With an expansive terrace that looks out onto the bustle of Spitalfields Market, Alfi has nabbed itself a prime bit of East London real estate. Despite the wealth of options around here, there aren’t many better places to plonk yourself, tired and hungry after battling the tidal crowds, and Alfi’s easy-going menu feels smartly designed to appeal to all-comers. This is a leisurely spot to enjoy a bit of aperitivo, a glass of wine with a friend or a no-holds-barred dinner, all within the atmosphere of one of London’s busiest markets.
There’s plenty of room inside, but lots of the fun remains outside - not just tables but also a pair of dart boards and even a couple of boules (or bocce) lanes, available to hire by the half hour. Throw in Alfi’s significant choice of wines on tap, and this becomes a pretty fantastic place to while away an afternoon in the company of your friends. Incidentally, Alfi hosts lots of group bookings for parties too.
On the food front, Alfi serves up comfort food galore, centred largely around Italian classics. There are some excellent snacks to pick at among the antipasti, but a handful of pasta plates are good too - the bucatini cacio e pepe is something that few restaurants get right, but this one is very good, with al dente pasta covered in glossy, peppery, starchy pecorino sauce.
Grill items include king prawns, grilled over fire in their shells and served with a lovage mayo, and a pair of chunky fennel sausages with grilled cabbage. Both are good but more or less the sum of their parts. The same is true of the pizzas, which aren’t quite up to the standards of London’s leading dough throwers, but are perfectly reasonable for the price.
With a smart set up of games and activities, top location and a solid food and drink offering, Alfi leaves you with many reasons to be cheerful.