Working Lunch review: Harry’s Bar is a glitzy Italian with a rosemary and olive oil ice cream that’s worth the trip alone

Harry’s Bar
30-34 James Street, W1U

WHAT? A glitzy Italian restaurant inspired by the original Harry’s Bar in St Mark’s Square, Venice. Thankfully, you won’t be charged €22 for a Bellini here and they’re just as scrumptious. Part of Richard Caring’s Caprice Holdings Group – which also runs the Ivy Brasseries, J Sheekey and Sexy Fish to name a few – this darkwood palace is a sister restaurant to well-established Harry’s Dolce Vita in Knightsbridge.

Prosciutto e Melone

WHAT’S ON THE MENU? There are more courses than you can shake a cannoli at; five before you even reach ‘secondi’. The cicchetti and antipasti are roughly the same price and essentially form a gigantic array of starters. Then there are six pizzas, six pastas, three salads and the meaty mains, where everything is essentially smothered in parmesan and baked.

HOW DO I CHOOSE FROM ALL THOSE STARTERS? There’s an obligatory burrata, and a couple of raw options including crudo and tuna. A lighter but more adventurous, choice is the prosciutto and melon, served with enormous shards of carta di musica (a crispy flatbread, like an Italian poppadom, that’s meant to be so thin you can read music through it, although only the Italians would read music through bread). Harry’s taglioni is the classic choice, but good luck tackling a bistecca di manzo after all that truffle and cream.

Truffle arancini

WHAT ABOUT THE MAIN EVENT? Whatever you go for, it’ll either be served in a pan – as if the chef is throwing scalding skillets straight onto the pass like frisbees – or it’ll be finished off theatrically by the waiting staff at your table. The fantastically garlicky spaghetti vongole arrives on a trolley senza clams, which are stirred in while someone else puts your bib on – a childhood spent dropping ice cream down my front have conditioned me to equate good food with bibs. The gorgonzola salad is another favourite, but it’s worth listening out for the specials, too. They had a pumpkin ravioli on my visit, a delightfully chewy comfort dish.

ROOM FOR DESSERT? The tiramisu is exemplary, and go for Harry’s Toadstool for more theatre; it’s a white chocolate and raspberry semifreddo disguised as a Super Mario character, sitting in a pistachio sauce pond poured at the table. The olive oil and rosemary gelato, topped off with almonds and another glug of the house olive oil, is revelatory and compulsory on every visit.

Harry's Toadstool

BUSINESS OR PLEASURE? Its glamorous surroundings and central location make this perfect for business.

NEED TO BOOK? Yes, it’s always rammed, possibly because it’s just off Oxford Street and isn’t an Angus Steakhouse. Visit harrys-bar.co.uk or call 020 3971 9444.