Walking into Tutti is like stepping in from a cobbled side-street in Venice as opposed to Leigh Broadway. It has the decor of a classic Italian trattoria with bare brick walls and rustic wood tables, wine bottles, glasses and condiments on open display.
From the buzzing kitchen at the furthest end, I overhear a chef explain some nuance of the Italian language beneath the glow of yellow ceiling lights. Another is making fresh pasta in the window, steadily feeding silky sheets through the pasta machine with floured hands. It’s important work. After all, fresh pasta is what we’re all here for.
The à la carte menu offers gentle twists on classics that will delight modernists and traditionalists alike. Trofie with a pistachio pesto and burrata, mafalde with a house-smoked short rib ragu… I try the crab cacio e pepe agnolotti served with a succulent monkfish fillet and blood orange. It’s delicious. Although the chargrilled hispi cabbage and pumpkin seed side-dish (vg) almost steals the show with its addictive, smokey, umami flavours. A generous portion of rich pannacotta finishes the meal on a decadent high.
Tutti’s lunch menu offers great value for money; two courses for only £22 with a glass of house wine or a soft drink included, and a children’s menu at £4 that includes pasta, focaccia and a juice. But if all this talk about food hasn’t made you hungry, how about trying something from their cocktail menu — mine’s a black cherry and amaretto sour.
52 Broadway
Leigh-on-Sea
SS9 1AG
T: 01702 936177
www.tuttileigh.co.uk
Instagram: @tutti_leigh