A restaurant on New Oxford Street, just down from Primark, might not be top of your list but Manitoba Tigella stands out in a row of Pret’s, Costas and Starbucks.
Manitoba Tigella is the first of its kind in London – it specialises in ‘Tigella’ a traditional stuffed bread from Emilia Romagna, a region in Northern Italy that encompasses Bologna and Parma. These round breads are toasted and served with a range of fillings, from pulled pork to a yellow fin sashimi tuna burger. But they are best served with classic Italian meats and cheeses, which here are only the finest D.O.P. ingredients.
If you’re after a snack for lunch or after work, the range of stuffed tigellas are for you. We particularly recommend the avocado king prawn and Portobello mushroom and gorgonzola. A problem we have with a lot of chains is the bread to filling ratio (never enough filling!) but the tigella were filled right to the edges and, as the bread is quite thin, had a satisfying amount of flavour.
If you have more time, we would highly recommend one of the boards on offer. A selection of top quality Italian meats and cheeses are served with plain tigella and gnocco fritto for you to fill as you please! We sampled the Regionale board which included; Bresaola Valtellina D.O.P., San Daniele ham D.O.P., speck from Alto Adige D.O.P., Taleggio Cheese D.O.P., Gorgonzola cheese D.O.P., olives, sundried tomatoes and pickled Italian onion. As you would expect this was the star of the show with the flavour and quality of the ingredients shining through. The boards are available for one or two people – we had the two person board and it was so much we ended up taking the leftovers home with us!
The drinks list includes a wide range of cocktails, wines and Italian beers. The Manitoba cocktail, though pricey at £20, was a real showstopper and if you like whisky is one to try It is a mix of homemade whisky infused with the finest salame Felino & smoked with hickory wood. The wine list has a good selection of more unusual Italian wines and the staff are happy to recommend a wine to pair with your food.
Manitoba Tigella also offers a selection of salads, mini pizzetta, pasta and risotto but tigella are their speciality and something that can’t be found elsewhere. Next time you brave the horror of TCR Primark, pop in here for a much-needed glass of wine and treat yourself to a tigella!
THIS RESTAURANT HAS PERMANENTLY CLOSED.
