Obertelli's was suggested to me by someone - I think it was Pete Ashton. (I'll need to check my email to make sure and I can't get into it right now.) But whoever it was, many thanks, this was a slap-up feed. A nice bit of quality bacon and a golden egg. Big pile of nice beans. Only disappointments are the chips, which are a little fry-like. Not a bad thing per se, but you know.
And the biggest bottle of Lee and Perrins I've seen in my life.
There's less room for eating downstairs, just stools or the tables outside. But upstairs is a land that time forgot. Lots of white tiles and blokes focused on eating. A good, dedicated atmosphere.
The Leadenhall Market is an interesting area. A bit of quaintness loitering in the high-tech city. It's so clean and Disney-like that it sometimes look less authentic than it is. They've shot some Harry Potter here, and I can imagine a bunch of other movies. Just around the corner is the Regis Snack Bar which also looks worth a visit.
A very interesting breakfast. Or is it a lunch dish? I'm curious about two things. What kind of bacon is that? It looks a bit like ham, or maybe Canadian bacon. And what is that dark sauce you've put on top?
Posted by: Heather | June 17, 2004 at 06:10 PM
Yup, that was me. Great to see it again - brings back many memories of hungover lunch time fry-ups...
Posted by: Pete Ashton | June 17, 2004 at 08:52 PM
Leadenhall is a fascinating place - I worked in the Waterstone's there for a year or so. It's all pretty much authentic and has managed to keep away a reasonable amount of corporate branding, probably because of the amount of money spent there by the suits (the Lloyds building towers over next door). I always liked the fact that on my way to work I had to stop at four stalls/shops to buy fruit, chocolate, tobacco and a newspaper.
Yes, it appears in pretty much every film that wants to represent modern London, which is ironic as it isn't modern at all, thanks to the fact that it's closed every weekend and looks more Londony than Oxford St.
Posted by: Pete Ashton | June 17, 2004 at 08:59 PM
hello heather,
I'm assuming from your questions that you're American - is that right? Welcome. I've found that bacon is one of the biggest divides between the US and the UK. We do are bacon a bit differently here. I don't know the technical stuff about cuts and joints and stuff, but it is a bit different. And we don't tend to fry it to the same crispiness as in the US. It's not quite Canadian bacon, which is a bit more like ham. There's a good discussion of bacon here: http://homecooking.about.com/library/weekly/aa082701a.htm but no definitive answers on the differences.
The brown sauce is imaginatively known as 'brown sauce' the two big brands are hp and daddies. It's a bit like steak sauce, but not quite.
Hope this helps.
Posted by: russell | June 29, 2004 at 09:10 AM
I was in the locality a couple of weeks ago, and decided to pay Obertelli's and The Regis a visit.
Both brilliant places. It was amusing to think that you can munch typical caff food a few yards from Lloyd's of London !
Posted by: Patrick | November 06, 2004 at 08:47 PM
Couldn't agree more with above comments.
Have worked in Lloyd's for 17 years & been a patron of these places throughout.
Would say that whilst Obertellis probably edges it for the food, you won't get a better welcome or have more of a laugh anywhere than with the boys that run 'Reggies' as it is affectionately known. 2 mad gooner Italian lads who create an atmosphere where the banter is rife & the
suits mix with the binmen & builders without any of the strained atmosphere of some places.
Posted by: alex wilmot | January 06, 2005 at 07:00 PM
There's another cafe around the corner from Obertelli's, also in Leadenhall Market. I ate there once a few years ago. Unfortunately I couldn't visit the place again on my last trip to the area, due to lack of time.
I forget its name, but like Obertelli's, it's also got a first floor, where you can look through the railings to the ground floor. I remember it had a nice,snug ambience.
If the Olympics had a banter event, the guys in the Regis would be guaranteed gold medals !
Posted by: Patrick | January 06, 2005 at 08:57 PM
I go quite often to the cafe below and find that the food is well presented on oval plates and is competitively priced.The place is clean and at a comfortable temperature..nothing worse than having a good slap-up breakfast only to have it spoiled by some pillock opening the door for fresh air...
First Step Cafe
21, Holywell Row
London
EC2A 4JB
Tel: 020 7377 5002 Map/Directions
Posted by: Jack | January 11, 2005 at 10:16 AM
The other cafe near Obertelli's that's worth checking out is The M Bar (I think it might stand for Marine). I walked past it a few hours ago, but as it's Sunday, it was closed. The unusual first floor section's still there. I'm rarely in the City during the week, but next time I am I'll try to get a visit in.
I hope the Regis can keep going. There's an Orange phone shop next door, which bodes ill for their next rent review. If the managers of Leadenhall Market have any savvy, they'll try to keep as many of the independents as possible - otherwise they'll end up with another Oxford St. Plaza.
Posted by: Patrick | September 18, 2005 at 07:00 PM
This place is lovely, but for anyone having trouble finding it - the name has changed (I went there the other day and got a bit confused....) to something like 'The Market Place Cafe' (Can't remember exactly but its got the word Market in it), and I had to check with the waitress that it was the same place. A bit of a shame, I reckon, because 'Obertellis Eating House' sounds much more appetising. However, as far as I can tell from the photos, apart from the name, its exactly the same - lovely - and the food was super.
Posted by: Pudje | December 17, 2007 at 01:14 PM