Sometimes you find a spot that's such a treat your torn between whether to tell everyone how wonderful it is or keep it to yourself so you can always get a table. Luckily for you, dear readers, being the kind-hearted soul that I am I plumped for the former.
Capilungo has brought the delicate pastichheria of Puglia to London, the first of its kind in the capital as its delicate bites transport you to the winding streets of Puglia's picturesque city of Lecce. Café by day and wine bar by night, Capilungo’s offering focuses on quality ingredients and provenance, with a menu championing Lecce’s hyper-local delicacies courtesy of co-founder and master baker Luca Capilungo. The menu includes freshly baked ‘pasticciotto’ and ‘rustico’, burrata salads, a selection of Pizzetta’s and cured meats, to Apulian wines, aperitivo, and cocktails.
The café, situated at the Drury Lane end of Long Acre, was full to bursting during our recent Saturday lunchtime visit and as soon as the first bite was placed in front of us it was quite obvious why. The classic tomato and mozarella rustico puff pastry is a must, creamy and gooey and devlishly moreish. A brief word of warning that one isn't enough. We loved the open sandwich of pistachio and mortadella with creamy stracciatella cheese, a taste that took us straight back to an Italian sojourn last summer. But the favourite? The sweets. The pasticciotto cream filled pies, baked fresh and served watm are a Lecce icon, while the delivious little tortino are a sponge tart filled with chocolate and ricotta, pineapple and pine nut or walnut and pear jam. A menu of drinks is of course available, but you simply must try the quite frankly unbelieavble pistachio white chocolate. Like nothing we'ved ever tasted; not to sweet, creamy and nutty, it is sublime.
We're excited to return soon to sample the evening menu and its Italian wine list, but for now it's definitely becoem our new favourite London bakery.
www.capilungoest1991.com
Capilungo 76 Long Acre, WC2E 9LB
