Bancone, meaning “counter,” can simply be described as a pasta restaurant. It’s a 90-seater located near Charing Cross, just seconds away from Barrafina, and it’s been doing its thing since June 2018. I read somewhere that the founder, Will Elner, who earned his stripes running his family’s restaurant Joanna’s in Crystal Palace since 2003, “wanted to bring pasta into the everyday in a buzzy, central London space. I wanted to bring fine dining quality to the scale, pace, and price of the casual dining market, which means our menu is full of flavour and expertise, but the dishes are affordable, and the experience can be as quick or as long as you wish.” I can definitely get excited about that. The head chef is Louis Korovilas, who cooked at Michelin-coveted Pied à Terre and spent five years at Locanda Locatelli. Of course, there is a long counter overlooking the kitchen that takes center stage. It’s flanked by booths that seat four, with seats resembling the rear bench of a vintage car – I say they can seat four, but in reality, my muffin top took up at least two of the spaces. Now here’s to my review.
We commence with a pair of well-made punchy negroni’s £8.
First up came the braised cuttlefish with saffron polenta balls £8.50, a classy dish of coal-coloured rings of sweet, tender protein that packed a punch with its subtle, sweet oceanic depth – a dish that made you want to slow down and savour the goodness.
Purple spouting broccoli £5 with a ripe kick of chilli and pungent garlic was fantastic too.
Then the real action came
Then the sauce-coated strozzapreti, a hand-rolled pasta typical of Emilia-Romagna, arrived. It got a lively crunch from wild fennel and the nubile bounce of Argentinian red prawn. At £14.50, it’s the priciest dish on the menu, but we still begged for lashings of Parmesan – let it rain, I say.
The St. George mushroom, morel, and ricotta ravioli £13.50 came with mouth-coating buttery sauce that was pure silk on the palate – delicate, earthy, and utterly exquisite.
One of my favourites of the day was the spicy pork and ’nduja ragù with malfalde £10.50, a ribbon-shaped pasta with frilly edges that only a machine can craft at scale. The reason this dish is a staple on the menu became clear after the very first bite – perfectly al dente pasta drenched in boss-level warm umami that hits you like a flavour knockout. By this point, I was already plotting my next visit.
The feather in the restaurant’s cap was the consummate silk handkerchiefs £9, a sultry mess of gravelly walnut butter bursting with lip-coating viscousness, made even more indulgent by a velvety confit egg yolk. It’s the kind of dish that pulls you back in – making me want to return sooner rather than later.
Visit 2 was 6 weeks later, which is enough time to build up a craving for Bacone, that said my craving started well before that.
I found myself admiring and loving the honeyed garlic focaccia £4. It’s full of soft squish and enough chew and tension to know that the glutens have been worked properly. The honey is sweet but not bullying the garlic which is roasted in a way makes it sticky and intense.
Nocelara olives from the south west of Sicily £3, makes me wanna go there in person and eat them by the seafront.
Marinated baby artichoke hearts £5 – have a back hit of quality olive oil and vinegar that delivers a sharp point of tongue puckerege. I’m not sure “puckerege” is a word, but I’ll run with it for now.
Swiss chard £5 has an undeniable sweet earthiness that’s helped along with chilli and garlic – they are all the things I like on a vegetable.
And now comes the pasta
Bucatini cacio e pepe £9 – literally means pepper and cheese, the latter a semi-soft variety made with sheep’s milk that cloaks the bucatini, a hollow-centred spaghetti that gets stuck in your teeth – all the things I like.
The spicy pork and n’duja ragu with malfalde £10.50, an essential item to order and here is it being made before it hits the stove.
St. George mushroom, morel and ricotta ravioli £13.50 in its silky butter sauce.
You can’t come here and not order the silk handkerchiefs £9
Buckwheat bucatini £8.50 comes with purple sprouting broccoli and shaved belper knolle, a Swiss cheese rolled in crushed black pepper. This one fell into the “I’m happy I tried it, but what’s next” pile. I’m not easily pleased.
Visit number 3
It turns out there is a private room upstairs that seats 10, and to the right of the kitchen picture you’ll see the confit egg yolks nestling away until they’re ready to be delicately placed into the silk handkerchiefs that I’ve become quite a pervert for.
We sip on ice cold menabrea £5 and lubricate with vermentino £32 whilst we wait for our waist thickening, life sustaining carb orgy.
The honeyed garlic focaccia £4
The stalwart antipasti selection of Swiss chard £5.50, nocelara olives £3 and artichoke hearts £3.
And then we begin!
The serene silence commences when the silk handkerchiefs £9 arrive.
You’ll have guessed by now that I have a serious soft spot for the spicy pork and ’nduja ragù with malfalde, priced at £10.50 – a dish that hits all the right notes and keeps me coming back for more.
Tagliatelle at £12.50 with slow-cooked ox cheek ragù simmered in Sauternes – a French dessert wine whose sweet, complex honeyed notes and fruitiness bring a welcome complexity to the party. What landed on the table were custard-coloured ribbons, thickly coated in a sticky reduction that tasted of patience and pure talent.
St. George mushroom, morel and ricotta ravioli £13.50 in its silky butter sauce.
Then we got to try the bucatini with brown shrimp and seaweed butter £11.50. It’s all about umami with this one, a diehard conviction that an ingredient count that rarely goes beyond three can prevail.
We move onto desserts and we order all four that are on offer
Here is the chamomile-poached pineapple with coconut foam, basil, and honey tuile priced at £7. It’s clear the pastry section here comes with a deft touch and real pedigree. The intent seems to be creating desserts that are light and refreshing – the perfect counterpoint to the gluten-fuelled debauchery you won’t be able to resist during the main course.
The wild strawberries came with a cloud yogurt foam, almond genoise cake, mint and Moscato £6 – this one felt very much like a palate cleanser than anything substantial.
Balsamic chocolate mousse with macerated cherries, ground oats and goat’s curd snow £8 garners more attention, it’s like a deconstructed Black Forest gateau that just works.
Then we tackled the rooibos panna cotta priced at £7, topped with a piece of peach charred with blackened grill marks that intensified its natural sweetness. Rooibos, or red bush, is a South African herbal tea with a distinct earthiness, and it’s a winning match for the panna cotta’s firm, satisfying jiggle.
Visit number 3
First came the braised cuttlefish with saffron polenta balls £7.50, a classy dish of coal-coloured rings of sweet protein.
The craving for the spicy pork and n’duja ragu with malfalde £10.50 is real
The serene silence commences when the silk handkerchiefs £9 arrive.
If you’re delicate like my sister, who’s allergic to eggs – there’s the dill gnocchi, drenched in moss green sauce loaded with puréed and marinated artichoke. The whole thing is soothing and medicinal, a bit of a wild card that might not always be on the menu. It’s definitely an acquired taste, but one that lingers long after.
Verdict
When did I go? May, June, July 2019
The damage: Expect to pay £40/60 per head
The good: Bancone doesn’t just serve pasta – it throws down. From the spicy pork ’nduja ragù that punches you in the palate with deep, spicy umami flavour, to silky handkerchiefs swimming in walnut butter, every dish grabs you and doesn’t let go. It’s a place where serious skill meets buzzy vibes, with a kitchen that knows how to turn humble ingredients into knockout hits. If you want pasta that bites back and leaves you hungry for more, Bancone’s your next stop. I’m already counting the days till I’m back tearing into that ragù again.
The bad: Not a lot to grumble about.
Rating: 4.5/5
Would I go again? It’s gonna happen!
Address: 39 William IV St, Charing Cross, London WC2N 4DD
Web: http://www.bancone.co.uk/covent-garden/
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