the pizazz of the glittering launch night back in June, the buzz within Piccolino in Market Place, Henley has not waned. We tried out lots of fabulous dishes at the launch and we revisited recently to dine after the dust had settled.

The interior of the restaurant is stunning and when we arrived midweek early evening it was already full of eager diners. It’s a pretty cool, relaxed vibe with more than a little flair and elegance thrown in. The outdoor seating area was full with people enjoying an aperitivo or two in the evening sunshine.

Not to miss out on the action, before you start it would be rude not to have a cocktail, which Piccolino have perfected in style. Having had their Lychee & Raspberry Daiquiri and and French Martini we can vouch that they are dangerously delicious.

The menu is pretty extensive which does make choosing rather difficult as there were so many fabulous sounding dishes to choose from. Though we were informed that they launched with a shorter menu than other Piccolinos and more specialities are incoming like their Spaghetti Carbonara Grande where the carbonara is freshly prepared at your table in a Pecorino cheese wheel, and the Crudi menu including the Crudi Assortiti of Yellowfin tuna tartare, salmon crudo, salmon carpaccio and two freshly shucked oysters.

If you’re going to ‘nibble’ before you tuck into starters there’s a great selection of sharing options. The hand stretched garlic bread is VERY generous. When we couldn’t decide whether to have tomato or cheese, we were offered a half & half. Nice touch and mighty tasty.

If feasting is your thing, then for a sharing treat the Bistecca Alla Fiortina is a good shout, deliciously tender and packed with flavour. Not for the feint hearted…it’s a LOT of meat!

We also indulged in the scallops with creamed potatoes that were cooked perfectly and the freshly made pasta on site with truffle and Parmesan sauce, which had more truffle in it than you can shake a stick at. So if this sought after prized fungi is your thing then this dish is for you.

A surprisingly lip smacking plate is the chicken livers on sourdough with madeira sauce, rich and delicious with a delightful pop of sweet juicy grapes to complement the sauce.

Piccolino go big on the steak choices, so if a hunk of T-Bone is a tad too much, you wouldn’t go wrong with any of the steaks on the menu. The ribeye that we had was well cooked and well seasoned along with some great chips. The garlic baby spinach was a good choice as a side.

Just when you think you can’t squeeze any more in there is the offer of desserts. It had to be a sharing episode and boy did we make the right choice. We plumped for the ZEPPOLE a soft choux bun, vanilla cream, Nutella ice cream, hazelnut brittle & chocolate sauce. WOAH! More than a mouthful and pretty darn scrummy!

All finished off with a ubiquitous Limoncello – cin cin.

All in all it gets a thumbs up from us, we’re certainly looking forward to trying more of their fish dishes and fresh pastas.

What gives Piccolino its appeal is that it’s the perfect venue for whatever your mood, time available or price point. Splash out on a date night or special occasion, pop in for a casual set lunch menu or sit and people watch in their outside seating area over a lazy brunch or sundowner.

Piccolino may mean ‘little one’ but it’s made a big impression.

For more information and menus click on the link below.