Berta

Vibrant, down-to-earth food and the odd splash of colour add warmth to this almost industrial space full of metals, mirrors and polished concrete. Black-clad staff circulate swiftly among diners seated at black-topped tables and along the bar, setting down designed-to-share dishes from the daily chalkboard menu. A wooden board holds small, lightly battered zucchini flowers stuffed with fontina, ricotta, parmesan and thyme - a far cry from the usual overstuffed, over-battered specimens. Bruschetta with crab, pickled onion, fennel and aioli works suprisingly well, while vivid red panzanella with sweet tomatoes, salt-cured olives, pickled red onion and chunks of pan-fried sourdough is a good, simple side dish. Mussels in a tar-black squid ink sauce with preserved lemon and whole cherry tomatoes is wholesome, unfussy and decadent all at once. A thin, dark wedge of bittersweet chocolate tart lightened with a puddle of walnut cream makes this hidden-away diner as hard to leave as it is to find.