With its leather banquettes, striped outdoor awning, and dark wood panelling, Harry’s Bar on James Street in Marylebone delivers a true retro Italian experience. Owned and operated by Caprice Holdings, Harry’s Bar brings the glamour of the original Venetian spot to Londoners with amicable service and signature Italian dishes.
The all-day restaurant also serves a signature weekend brunch, an aperitivo menu, and an extensive wine and cocktail list. Especially known for its seasonal menus, we decided to pay a visit during the autumnal months to get a taste for the Harry’s limited edition white truffle menu.
Paying tribute to Italy’s most coveted mushroom, executive chef Simon Gregory and his team created a set of dishes that made use of ingredients sourced directly from Italian suppliers such as olives from Maremma and hand-selected truffles from Alba.
We tested the taglioni made from durum wheat and eggs, which was cooked with parmesan, butter, and a generous shaving of truffles; and the creamy carnaroli rice truffle risotto also with parmesan and butter. The nutty parmesan in both dishes was a natural pairing for the strong umami truffle flavours.
The menu also has suggested wine pairings for each of the dishes that help bring out the truffle even more. Priced at £40 per dish, the white truffle menu featured a white-based truffle pizza with wild mushrooms and mascarpone and a creamy white truffle burrata drizzled with Harry’s special olive oil.
Harry’s Bar goes the extra mile with copper pans for the homemade pasta dishes and pizza that is proved for 72 hours. Other Harry’s specialities include the veal Milanese with buffalo mozzarella and parmesan, chargrilled Bistecca di Manzo, and Harry’s Toadstool with white chocolate, fresh raspberries, mascarpone mousse, iced vanilla parfait, and pistachio biscotti crunch served with warm pistachio sauce.
Address: 30-34 James Street, Marylebone, London W1U 1ER
Phone: 020 3971 9444
Website: harrys-bar.co.uk
Main image courtesy of John Carey
