New Italian restaurant Calici to open in Belsize Village
A new Italian restaurant, bringing the best of traditional, regional Italian food into the 21st century, will be opening its doors in North London’s Belsize Park on Friday 20th September.
Tapping into the casual dining scene, Calici will offer diners a laid-back dinner location coupled with a sleek and sophisticated wine bar for those who just want to enjoy an evening ‘bicchiere di vino’. Calici, which means wine glass in Italian, will celebrate both regional Italian wine and food.
Co-founder Andrea Casasola, ex-operational manager at Individual Restaurants Company has partnered with a wine importing and distribution company True Terroir to create this Venetian-style restaurant.
Calici will boast a 200-strong wine list brimming with well-known Italian tipples, established varieties and lesser known vinos, including 70 by the glass. The dishes will be inspired by recipes “handed down from generation to generation”, using a simple number of ingredients – including Tiramisu which will be made according to the original creators recipe.
The restaurant will be split into three distinct areas; the 90-cover restaurant will be “awash with a clean and neutral colour palette accentuated with high-end textiles and eye-catching features”.
Stone wall cladding will sit alongside a feature light wall, with leather seating, antique oak tabletops and aged-brass fittings also featured. The separate ground floor will become a bar area and the basement level will operate at a different pace to the ground floor seating area for larger parties.
The kitchen team, led by head chef Enzo Bucema, has been “instrumental” in putting together the authentic Italian menu, designed to be shared. The seasonally changing menu will include classic regional small plates such as: Polipo alla Griglia with pasta making up a large portion of the menu.
Calici will also be home to over 200 wines predominantly sourced from Italian vineyards (70%) with the remaining 30% coming from across the globe.
