The food, drinks, and servers were fantastic. The meal was the best we had during our stay in London. It's very close to the 100 Queens Gate Hilton Curio Hotel where we stayed. I had the lasagna and my husband had the pasta carbonara and we loved both. The wide variety of dishes was great for a picky eater like me. We marveled at the fact that I had so many dishes that I wanted to try! read more

We had a fantastic meal here. Food was great, service was excellent and the place was buzzing. We'll definitely be back next time we're in the area! read more

This is a busy restaurant with great food. I had Galletto al Mattone which is a whole small chicken, very nicely spiced, for my main course. Our server was very nice and helpful. read more

True to other reviews, the staff here is friendly and attentive. It's a lovely space and I loved the music and the vibe. The food, though, is only meh. My arugula salad was ample but limp. The bolognese, while a large portion, was bland. The freshly grated cheese only helped so much. The pizzas looked very good and I wish I had chosen that instead. I'd prefer smaller portions of better food. read more

We ate dinner here last night. Food was great and so was the service. Highly recommend trying here. We are traveling from the US and staying in South Kensington. read more

Great location - within 5 minutes walk from the South Kensington tube station, and close to a few bars/pubs. Very reasonable price for fresh handmade pasta. Great service - the pasta menu was a bit smaller but I was able to substitute a different type of pasta for the certain style listed on the menu. I got the alla pescatora with bucatini instead of risotto as listed on the menu. It came with decent amount of seafood, and the pasta was al dente. The picture I took of my pasta looked drier than it was, there was sauce on the bottom of the pasta. The sauce was full of the flavors from all those seafoods. Tips: if you are set to eat there, you should make a booking before hand. When we got there, the restaurant was packed and there were only around 6 tables for parties without bookings, and those tables are located outsi read more

This was a great Yelp discovery. With its close proximity from the South Kensington tube station, it is easy peasy to get there. We wandered in around 2100 on a Friday night and although the restaurant was busy we were able to get a table straight away. We skipped the starters. I ordered the beef lasagna and my husband had the tagliatelle bolognese. Our food came out quickly and tasted excellent! The pasta here is prepared daily and it is very evident in the taste. The prices are extremely reasonable, both entrees were under £9 each. We finished our dinner with a piece of tiramisu for £5, a generous sized portion. Service was friendly and fast. Of note, service charge is not included on the bill so you will need to add on if desired. read more

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Incredible, authentic Italian food. My fiancé and I went here for dinner and had drinks and entrees for less than $40. Would definitely recommend. read more

Rocca - Italian Near Me - London, XGL

Great Italian place in South Kensington close to the tube station. Not sure if it's family run, but it sure feels like it based on the service. I walked here from my hotel which was just a block over and came with some colleagues I was with from the US. The restaurant is medium-sized by US standards and we were sat near the back of the restaurant in a cozy booth. So easy to have conversation. I love restaurants in Europe for this. Americans play music so loud we have to shout at each other and I've noticed most restaurants in Europe allow for conversation. I know, I'm getting old! They have a great menu selection, a nice wine list, and I'm pretty sure my pasta was made from scratch. It was really quite good. So was the wine my colleague chose and we had a really enjoyable night. I'm not a huge tiramisu fan, but shared the dessert with one of my colleagues and enjoyed it. Not too sweet and a good amount of coffee flavoring throughout. I would certainly dine here again, but since I love being in London and trying new things, it's likely only if I chose to stay in Kennsington for the evening. read more

Rocca is phenomenal and you can tell how good it is based off of how many people are waiting to get in. The inside is dimly lit and dare I say it romantic! It's so beautiful and the atmosphere is buzzing. We were a party of 3 and only waited about 10-15 minutes to be seated. It was a packed house so we didn't mind the wait. Once we were seated we were greeted almost immediately by our server who was really nice and polite. Noted that most if not all of the restaurants in London require you to call your server over if you need anything, and I mean ANYTHING. Which I actually prefer, coming from the US we are used to our servers coming by multiple times to check in and ask if you need anything else but being in London it was nice to just enjoy a meal and chat without the interruptions. Now on to the most important part THE FOOD! We each got a past dish and then a pizza to share. I cant remember the name of the pizza that we got but it had ham and olives on it. It was DELICIOUS the crust was absolute perfection. Not too thin and not to thick. Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe that they cook the pizzas in an actual pizza oven which gives it a more smokey taste. My mom got the lasagna, it looked amazing and she seemed to really enjoy it. My brother got the ravioli which smelled like pasta heaven. Based off of how quickly he ate I'm assuming he loved it. Lastly I got the carbonara, which I hate to admit I'm a bit of a carbonara snob. It's my favorite dish ever so I'm always more critical. The carbonara at Rocca was perfection! It wasn't super heavy or drenched in a thick sauce. It was light and had the perfect amount of pancetta in it. In all honesty you can't go wrong with anything on the menu here at Rocca. The food is out of this world! read more

