Buon Apps, Otley.
ROME wasn't built in a day – and neither was the popular Italian restaurant, Buon Apps, which is now attracting table-loads of contented diners four nights of the week.
Restaurateur Alessandro Tocca is originally from Rome, and while he may miss the seven hills of the Eternal City, his chic and modern restaurant nestles in the lee of Otley's one and only true hill, the Chevin.
It takes bit of finding if you're not a local or a regular. First locate Otley Mills (now known as the Wharfebank Business Centre) on the western edge of the town. Approaching from Ilkley, take the last turning on the left (Ilkley Road) before the edge of town roundabout, follow the road round to the right and then drive in through the narrow entrance to the park.
Turning right, you pass the premises where Alessandro started up business in Otley with a lunchtime deli and sandwich bar that gradually developed into this restaurant. Another wiggle left and right brings you to the new location for Buon Apps, a tall former mill building with plenty of car parking once the Business Centre workers have left for the night.
Intelligent use of modern doors and glass make the entrance inviting and appealing. The downstairs bar area has chic, comfortable leather sofas and extra seating with low tables for those who wish to have a drink or two before you are invited upstairs to dine in one of the two extensive dining areas.
The first of these mezzanine spaces accommodates about 30, the second – slightly smaller but still spacious – seats about 20. On the Thursday evening of our visit the place was very busy.
The high ceilings and occasional colourful print blocks lend the restaurant a continental, almost rustic ambience, added to by the simplicity of the wooden furniture. Uplighters on the high whitewashed walls generate an intimate and cosy atmosphere – this is a place to linger if you have the time. The appeal of Buon Apps is enhanced by the friendly and chatty waiting staff all being Italian, though the young woman at the bar who greeted us as we arrived was a welcoming and amiable citizen of Prague.
There's an extensive la carte menu and a specials board which offered a wide range of dishes – though more limited for the vegetarian diner. Starters range from 3.50 for homemade Italian bread with a balsamic dip, to homemade tomato soup with pesto dumpling at 4.50, liver pate and Italian bread at 4.95 or 5.50 for the marinaded sardines with onion on a bed of rocket.
Others starters, including strips of fillet steak with salad, are towards the expensive end of the bistro range – but you can eat a second starter instead of a main course.
The sardines we tried were both hidden and smothered under an ample covering of thinly-sliced, moist onions.
What hadn't been fully anticipated, though, is that this is a cold dish – certainly easier to prepare and serve than the freshly grilled variety, but not quite as satisfying for those well acquainted with the pleasures of barbecued fish. Our mistake, and not a complaint.
Mediterranean vegetable cous-cous and mixed leaves was a visually pleasing dish – with red and yellow peppers adding colour as well as flavour – but this too was, disappointingly, straight out of the fridge.
A main course of thinly-sliced steak in rocket salad with rosemary roasted potatoes (at 14.95) offered plentiful quantities of meat but lacked in visual appeal. Vegetables are served as an extra dish (at a cost of 2.50) and this main course would have benefited from fewer slices of steak and more vegetable colour.
The melanzone starter as a main course offered tranches of marinated aubergine, wafer-thin mozzarella and slices of juicy beef tomatoes on a bed of leaves and offered a satisfying combination of flavours. From the comprehensive wine list, which included some "artisan" wines on the pricey side, we chose a very reasonably priced Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, full-bodied and peppery.
Desserts, all at 4.50, sounded enticing – apple strudel, tiramisu, apple and toffee almond tart, chocolate truffle torte and lime crme brle. An orange and mascarpone tart was served with either cream or ice cream and hidden under the mascarpone were bits of crunchy dark chocolate. A blueberry cheesecake pot with a biscuit base had just the right combination of fruit and sweetness, moistened by the cream cheese and given substance by crumbled biscuit.
The cappuccinos to finish were top-notch and worth the journey to Otley in their own right. Service was friendly and helpful but not over-attentive and the bill for our three-course meal for two with wine, minus service charge, came
to 63.30.
Buon Apps, Wharfebank Business Centre, Ilkley Road, Otley, LS21 3JP. Open for breakfast and lunch Tuesday to Saturday and evenings Wednesday to Saturday. On Wednesday nights there is a special three courses for 15 menu. Tel: 01943 468458. Booking recommended.
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