Bancone

Bancone started as a single pasta counter and has since spread to several London sites, but the Covent Garden original on William IV Street is still the one most people mean when they talk about it. The idea has stayed consistent throughout: a short menu built entirely around handmade pasta, done well and priced fairly.

The dish to order is the silk handkerchiefs, soft sheets of pasta draped in walnut butter with a confit egg yolk stirred through at the table, rich without being heavy, and it has more or less become the restaurant’s signature. The nduja and pork ragu with mafalde has good depth of spice, and the antipasti list, small plates of cured meats and vegetables, works well as a warm-up rather than a distraction.

Founder Louis Korovilas trained under Locanda Locatelli, and that pedigree shows in the pasta itself, which is properly made in-house rather than treated as an afterthought. The room is narrow and counter-heavy, which keeps the focus on the food and the open pasta-making station, though it also means tables are close together and the noise level climbs quickly once it fills up.

Prices are fair for the quality, pasta dishes mostly sit in the low double figures, but portions are on the smaller side, and a proper meal usually means ordering a starter and two pasta courses rather than one. It does not take bookings at every site, so a wait at peak times is common.

For handmade pasta at a sensible price without unnecessary flourish, it remains one of the more reliable choices in the West End.

The concept has since expanded to Soho’s Golden Square, Borough and Kensington, each running a near-identical menu, which gives more flexibility for booking than the original Covent Garden site alone. A Michelin Bib Gourmand recognition reflects that consistency across sites rather than a single standout kitchen. Most tables do not take advance bookings at every location, so arriving slightly before typical lunch and dinner peaks is the more reliable way in without a wait.