Antico Restaurant

Good food, good wine, and good times is a time-honoured way of life back in the bel paese, and it’s this ethos that is Antico Restaurant’s most important import – if you are passionate about la dolce vita and you’ve got a nose for authentic Italian hospitality and cuisine, the rest will follow. And followers this restaurant in Newcastle’s Jesmond certainly has. Set in elegant premises along Osbourne Road, Antico offers a peerless dining experience and a classically-structured menu of traditional and contemporary Italian dishes. And let’s not forget the wine – the cellars here are well-stocked with exclusively Italian wines and the waitstaff are happy to help you pair the perfect drop for a memorable meal.

Antico’s Osbourne Road restaurant is open for dinner Mondays and Tuesdays, a noon lunch sitting and dinner Wednesday to Saturday, and lunch and dinner both on Sunday. And listen up, because a great way to get to know this top-ranking Newcastle Italian restaurant is to take advantage of Antico’s early bird menu, available from noon to 2pm and 5pm to 6:30pm every day of the week. Head up to Jesmond, north of the city centre and catch this worm to be treated to antipasti, pasta, pizza and a selection of the restaurant’s house specials for an incredibly good price given the pedigree of the place.

Otherwise, Antico’s a la carte experience is superb. Eschewing the use of frozen meat or fish, making the most of local suppliers to keep things fresh, maturing Gran Reserva steaks for 27 days at the restaurant’s Jesmond location and offering traditional, Neapolitan-style pizza, Antico’s reputation is secure among the many Italian restaurants in Newcastle. What’s more, you’re encouraged to dine the italian way at Antico – slowly and indulgently, with friends, family, or someone special, savouring the care and effort put into every dish. Highlights are of course the house specials, with the gamberoni (king prawns), bistecca (sirloin steak), and the pollo alla Contadina (chicken breast wrapped in Parma ham, topped with goats’ cheese and oven-baked) unmissable options.