La Bellezza
AMORE MIO
My fourth time at La Bellezza, but my first of 2025, and it feels overdue. Since my last visit, my wife’s been three times with friends.
No wonder; walking in, is like seeing the Sistine Chapel, your eyes darting around to take in the detail and scale of it. Even the ‘ceiling’ with cascading ivy feels about as high up as heaven in Italian Renaissance paintings. And talking of scale, there’s an epic wine list and menu, both bulging with Italian classics.
La Bellezza Birmingham interior
La Bellezza is as much fantasy as it is a restaurant; if you’re not willing to succumb to its benevolent majesty, it’s probably best you stay away. Everything’s ultra-magnified, and a Saturday night buoyed crowd—a bit dressed up and having their best time—makes for a very intoxicating atmosphere. For me, it’s also making up for the fact that two of our group of five aren’t drinking. Each to their own.
Crocchette di granchio
My crocchette di granchio are three lightly whipped potato croquettes stuffed and topped with fresh crab, then drizzled with lemon mayo with a light kick of heat.
Tartare con Puttanesca Chimichurri
Everyone’s happy sharing forkfuls around the table. My favourite—and what I’ll have next time—is tartare con puttanesca chimichurri; beef tartare with subtle warmth from mustard and then sweet and sour from pickled cucumber, crowned with a gutsy ‘chimichurri’ of finely chopped anchovies, Taggiasche olives, sun-dried tomatoes and crispy, fried capers.
Beef carpaccio
My ‘big carpaccio di manzo’ needs to be relabelled ‘massive’; it’s like a table ‘sharing’ plate of wafer thin, melt-in-the-mouth beef, topped with rocket, semi dried tomatoes, 24-month Parmigiano Reggiano and rich, sweet balsamic vinegar. Sides of ‘insalata del giorno’ and crispy potatoes make it a variation of one of my favourite Italian holiday lunches and it works for dinner too. You live and learn.
Insalata di zucchine
One of our non-drinkers isn’t enthused by his insalata di zucchine; ‘baby gem with vinaigrette, roasted courgette, croutons and ricotta di bufala al forno on a bed of herby yoghurt’. My guess from his explanation is that he’s expecting something like a Caesar salad. Nevertheless, our waiter is keen to appease, but he’s insistent he’ll pass.
Contradae Casa Setaro Vesusio Bianco D.O.P
It would be remiss of me not to laud what was an excellent bottle of Casa Setaro Contradae 61.37 Vesuvio D.O.P. It lands on the palate like a sublime saline loaded twist of tart lemon curd with the faintest hint of toffee apple before washing the mouth with almond, with a long finish.
The Incomparable Lemon Pie
We’ve opted for five spoons and three desserts; two tiramisùs and an ‘Incomparable Lemon Pie’ with its meringue topping reaching for the heavens. But underneath that sugary ‘creamy’ quiff is a baked, zesty lemon curd in a light sweetcrust pastry shell, with a lot of indulgence ‘on the side’.
Tiramisù
The perfectly formed tiramisù is child friendly on coffee and booze, but there’s always amari and La Bellezza’s impressive range of ‘nightcaps’ is their final act of seduction.
With a total bill of £300 (£155 food / £101 drinks / £45 service charge + tip) it’s signed, sealed and delivered... I love it. The food isn’t about finesse, but it is good, flavour-forward trattoria fare; everything else is kind of magical.
I’m already looking forward to going again… next time, just the two of us.
RECOMMENDED
2 Chamberlain Square, Birmingham B3 3AX
www.bigmammagroup.com/italian-restaurants/la-bellezza-birmingham
5th April 2025
