Trattoria La Ruga

A gem in Walthamstow’s Orford Road. I wouldn’t hesitate to take friends and family here — which I have already, twice.
They do a terrific £10 pasta and salad deal on most days (except for Friday and Saturday evening) and the carbonara was ‘one of the best I’ve ever had’, according to my brother in law. I opted for the gamberoni: prawns with garlic, chilli, and sundried tomatoes, which was absolutely delicious and arrived piping hot.
But the best surprise of all is in the dessert: La Ruga creates its own house speciality, «toffee bread», which isn’t like bread at all. Instead, picture toffee soaked cake crumbs served in a warm bowl and topped with a generous dollop of vanilla ice cream. Remarkable. We also shared the tart and tiramisu, which were equally delicious, but nothing topped that toffee bread. Might be my favorite dessert IN THE WORLD. And I know that’s quite a claim, but I stand by it, darn it!
Such a special place. Staff are super friendly and accommodating, particularly for families with small children/​babies.

This used to be a very good local restaurant 15 –20 years ago and so it is a disappointment to review how poor was our experience the other evening. Service was slow and unreliable. How it took an hour to take our order and produce two plates of anti pasti and a chicken liver pâté is beyond me. By the time they arrived we had finished the bottle of red wine and were in need of another. Extra bread was offered and then quickly forgotten. The restaurant was admittedly busy but it was galling to see waiters and waitress chatting with customers whilst we waited.
The starters on their eventual arrival were fine in themselves but the main courses which arrived only after a further 30 minute wait were very poor indeed. Sea bass and halibut were overcooked and the latter cut as steaks rather than fillets were full of bones. A slow braised lamb dish was too rich and cloyed after just a few mouthfuls. A rabbit stew was nothing of the sort being rabbit, well cooked, but in a cream, tarragon and grain mustard sauce far too rich to do the rabbit justice. The bill, including a tip, came to £200 for the five of us, a sum which would have been better spent at the neighbouring Queens Arms. I was left disillusioned with Trattoria la Ruga and disbelieving how it could be so expensive and mediocre, yet packed by those who seem to have too much money and so little regard for quality and value.

I’d love to give Trattoria La Ruga a higher score — I had been a couple of times and had a gorgeous meal, together with fantastic service.
However, on my last visit, my pâté starter had a HUGE amount of pâté, which was very heavy and filling, with nowhere near enough bread and not an enormous amount of flavour, and my partridge was unseasoned, totally overcooked and therefore dry as a bone — very VERY hard to get through… in fact I didn’t finish it and wasn’t sticking around to be disappointed by a dessert.
Very disappointing considering previous visits, and has put me off going again for some time!

Another of the jewels in the E17 crown, La Ruga serves imaginatively-​prepared Italian food, from an ever-​changing menu. The quality is sky-​high. Always popular with the locals and more than worth a visit from further afield. Great service too.

As a local, neighbourhood restaurant this is very hard to beat. Frankly, as Italian cooking in London, this is very hard to beat.
Now, first the caveat — I’m vegetarian. So I can’t directly review the steaks, butterfish etc. But every non-​veggie we’ve ever taken has been wowed. On a veggie tip, choices (particularly Fri/​Sat night) can be limited, but what we get is always stunning — so it feels churlish to complain. But it is worth ringing ahead and reminding staff if you are veggie so they know to hold choices for you etc. And La Ruga seems sadly less veggie-​friendly than a few years ago (I once saw a wheat-​intolerant vegan turn up with no warning and leave happy).
Food tends towards classical Italian cuisine done in hearty portions. In other words, heavy and powerful flavours, little in the way of frou-​frou complexity. But instead great ingredients allowed to shine for themselves. And that suits me just fine — so if you’re the kind of person who wants a great big chunk of fish/​steak/​pasta and you want it done perfectly, then it’s ideal. If you’re the kind of person looking for reinventions and faddish versions of Italian cooking, La Ruga’s wrong for you.
What’s most special about La Ruga is the way the atmosphere — relaxed, fun, romantic fits perfectly with the comfort food and friendly staff. This is not a two sittings, bustle-​you-​in-​and-​out place. Turn up expecting to spend the night and linger over your meal.
In short, lovely, lovely, lovely!

I’d give this delightful place six stars if it were possible. A complete revelation. Really small menu, wonderfully fresh and beautifully cooked simple Italian food. Great service and atmosphere. Prices are on the toppy side; maybe people have more money to spend in this remote part of town because it’s cheaper to live. The location gives it a nice out-​of-​London frontier feel. Lots of Guardian reader types.

This is a real little gem and definitely worth the trip all the way out to Walthamstow. I would never have thought such a great restaurant would be here, at the end of the Victoria line in E17 and on such a pretty and happening street in lovely Walthamstow village, (and yes, the village is very lovely and very surprising!) — but it is and this restaurant really deserves 5 stars.
We sat outside (due to the late October summer!) which added to the relaxed vibe, but the food and service took the limelight. Simple and extremely tasty Italian food, perfectly cooked and wonderfully fresh. I had parsnip and parmesan soup to start, with crunchy parsnip crisps on the top — it was divine — so tasty and flavoursome I wanted to eat it over and over again! Thick enough to be filling and hearty, but thin enough to still be a starter. I then had tagliattelli with dolcelatte and courgettes, which sounds heavy but was super light and perfectly cooked. To break up the creaminess of this dish I had a mixed salad full with everything from radishes, to pine nuts, peppers and rocket — yum!
Brilliant service and a brilliant find, on a brilliant street. I wonder what house prices are like around here.

Walthamstows restaurant scene has recently undergone an amazing transformationWalthamstows trendy village area is where most of the new restaurants are and one of the finest is the delightful Trattatoria La Ruga. The restaurant uses the finest fresh ingredients to produce some beautiful and inventive meals. Often including fresh fish. from Butter fish to Bream. I picked Butterfish from last nights menu served as a fillet. with capers in a cream sauce my partner had bream. both were simply divine. The wine list is mostly Italian ranging from a very drinkable house At £10. We plumped for a light Sicillian Red. The venue seats approx 40. Its intimate but not too noisy. The expert staff are friendly and knowledgableIve eaten in many Italians restaurants throughout London. This one is a little bit special. Our meal for two with three course and wine came to an affordable £72.Go on takea trip to the end of The Victoria line you will be pleasantly surprised