Dinner was delicious. Very nice atmosphere, people enjoying themselves. The service was attentive. Spaghetti bolognese flavor was tasty not too bold, with perfect homemade pasta. All priced reasonably. read more

This is a Jem of a find- the food is excellent , service is efficient and the tira misu is absolutely amazing ! We had pizza the first night and pasta the second . All very enjoyable , cooked fresh and perfectly. read more

What a great experience! Everything we had was wonderful but kudos for the Osso Bucco ravioli and the lasagna! Desserts were great as well. Service was awesome. Loved the interaction between the wait staff. Lots of laughter and hugging! read more

My family and I popped in for dinner one night and holy cow! The authentic Italian food was simply amazing! Everything was cooked to perfection with the right amount of cheese and sauce; and not to mention desert! This place is a real treat and I highly suggest visiting it for yourself! read more

Came into Kensington, stayed at a hotel around the corner, yelp-ed and located Rocca. Two of us walked in around 8-ish without a reservation and we were seated right away despite what looked to be a fairly full house. We ordered the arancini, the caprese, and the buccatini alla pescatora. The arancini was sooo good-crunchy crust, flavorful rice and cheese. The caprese was very good-the mozzarella was so silky smooth! The buccatini was absolutely delicious-nice pasta that was aldente with a little chew, the mussels and clams were perfect, the shrimp delicious; we even asked for bread to sop up the sauce it was that good! We fast forward three days later and, looking for a place close to the hotel (already tried a couple of places in the area we returned to Rocca with another guest. There were several large parties there but they managed to find a table for us. This time we had the arancini, the funghi pizza, the ravioli all'ossobucco, and the buccatini again. Nothing was short of fantastic, the pizza had such depth in the mushrooms, the ravioli was so rich and satisfying. One thing we do have to say. . . with such good food we were stuffed by the end of our meals and we never did have the room to try their desserts! Many thanks, Rocca, for your great service (wait staff were VERY cordial on both visits) and tremendous food! read more

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Great food, friendly staff and true Italian food. Would highly recommend - was there with my family and everyone highly enjoyed their meal

Excellent food, service and ambiance! Wood fire pizzas were delicious, order the house wine - so good!

I discovered this Italian restaurant during an early morning walk, and, came back with my wife for dinner. The greeter was friendly and enthusiastic, and seated us immediately. The server, a young Italian lady, was knowledgeable and took our orders and the food was delivered promptly and gracefully. And, it was delicious. We started by splitting a dinner salad, then ordered the pesto linguine, (very tasty, not over salted), and my wife ordered the stuffed cannioli, followed by pana cotta dessert topped with mixed berries. The nice touch, was a complimentary limoncello and ammaretto on the rocks. We were very happy to have dined at Rocca and will seek it out when we return to London. read more

Very nice Italian food at wonderfully reasonable prices- my food was no more than £10 altogether! I got the burrata, presented nicely on the plate with a ring of pesto, and two crostini (could have had a few more of those). It tasted rich and buttery, absolutely lovely. Next I got the aubergine bake which was just as rich with layers of aubergine, tomato sauce and mozzarella. Very filling. My husband and friends enjoyed their pizzas. The wine is also priced well and the white was a lovely dry. For both of us about £35 including drinks. Not bad at all. read more

Rocca - The burrata - Italian Near Me - London, XGL

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Consistently amazing food, great service and wonderful atmosphere. My wife and I always share the pasta Bolognese (sauce is delightful) and the pizza Margharita (the crust rocks). Bravo! read more

