Family-run Italian stalwart

The Pavilion has been a Soho fixture for a couple of decades, but there's nothing old or institutional about the cooking or décor.

Vasco himself cooks for his regulars, and the establishment has long been a favourite with diners who appreciate his food, which is fairly simple but made with top-class ingredients.

Dishes are biased towards Umbrian cuisine.

Customers include the great and the good, and the Pavilion's comfortable atmosphere guarantees them anonymity.

There's an à la carte menu at lunch, but in the evening the basic deal is that you choose either two courses or three.

Given the quality, freshness of ingredients and attention to detail, this restaurant delivers exceptional value, albeit with a slightly old-fashioned vibe.

Starters may include roast beetroot, tomato, eggs and anchovies.

Or there may be duck salad, mixed leaves and mostarda di cremona.

Pastas, all home-made, are excellent, too, particularly the tagliolini with king prawns and zucchini - perfectly cooked and with a sauce that is prepared from fresh ingredients and tastes like it.

For carnivores, however, there is nothing to beat the calf's liver with fresh sage - paper-thin liver that literally melts in the mouth.

Piscivores should turn to the scallopine of swordfish with garlic, parsley and cannellini beans, or to the sautéed monkfish with saffron and lentils.

Puddings continue the theme - they're simple and top-quality.

A panna cotta is gelatinously creamy; a praline semi freddo is rich and soft as well as being crunchy.

Service is in the old-style, attentive and well organised, as you'd expect in such a well-established resto.

Vasco & Piero's Pavilion
Poland Street, London, W1F 8QE