Brunello

Head chef Andrea Vercelli brings a laid back brasserie style of cooking to Brunello, the restaurant at the five star Baglioni Hotel. Cutting his culinary teeth in the kitchens of Marco Pierre White's Luciano Restaurant where he spent two years and at Caffe Caldesi, Vercelli prefers simple Italian fare. Dishes like bean salad with bacon and eggs, scallop gratin and Risotto Milanese with veal osso buco (braised veal shanks) might be followed by roast turbot with spinach, pine nuts and bacon or pan fried duck with glazed apricots and puntarelle - a type of chicory. While this used to be a great place for a special occasion, the prices were prohibitive (think £15 for a starter). All that is due to change in March 2008 - even the starched linen has gone and so too has the ornate crockery. Instead you get a more casual, affordable place to eat. And that's good news for all of us.