If I could give 1000 stars, I would!!! Amazing service and amazing people. I never give reviews but this is genuinely the best restaurant. Their food is phenomenal as well especially their risotto. read more

If you're looking for simple but delicious Italian food, this is the perfect place!! I love the setting - it's simple but also super pleasant to be in. The food was also incredible - definitely one of the top 5 Italian meals I've had in my life. We started with the cucumber tomato salad which came with the perfect vinaigrette and was delicious with beans. We then had the rigatoni pomodoro and margherita which were super flavorful and tasted really fresh despite being dishes that are often boring or overlooked. Finally, we had the lemon cheesecake which was great (and I'm really picky about cheesecake). I would definitely be back!! read more

I think this is the sort of place that South Kensington has been missing: an open and inviting, yet polished-feeling establishment featuring clean design and a straight-forward Italian menu. I was walking past a couple weeks after it'd opened, and couldn't help but feel the pull of the warm wood and brick interior and the appealing-sounding offerings of everything from antipasti to pasta. Since I was starting to feel my stomach grumble, I wandered inside for a late lunch. I was immediately charmed by the single green apple that accented every table. Once I'd ordered, the dish containing the apple was replaced with a little tray of complimentary olives. Now, if you've read any of the rest of my reviews, then you know that I'm obsessed with olives... so hurrah! - I was beginning to like this place already! Following the olives and a rather large glass of the house red, I was brought a bowl of tomato soup and a basket of bread (not complimentary - but with the UK catching onto the anti-carbs craze, this is smart of them). Honestly, I was disappointed by both. The tomato soup had sounded enticing with its addition of "basil cream" (hmm.. I'd wondered... what is *that* - unfortunately, I'm still wondering since from what I could tell, it wasn't there... or at least not enough to bother mentioning) and was quite watery - nothing more substantial or special than what you'd get from a can. The bread was a mix of some rather boring white rolls, and dry focaccia... *sigh*... when I spring for the bread, especially focaccia, I expect it to be *good.* But the staff was very nice, and very concerned that I had a good visit (understandably)... I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt since I didn't try any of their mains and they had cute apples on the table... not to mention that it was only their first couple of weeks. As I said, I'd like to succeed since I feel S. Kens needs an attractive place like this... so I'll go back before I cast a firm verdict. read more

Rocca - Italian Near Me - London, XGL

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Food: sorry to say but rather sad italian. More what you'd expect from an American-Italian chain, yet I can think of better ones. My carbonara was below ordinary. Pasta themselves had less taste than what you can buy at Waitrose. My calamari were just ok Toilets: pass the test Decor: warm, nice, within the good average Service: lots of waiters who are prompt. The best thing about this restaurant. Nevertheless, will not return read more

Rocca - Carbonara I suggest to avoid - Italian Near Me - London, XGL

We went here on our first day in London and stumbled upon it while exploring near our hotel. We had the steak with chips (14.35GBP) and tagliolini with white cornish crab meat (8.75GBP). The staff was not super friendly and service could have been better but the food was good! The pasta was al dente, fresh, non-greasy, seasoned, and had a generous amount of crabmeat. The only downside was the pieces of shell that were tossed in. If that wasn't there, the food would get 5 stars. I had a small amount of steak and it was also on point. Many places do not season their food in England but this steak had tons of flavor. If you want authentic Italian for cheap, try Rocca! read more

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My mom and I got tired of pub food on our visit to London, and this was the perfect change. We split a bottle of wine and started with an order of bread and a buffalo mozzarella and tomato salad. The bread was warm and mostly very soft (there were a couple of different kinds) and had delicious, grassy (in a good way) olive oil with balsamic vinegar for dipping. The salad was more of a warm tomato sauce, served with slices of toasted bread, a chunk of mozzarella, and olives and basil for garnish. Very good. I ordered the pasta carbonara, and my mom got a seafood pasta dish. Mine was a bit rich (my own fault for ordering carbonara, I think), but otherwise great - the pasta was the perfect texture. I tried the seafood pasta, and it was wonderful, with a not-too-light/not-too-heavy sauce and tons of seafood in it. We got a scoop of strawberry sorbetto to finish, and it was sweet but light and excellent. I was amazed by how good the prices were compared to other places we'd eaten. The atmosphere was nice but not too stuffy or fancy. Definitely worth a visit if you want something a little different and are in the area! read more

