Thu 27th August 2015
It’s time for a second Supper Club group gathering. Where to go? It had to be Al Boccon Di’ vino (aka, the ‘divine mouthful’)! It’s a casual family-run Italian restaurant hidden in Richmond (the beautiful suburban town of Southwest London). Upon entering this little gem, you will be instantly transferred from the hustle and bustle of your daily London life into an intimate osteria hidden in one of the maze of alleys of Venice. I I first heard about Al Boccon Di’vino from a couple of family friends who used to live in Richmond, and had nothing but great things to say about this unique little place. I was properly introduced to the restaurant when one of my colleagues organised a little get-together and invited me – you guessed it, I jumped on the opportunity and thoroughly enjoyed it. Of course, this would make a perfect spot for our second Supper Club outing! What’s so special about this place you ask? 1) The restaurant is very intimate – only about a handful of tables and offers one sitting per meal-time. 2) There is no menu – you simply let them know what you do or do not eat. 3) Like wine? Sure, just choose the colour and it won’t go wrong. 4) The team consisted of the larger-than-life chef-owner (Riccardo Grigolo), the lovely Simona Gilmeanu and their catering staff will make sure you feel like part of their family and guarantee you a bloody great time! Do you need more reasons? No? Great. Oh, two words of advice though: come hungry.
Our turnout was fantastic – 13 of us in total even though this is not Central London so not particularly convenient for some of us – and the threat of a tube strike didn’t put people off either! One of my friends came with his wife and their 3-year-old son (yep, believe it or not, despite the restaurant being small and intimate, it is indeed child-friendly, so feel free to bring your children along if you can keep them entertained enough to sit through the 4-hour culinary extravaganza). 10 dishes or so later, 8 bottles of wines between us, followed by coffees and limoncellos, everyone left happy and stuffed. I won’t go into detail about each of the dishes though for two reasons: 1) I doubt you’ll get the same menu when you visit, and 2) There is a bit of surprise element associated with this place that should not be selfishly spoilt by me. I shall sign off with a few selected photos to wet your appetite. Just imagine an Italian wedding feast and enjoy… Buon appetite!
