Is Grasso Soho London’s Most Convincing Italian-American Restaurant?
Grasso sits at 81 Dean Street in Soho, but the kitchen is looking west across the Atlantic as much as south towards Italy. This is not a restaurant pretending that chicken parm, mozzarella sticks and spaghetti with meatballs are ancient regional Italian dishes. Its identity is explicitly Italian-American, shaped by a Sicilian family story that moved through New York and London.
That distinction gives the menu a clearer personality than another polished Soho trattoria. There is penne alla vodka, Mom’s Spaghetti, lamb ragù rigatoni, lobster linguine, chicken parm, Caesar salad and 48-hour fermented pizza, with sauces made in-house and desserts still prepared by the family.
The room itself leans into the same mood: red sauce, disco and soul rather than linen-tablecloth formality. Grasso is lively, generous and slightly nostalgic without turning the experience into costume theatre.
What we liked most was that the restaurant understands exactly what it is. The portions are bold, the sauces unapologetically rich and the best dishes never try to disguise their New York–Italian DNA. Come here for comfort, not restraint.
Mozzarella Sticks Set the Tone Immediately
The mozzarella sticks cost £11 and come with ’nduja and wild honey.
This is a very good summary of the restaurant in one plate.
Hot cheese brings stretch and richness, ’nduja adds chilli and pork depth, while honey gives enough sweetness to stop the whole thing from becoming one-dimensional.
They are not elegant.
They are not supposed to be.
The contrast between heat, salt, fat and sweetness makes them one of the more distinctive starters on the menu.
Seafood Cocktail Goes Full East Coast
The seafood cocktail is £17, combining shrimp, Devon crab and Marie Rose sauce.
There is something deliberately retro about it, and that suits Grasso.
Sweet shellfish, creamy sauce and chilled presentation give the starter a completely different rhythm from the fried options. It feels closer to old-school New York dining than modern London small plates.
If mozzarella sticks are the louder beginning, this is the cleaner one.
Mom’s Spaghetti Is the Dish That Explains the Restaurant
The Mom’s Spaghetti costs £22 and combines pork-and-beef meatballs, house red sauce and Parmesan. The recipe comes directly from the family repertoire rather than being invented as a branding exercise.
This is the plate to order if you want to understand Grasso quickly.
The meatballs bring richness and softness, while the tomato sauce needs enough acidity to keep the bowl from becoming heavy. Parmesan adds salt rather than trying to dominate.
There is nothing subtle about spaghetti and meatballs.
That is precisely why it works here.
Penne alla Vodka Are the Sharper Pasta Order
The penne alla vodka cost £17 and come with house red sauce, cream, vodka, chilli and Parmesan.
This is the pasta we would order first.
Vodka sauce succeeds when cream softens the tomato without flattening it. Chilli gives the plate movement, while the penne hold enough sauce inside the tubes to make each bite substantial.
Compared with Mom’s Spaghetti, it is more compact, more direct and easier to finish.
It also feels more distinctively Italian-American than many of the pasta dishes currently circulating around Soho.
Lamb Ragù Rigatoni Has More Depth
The lamb ragù rigatoni cost £19, with slow-braised lamb, rosemary and anchovy.
Anchovy is the interesting part.
Used properly, it disappears into the sauce and deepens the savoury character of the lamb rather than making the dish taste overtly fishy.
Rigatoni are the right shape because the sauce needs structure.
This is the darker, slower and more aromatic alternative to vodka pasta.
Lobster Linguine Is the Luxury Move
The Grasso lobster linguine costs £39, combining lobster, vodka red sauce and chilli.
It takes the restaurant’s most recognisable sauce style and pushes it towards something much richer.
Lobster brings sweetness; tomato and chilli provide enough acidity and heat to stop the plate becoming cloying.
At £39, this is no longer comfort-food pricing.
The dish makes the most sense if lobster is genuinely what you came for rather than as an automatic upgrade.
Chicken Parm Is Exactly What It Should Be
The chicken parm costs £24, with herb-crusted chicken, marinara sauce and mozzarella. Spaghetti pomodoro can be added for £8, fries for £7.
The cutlet is breaded, fried, covered with house tomato sauce and cheese, then finished under heat.
It is one of those dishes that can become brutally heavy if the coating absorbs oil or the sauce overwhelms the crust.
The best version keeps the chicken juicy and the breading still recognisable beneath the cheese.
At Grasso, it feels central rather than included for tourists who do not want pasta.
The Big Caesar Is Not Pretending to Be Light
The Big Caesar comes with either herb-crusted artichoke for £19 or herb-crusted chicken for £22.
Baby gem, romaine, anchovy dressing, Parmesan crumb, grated Parmesan and croutons give the salad enough richness that calling it a lighter option would be misleading.
With fried chicken, it becomes a full meal.
With artichoke, it is more unusual and arguably more interesting.
This is Caesar salad treated as Italian-American comfort food rather than penance.
The Pizza Is Crispier Than the Soho Average
Grasso’s pizzas use 48-hour cold-fermented dough, designed to produce a crust with both crispness and chew.
The Cheese Pie costs £16, with tomato, mozzarella, basil and Parmesan.
That is the right pizza to test first.
Without hot honey, truffle or a mountain of meat, the dough has to carry more of the argument.
The result is closer to the New York-Italian-American side of the restaurant than the soft Neapolitan bases dominating much of central London.