Rocca - Pasta carbonara - Italian Near Me - London, XGL

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The ambience is great with a relatively friendly staff for service. The food is not bad too, considering the price! The carbonara can be missed, and the steak should be ordered rare, nothing more than that. My friends and I ordered a medium rare steak and it was a little too tough even then, so please get a rare steak or nothing at all! The calamari is good, with a really light and fluffy batter which compliments the juicy soft squid in it. Overall, a more than above-average place for affordable fine dining. read more

Rocca - Steak, cooked medium-rare. - Italian Near Me - London, XGL

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Our 1st night in London was a Saturday and we expected to have a bit of trouble finding a place to eat without already having a reservation. The maitre 'd at another Italian spot warned us against eating anywhere else on the same street as they were all "rip offs" and "inauthentic". Rocca's menu, however, looked like exactly what we wanted. Although quite busy, we were warmly greeted, seated right away and before long were enjoying a completely lovely meal. Delicious food combined with friendly & attentive service. read more

On our last night in London, we came here for dinner with our friends who live nearby. The ambiance was great. The food was amazing and very reasonable. My 20 year old son had a pasta dish which he finished before any of us had finished out meal. The waiter asked if he'd like another portion and brought him an additional plate. THAT doesn't happen very often. Would definitely come here again. read more

Great food. Pizza americano ( gourmet pepperoni), bolognese, frutti de mare pasta all delicious and less than 40 gbp for food and drink for my family of 5. Very nice setting and good service. read more

We ordered pasta, the grilled chicken with roast potatoes and broccolini, and wine by the glass. The food was outstanding. Dessert was lemon cheesecake to die for and the best vanilla gelato I've ever had. Service was attentive. This place was a find. read more

I went here for dinner and had pizza margarita and lasagne. The pizza was good. The lasagna was fine. Not too expensive.

After a day of walking tour around London we stumble upon Rocca and I could not be happier. The price is vey reasonable for decent Italian food and I could not have ask for better atmosphere. The waitstaff was very friendly in assisting us on wine and food selection. We ordered: calamari, pizza with ham, squid ink tagliolini with crab, and panna cotta for dessert. Our least favorite as the calamari, it was undercooked and the accompany sauce does nothing favorable for the dish. Pizza was delicious, crust was baked nicely and the topping was phenomenal. The tagliolini with crab was the highlight of dinner, the pasta was al dente and the buttery crab sauce that it was in was just mind blowing. The panna cotta was good with raspberry sauce, I just wish they would spend a little bit more time on the presentation of the food. read more

We stopped in here on our first night in London at the recommendation of the front desk staff at our hotel. We figured the place must be good when it was packed at 8pm on a Thursday night. We quickly got a table for two. Ordered a bottle of wine. We started with the arrancini (my favorite) and the calamari. Both were excellent. We then split two pasta dishes. I had the seafood and risotto and my husband had the bolognese. Both were fantastic and filling. We finished the meal with the Affogato which was incredible and the chocolate cake. It was such a delicious meal to start our trip. We were intrigued at the prices. It was much cheaper than food here in the states and much better. Will definitely come back the next time we are back in London. read more

In the past I was massively anti-Rocca. I attended a number of anti-Rocca protests, and even showed up there in a balaclava, demanding they get their shit together. Well, my two year long campaign of terror must've struck a cord because Rocca is now pretty damn good. We go often, my daughter eating a pizza while my wife and I down glasses of wine, trying to cram in a relationship before 7pm when our child must be home to sleep, the stress of which takes a deep toll. My grilled chicken was fantastic, as were the accompanying chips. My wife has a risotto which was quite good as well though risotto is a bit of a gamble for like 12 quid. Staff all super nice and welcoming and good to da kids. read more

