Neil Littman visits an Italian seafood restaurant in Cockfosters

L’Arte Seafood & Grill is located on a parade of shops in Cockfosters along with several other eating establishments – the name simply means ‘art’.

First impressions count but sometimes you need a second visit, as my experience demonstrated. My first meal nearly deterred me from going back, but fortunately I bumped into some friends who had eaten there, and they made some recommendations which I followed up on my second visit.

It’s also one of the drawbacks of solo dining; if I can find somebody to eat out with, it’s better in terms of the choice of dishes, sharing them (though not all people like to share!) and discussing the food.

I first visited L’Arte early on a Sunday evening, without booking, and wondered why the restaurant was packed at 6pm. Fortunately, they had a table free. The interior is smart and contemporary with an open kitchen visible at the back and some outdoor seating.

After receiving complimentary bread and olives with oil and balsamic vinegar I ordered a glass of San Marzano’s ‘Tramari’ rosé di primitivo (£9 for 175ml), which is a softly coloured dry rosé that reminded me of being on holiday in the Mediterranean.

My starter of formaggio di capri (goats’ cheese with toasted walnuts and honey on spinach leaves) was okay but a bit more dressing would not have gone amiss.

This was followed by paglia e fieno al branzino, which translates as ‘hay and straw’ – a reference to the two colours of tagliatelle style pasta. It’s a classic dish usually made with pancetta, peas, and a light cream sauce, but this version was served without any sauce. The main ingredient here was sea bass with thinly sliced courgettes and some chillies which gave it a kick, but it also lacked seasoning.

I skipped desert and left an almost empty restaurant just before 8pm, realising it was nearly kick-off time for an England Euros match!

My second visit, a week later, was a big improvement. My main course of linguine frutti di mare came with a side order of deep-fried courgettes which were crisp and crunchy. The linguine with seafood was well prepared and properly seasoned. The portion sizes were good, and my linguine and courgettes could easily have fed two people or, in my case, one very hungry person. The seafood included a mix of clams, mussels, giant prawns, and pieces of calamari.

Again, I didn’t order dessert, but they looked good from what I saw whizzing past me. The restaurant claim they make nearly all the dishes from scratch, apart from ice cream.

The restaurant is family friendly (crayons and paper are supplied for children) and they also have good vegetarian options. My bills came to £45 and £35 respectively, including service.

L’Arte Seafood & Grill can be found at 3 Station Parade, Cockfosters EN4 0DL. Open Tuesday to Saturday, 12pm-11pm, and Sundays 12pm-9pm. For more information:
Call 020 8440 0855
Visit larterestaurant.com

No news is bad news

Independent news outlets like ours – reporting for the community without rich backers – are under threat of closure, turning British towns into news deserts.

The audiences they serve know less, understand less, and can do less.

If our coverage has helped you understand our community a little bit better, please consider supporting us with a monthly, yearly or one-off donation.

Choose the news. Don’t lose the news.

Monthly direct debit

Annual direct debit

£5 per month supporters get a digital copy of each month’s paper before anyone else, £10 per month supporters get a digital copy of each month’s paper before anyone else and a print copy posted to them each month. £50 annual supporters get a digital copy of each month's paper before anyone else.