Caffe Vergnano

Most tasteless salad I have ever had. Mentioned to the server but they couldn’t care less. Excellent location, loud patrons, tasteless food. Don’t waste your time here.

Prety decent food. we got the calamari and the trio of pasta — we enjoyed it all! However, would not reccomend the risotto because we were almost sure it was just white rice!

I met up with an old school friend for cocktails and a natter on a Tuesday evening. It was busy enough but we got a seat easily. The first round of cocktails were a cosmo and bellini; the cosmo was rather sharp and very average and the bellini had an overwhelming German wine twang to it, way too sweet and we had to ask if they could top it up with soda water to make it more palatable. We had a couple of wines thereafter as we decided that was probably the more guaranteed option to have. The service was fine, but we did have to keep asking for water and I did have to go up to the center bar area to ask for another drink as they seemed to omit checking in on customers to see if you wanted another drink.
We moved outside as we were both so hot, we looked like 2 ladies going through the change!
Okay, so we moved outside as we were too hot, but you would have thought that since they had roped off seating area they would have some outside heaters, but this was not the case, there were also no ashtrays on the tables.
It was an okay evening, nothing terrible but not somewhere that I would enthusiastically recommend immediately again.

What a lovely place to come for a catchup. The décor is lovely, the staff are good and the hot chocolate is yummy. Beware, it’s thick like chocolate pudding in a cup… Go for a small. The presentation is superb. Very fancy decorations on top of your coffee. The location is very good on the Southbank. I had a lovely time here. :)

was really looking forward to a great coffee experience but completely let-​down by terrible, arrogant service. The kind of staff who joke and laugh amongst themselves and then glower at the customer. That I cannot stand — even if the coffee was good.
The staff here need a crash-​course on good customer service.

Full house. Now I think I’ve tried all of their branches.
This Branch is open over the weekend (my closest — New Street Square — is not) and serves the same exquisite double espresso’s plus fab merlot and food and sweet nibbles etc. I’m still going to slot it in behind the New Street Sqr branch as it was a little loud and not as warm and welcoming. Staff were much friendlier than the Charing Cross branch, though, so they score extra points.
Seek out this fine purveyor of first class italian coffee if you are in anywhere near Festival Hall on the South Bank (it’s upstairs and outside the RFH in that little row of restaurants and shops).

Arrogant staff, poorly presented & even cold food. I’m not a cook but could do it better! The dining room was empty, compared to other places nearby: there’s a good reason for this.

Great coffee — but just exactly what do they do with their staff? It’s almost amazing how arrogantly a cup can be served!

This famous coffee brand (
) from Italy opened a small but celebrated coffee hole-​in-​the-​wall on Charing Cross Road (
) some time ago.
This relatively new location is a full restaurant, and is smack-​dab is people central, in the South Bank arts complex (
) .
I ate here last night and enjoyed it immensely. It’s smart and modern. It’s incredible for people-​watching, and has outdoor tables for the warm weather. Everything from the wine glasses to cylindrical water glasses is classy.
They have a very impressive espresso machine. Giant and gleaming and eagle-​ridden, as it should be.
Modern Italian food is great: my wife had monkfish with a mushroom sauce and green beans, I had ravioli di carne. Both were delicious and well-​cooked. Service was quick and spot-​on.
Inside is a lower level that’s quieter, away from the bar counter, under a vaulted ceiling and in tables squared by white leather chairs. Stylish.
The coffee, of course, is amazing.
The downside is price. Given the location and the caché of buzz, it ain’t cheap. Monkfish in the £16 range, I think, and my pasta — filling, but hardly generous — was in the £11 neighborhood. There were no wines under £18.
Worth visiting, but maybe not all the time unless you’re a well-​heeled Italianophile.