Rocca surprised me on several counts: reasonably inexpensive, decently prepared Italian food in South Ken. I mean. It could have just been terrible and touristy or way more expensive, but it's neither and it's somewhere I'd most likely go again. The menu is pretty straightforward and is nothing you won't have seen elsewhere, but the proof is in the pudding and the pudding is this case is, in fact, not just pudding but inclusive of multiple courses. In short: I had the calamari and tagliatelle bolognese. What can I say, I was feeling particularly British that day. In the end, I could've done without the calamari as it was pretty non-descript. Like, it wasn't bad, it was just kind of...meh. The bolognese was pretty good though. The ragu was rather flavourful and decent quality for £7.50. Although other reviewers thought the service was a bit haphazard, it was fine for us (and we had a group of 12 to boot) and they were pretty chatty too. I think Rocca is pretty decent for the price. It's cheaper than Carluccio's (and most other restaurants in a similar range) and the food is not far off in terms of quality (whilst being far above the restaurants below it). That said, there are a few other places of better quality with comparable prices (Nuraghe in Tufnell Park springs to mind), although the latter is in Zone 2, not in a prime renting zone. Still, Rocca is a good addition to SK and worth a return trip. read more

Great Italian food, fast service, and fun staff. We felt interrogated for not ordering desert. Poor waiter seemed to have his feelings hurt. We shall be back soon and get that desert when not so rushed. Love the family run vibe!! Thanks!! read more

What a miraculous find! Wandering the streets looking for late night dining, only to find this hidden gem. Very tasty Italian fare, prepared well and presented beautifully. Thank you Rocca for serving us so well! read more

Well, a relatively new restaurant in South Kensington. What a treat . . . I went along with my wife and two good friends (whose taste in food is impeccable) who had recommended this place to my wife and I on several occasions. And, it must be said, whose taste in food, pubs and restaurants I have yet to fault. We had all been out together for a social drink (not a session) and had decided to go out to eat and that we'd try Rocca - especially as my friends had pressed us. Where to start: the wine list inexpensive and unimpressive, acceptable and uninspired. As a rating: a solid "Yawn". Ah "the food?" I hear you cry - well . . . I'll not be going there again in any hurry and I certainly won't be recommending it to anyone, and, given the contents of the "vongole" I won't be recommending it to the dog either! My friend had a Pizza which was, in his words, quite acceptable. My friend's wife has a pasta dish (spaghetti) with a vongole sauce. It went back as being slightly underdone and it had grit in it. Gee guys - you're supposed to wash the clams - the grit is not seasoning or flavouring. Damn lucky she didn't break a tooth. I had a Carbonara and the pasta was - quite simply - very undercooked. Now I've lived in restaurants all my life, my grandfather had them, my father had them and I've run them. I can put a carbonara together in my sleep - which is why I always order it in a new Italian as my "benchmark" dish. Well - too much cream, no egg yolk, and the pasta half raw. Called over the waiter who took it away with a loud grumble (that and the Vongole) and then returned, - and from the other side of the restaurant - proceeded to instruct me in the nuances of "al dente" pasta - idiot. I've forgotten more about a professional kitchen than he will ever know. But one thing's for sure - Rocca does NOT think that the customer is always right. Carbonara not good - far from it. Tiramisu to follow - probably bought-in and if it wasn't then it was a truly dire homemade attempt. My wife had Bolognese which was - I am happy to say this (because I tried it - so disbelieving was I ). It is/was EXCELLENT. Not as good as my Mother's (nor is my own) but it was CLOSE, yeah - probably as good as mine - or damn near it. Oh yes, and the prtion size IS good However I will avoid the place from now on and I suggest you do too. Spend you money well in Spagos (literally around the corner) where - if you do send your food back (I never have in 30 years) - they will apologise and sort it out and not include it on the bill (as Rocca did). They're getting two stars because the Bolognese was BRILLIANT. But for that Bolognese they'd get one star, and that grudgingly. Me? Not know what 'al dente' is? My god . . . to even suggest the customer doesn't know what he's talking about. Hey, if they don't improve they won't be there next year . . . read more

It's been a year since our last visit and we stopped by for a quick drink but wound up having a light dinner of salad, shrimp and a simple pizza. The place is situated in a good spot on Old Brompton Road in the midst of a number of decent looking eateries. The staff were all a hodgepodge of people from all over Europe and all very pleasant. The outstanding note was the pizza, specifically the crust. This is as good a crust as any we've ever had, anywhere. The food is simple here and not pretentiously highbrow, so the prices are also in line. A go-to place in South Kensington for sure. read more