Pepperoni Passione Understands Excess Better
The Pepperoni Passione costs £18, topped with pepperoni, chilli, hot honey, tomato, mozzarella and Parmesan.
This is louder and more immediately gratifying.
Hot honey sweetens the chilli and cured meat, while tomato prevents the pizza from becoming entirely about fat.
One pizza shared alongside vodka pasta is a much better idea than ordering several heavy mains in parallel.
The VBR Is Pure Grasso
The VBR costs £19, with vodka sauce, burrata, rocket and Parmesan, plus £4 for Parma ham if you want to push it further.
It takes one of the restaurant’s defining sauces and moves it onto pizza.
Burrata adds richness, rocket gives peppery freshness and the vodka sauce keeps the whole thing recognisably Grasso.
This is less about pizza purity and more about understanding the restaurant’s house language.
Wine Pairings
Penne alla vodka: Frappato from Sicily — bright red fruit and light tannin suit tomato, cream and chilli.
Lamb ragù rigatoni: Nero d’Avola — darker fruit and spice sit naturally beside lamb and rosemary.
Chicken parm: Barbera d’Asti — acidity keeps tomato, fried chicken and mozzarella from becoming too heavy.
Grasso’s wine list covers Italian, organic and orange wines alongside more conventional reds and whites, while the beer taps include local London brewing.
Dessert Is a Family Affair
The dessert list is deliberately short: tiramisu £9.50 and New York cheesecake £9.50, both made in-house by the family.
The cheesecake is the more distinctive ending.
Baked New York style and served with blueberry compote, it fits the restaurant’s transatlantic identity better than another elaborate Italian dessert would.
The tiramisu, made with amaretto, is the softer route after a heavy meal.
Two desserts are enough when both belong to the story of the place.
Soho Suits Grasso Better Than a Quieter Neighbourhood Would
Dean Street gives the restaurant the right context.
The room can absorb a soundtrack of disco and soul, cocktails, large tables and food built around red sauce, cheese and fried edges without feeling excessive for the area.
Grasso also seats around 180 guests, so this is not an intimate little family trattoria despite the family-run structure.
That scale changes the mood, but not necessarily the identity.
The kitchen still feels rooted in a specific family idea rather than a generic Soho concept.
Service, Atmosphere and Value
Grasso opens Monday from 12:00 pm to 10:00 pm, Tuesday to Thursday until 10:30 pm, and Friday and Saturday until 11:00 pm; Sunday is closed.
The pricing is coherent with the format: £17 vodka pasta, £19 lamb ragù, £22 spaghetti and meatballs, £24 chicken parm and pizzas between £16 and £19.
That puts Grasso above casual pizza pricing but below more polished destination dining in Soho.
A particularly sensible order would be mozzarella sticks (£11), penne alla vodka (£17) and cheesecake (£9.50), bringing the food total to £37.50 before drinks.
The more important point is that Grasso is not trying to hide what you are paying for: generous portions, handmade sauces, long-fermented pizza dough and a very specific Italian-American style.
Useful Information
- Address: 81 Dean Street, Soho, London W1D 3SW
- Cuisine: Italian-American
- Owner: Seanie Grasso
- Family roots: Syracuse, Sicily, with later family history in New York and London
- Capacity: Around 180 guests
- Signature dishes: Mozzarella sticks, Mom’s Spaghetti, penne alla vodka, chicken parm and Pepperoni Passione
- Mom’s Spaghetti: £22
- Penne alla vodka: £17
- Lamb ragù rigatoni: £19
- Lobster linguine: £39
- Chicken parm: £24
- Cheese Pie: £16
- Pepperoni Passione: £18
- VBR pizza: £19
- Tiramisu: £9.50
- New York cheesecake: £9.50
- Pizza dough: 48-hour fermentation
- Gluten-free pasta: Available
- Gluten-free pizza bases: Available, but baked in the same oven as gluten-containing pizzas
- Vegan options: Available
- Halal chicken: Available
- Walk-ins: Accepted
- Reservations: Available
- Wheelchair access: Ground-floor dining and accessible toilet
- Payment: Card only
- Sunday: Closed
- Best for: Vodka pasta, chicken parm, pizza and unapologetic Italian-American comfort food in Soho
Our Rating of Grasso Soho
Food: 9/10
The menu has a clear identity and does not dilute its Italian-American point of view.
Starters: 9/10
Mozzarella sticks with ’nduja and honey immediately establish the restaurant’s tone.
Pasta: 9.2/10
Vodka sauce, meatballs and lamb ragù give this section both personality and range.
Pizza: 8.9/10
Forty-eight-hour dough brings enough structure to support the heavier toppings.
Chicken Parm: 9.1/10
One of the dishes that makes Grasso feel genuinely Italian-American rather than simply Italian with American references.
Desserts: 9/10
Only two, both tied directly to the family identity of the restaurant.
Drinks: 8.8/10
Cocktails, Italian wine and locally brewed beer fit the room naturally.
Service: 8.9/10
Informal and energetic, which is exactly what this format needs.
Atmosphere: 9.1/10
Disco, soul and red-sauce comfort food make more sense on Dean Street than they would almost anywhere else.
Value for Money: 8.9/10
Strongest around the £17–£24 core of the menu; lobster pushes the bill much higher.
Overall Rating: 9.1/10
