The first ever Italian restaurants in London opened their doors in Little Italy. Fabrizio and the team at Luce e Limoni are proud to continue the tradition.
London and Italian food have been getting along rather nicely for around two centuries. Long before cheap pizza in cardboard boxes became a Friday night favourite and tiramisu appeared on seemingly every dessert menu, Italian food was already finding its place in the capital.
Italian traders, artists, musicians and craftsmen had been coming to London for centuries, but a sizeable Italian community began developing in Clerkenwell during the 1830s. The area around Saffron Hill, Hatton Garden and Farringdon became known as London’s “Little Italy”. Italian immigrants worked in a variety of trades, including selling ice cream, and food businesses gradually became an important part of community life.
Italian restaurants and cafés also began appearing elsewhere. Soho became another important centre of Italian life, particularly for Italians from northern regions. By the early 20th century, cafés, restaurants and delicatessens were becoming part of the neighbourhood’s unmistakably cosmopolitan character. Italian restaurants were no longer simply places for homesick immigrants to eat familiar food: Londoners were discovering them too.
By the 1920s, Italian food businesses and Italian restaurants were flourishing in Soho and Mayfair. Restaurants became increasingly popular with Londoners looking for something different, while Italian cafés, ice-cream shops and delicatessens helped introduce the capital to a much wider range of Italian flavours.
Then came the post-war decades, when Italian food became firmly established in British life. Pasta, espresso, and gelato moved from being intriguing imports to familiar favourites. Italian restaurants spread well beyond the traditional Italian neighbourhoods, eventually becoming a feature of high streets and dining districts across the city.
Today, London’s Italian restaurant scene is wonderfully diverse, reflecting the country itself. You can find everything from sophisticated northern Italian cooking to hearty Neapolitan dishes and, of course, the distinctive food of Sicily.
And that brings us to Clerkenwell. The original Little Italy may have changed, but its Italian culinary heritage certainly hasn’t disappeared. At Luce e Limoni, we’re proud to continue that story with traditional Italian and Sicilian cooking and the warm hospitality that’s helped Italian restaurants in London become such a beloved part of the capital’s life.
You’ll find us at 91-93 Gray’s Inn Road, Chancery Lane, London WC1X 8TX
Call Us 020 724 23382 | Email Us flavours@luceelimoni.com
