Are Belgravia residents doing any cooking these days? With the excellent choices from prepared-food purveyors, one has to wonder. While Baker & Spice has been in the neighbourhood for several years, new options have recently sprung up. Last month, a new branch of Ottolenghi opened with a communal table and a tempting food display (13 Motcomb St., SW1; 020-7823 2707). Just around the corner is Zafferano Deli (adjacent to Zafferano), also with a communal table, as well as its own brand of pasta and sauces, plus eggplant Parmigiana, Italian meats and cheeses and a great wine selection (15 Lowndes St., SW1; 020-7235 5800). Zafferano manager Enzo Cassini even sells his family’s extra-virgin olive oil made with Taggiasca olives harvested by hand from 200-year-old trees. And, when Olivomare opened last year, it put its deli, Olivino, right next door. There, one can find much of the specially imported Sardinian produce used in the restaurant, as well as a solid selection of Sardinian wines and many of the restaurant dishes to take away (12 Lower Belgrave St., SW1; 020-7730 9042).
Belgravia residents aren’t the only lucky ones. The new Tom’s Place in Chelsea has fish ‘n’ chips to carry out as well as homemade ice cream served in little dixie cups with wooden spoons (1 Cale St., SW3; 020-7351 1806). As soon as they find some cool scooters, they'll begin a delivery service. Tom’s Kitchen is now catering for events and has a takeaway counter in Selfridge’s Food Hall (27 Cale St., SW3; 020-7349 0202). Over in Marylebone, the notoriously cramped La Fromagerie has just expanded next door with the addition of more cafe seating and a larger wine-and-produce selection (2-6 Moxon St., W1; 020-7935 0341).
– Susan Kessler