The story
Rovi in London delivers a vegetable-forward take on Contemporary cuisine along Wells Street in Fitzrovia. Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi launched their original food shop here in 2002, building a reputation that centres on Mediterranean and Middle Eastern traditions without relying on meat. The kitchen treats produce as the main event, layering spices like hawaij and khmeli-suneli to build depth. This commitment to colour and flavour has drawn steady recognition from critics, including three radishes from the We’re Smart Green Guide and a Good rating from The Good Food Guide.
Appetisers feature grilled leeks paired with pickled walnuts and a date and walnut praline, while charred hispi cabbage arrives dressed in almond XO. Main courses shift between an arrangement of grilled carrots with spiced greens and lentils, or a saddleback pork chop accompanied by kohlrabi and apple kimchi. Dessert rounds out the menu with a fennel meringue served alongside lime and pastis sorbet. The Contemporary cuisine here avoids heavy sauces, relying instead on precise seasoning and raw spice layers.
Diners settle into spacious banquettes upholstered in chilli-pepper red or take seats at the wooden bar counter. The layout encourages conversation, which suits the restaurant’s focus on low-intervention wines and shareable plates. Staff members often bring years of experience from across the wider Ottolenghi network, adding a grounded familiarity to service. The overall effect feels relaxed rather than formal, letting the food lead.
The beverage programme mirrors the kitchen’s emphasis on bright, layered flavours. Guests can choose from curated gin variations and house-made cocktails, alongside non-alcoholic options like hibiscus agua fresca or watermelon and rose sharbat. The wine selection leans toward natural producers and light-bodied styles that cut through rich spice blends. A glass or two easily complements the vegetable-heavy tasting flow.
Recognition
Ambience
Details
History
Yotam Ottolenghi's name has become synonymous in recent years with a style of aspirational, but practically doable, cookery writing, thanks to a portfolio of bestselling recipe books and a high-profile weekly presence in The Guardian . His speciality is food that orchestrates the upstanding flavours and spicy warmth of the southern and eastern fringes of Europe and the Levant. In this spacious, appealing venue, with bar counter seating and banquettes in chilli-pepper red, the various culinary influences are brought into exciting synergy. Vegetables are very much at the forefront, producing appetisers such as grilled leeks with pickled walnuts and date/walnut praline, or charred hispi in almond XO, while main dishes include an assembly of grilled carrots, hawaij-spiced greens and lentils, honey-pickled kumquats and crispy garlic. Let anyone dare say you don't notice you're not eating meat. Should you be determined to do so, however, there may be a saddleback pork chop with kohlrabi and apple kimchi. There's fish too, perhaps grilled halibut with curly peppers and capers, seasoned in khmeli-suneli, a Georgian version of five-spice. Close the deal with a fennel meringue, served with lime and pastis sorbet and lemon curd, or a chillied-up cherry and chocolate fondant. The drinks list is an enticement in its own right, with a slate of inspired cocktails, gin variations, and softs such as hibiscus agua fresca or watermelon and rose sharbat.
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