Di Napoli is the kind of Italian restaurant you’d expect to find in some of the slicker parts of Birmingham city centre, like the quieter squares near Brindley Place or even The Mailbox.
So the fact that it is in Oldbury makes it almost off the beaten track - a decidedly ironic description for somewhere barely 30 metres from one of the Black Country’s busiest motorways.
But if your eyes are on the traffic of Wolverhampton Road you could easily miss the place, or you just might not be expecting to find a one-off modern Italian restaurant nestling on an upscale retail park.
Walk through Di Napoli’s doors, however, and you’ll be in no doubt that you’re somewhere sumptuous that is about to feed you very well indeed.
Pacifico Sanzari is one of the partners in the restaurant, which opened late last year, and runs it day-to-day.
The former head chef at Wythall’s Portway Restaurant brings with him a 20-year culinary career - and a family history to boot.
“Despite the name of the restaurant, we have dishes from all across Italy, and we aim to be somewhere people could eat every day and find something new,” he said.
“We sell lots of fish, with sea bass and scallops being particularly popular, and anything different that catches our eye at the market in the morning stands a good chance of becoming a special for the day.”
When our party of six arrived for a recent feast, a posse of North American businessmen were making their choices from a table next to Di Napoli’s huge windows, which run the length of the restaurant.
We ordered one of pretty much every single starter on the restaurant’s menu, with the £2.95 cured ham selection and same-price bruschetta con pomodoro going down particularly well with a glass of house red.
The white-wine drinkers, meanwhile were equally pleased with the £3.95 coppa di gamberetti prawn cocktail and smoked salmon. The deep fried squid was a hit.
Pacifico had been keen for us all to try the house special panzarotti piacentini, addictively tasty crepes filled with spinach and rich cheese and topped with tomato sauce.
And when we did, we could see why. The melty confection is a testament to indulgence and precisely what you want as part of an Italian feast.
Former colleague Dave spoke highly of his £10.50 pollo delizia, chicken breast cooked with mushroom, cream and brandy sauce which went very well with the perfect side orders of chips and deep-fried courgette that we had with all of our meals.
As a brief - and self-deluding - nod in the direction of healthiness, we also shared a couple of £3.25 rocket salads, served with parmesan flakes and an olive oil and lemon dressing.
The lasagne bolognese, and vegetarian equivalent with aubergine, melenzane parmigiana, also went down a storm.
Dessert was unnecessary but couldn’t be missed and resulted in us trying a selection from the dedicated menu, on which everything is £3.75. I have nothing but praise for my torta amaretto, and my dining partners reacted with unanimous eye-popping delight to their choices, which included a house speciality tiramisu, strawberry cheesecake, tartufo limoncello lemon sorbet, white profiteroles, and torta selva nera.
Our indulgences were not reflected in the price tag, which came in at around the £20 a head mark, including drinks, which we considered very reasonable.
When we all left we were not only full of fine food, but also full of praise for Di Napoli.
Many new restaurants fail to make it through their first couple of years, but anyone who visits Pacifico’s establishment is left with the impression that it will be around for a long, long time to come.
Di Napoli is open for lunch from 12-2pm Monday to Friday and for dinner from 6-10pm Monday to Saturday.
Phoning ahead to reserve a table is always wise and especially so towards the weekend. It also holds regular live music gourmet nights, when a £25 five-course fixed menu is served.
By JIM DUNTON
ADDRESS
Di Napoli, 870A Wolverhampton Road, Oldbury
Tel: 0121 5449238
15 Comments
An exceptional Italian oasis in a desert of industrial sand
My family have used Di Napoli since it actually started and recently decided to organise a surprise party for my wife’s 60th birthday.With Pacifico’s help the night was magic,11 people ordering all different starters and main course dishes from fish to steaks.The food was fantastic the comany great,live music singing the place was really alive.
A wonderfull dining experience as a young couple i felt welcomed and well catered for by this wonderfull resturant. hopefully di napoli will go from strength to strength and earn the distinction it so rightfully deserves.
Would love to visit but can never get through on phone to book……absolute classic
The service, cuisine and welcome has been consistent each time i have visited Di Napoli. Great atmosphere, exudes elegance and style. This place is a gem.
Visited this restaurant at the beginning of Oct (07) and was VERY impressed. I was with a party of 4 people choosing a variety of starters and main meals, all of which were favourably received. We love our food and try a variety of restaurants, expensive and less expensive and we were not disappointed.
I’m not one of those people who enters a restaurant, ‘announcing’ myself and calling the waiters by their first name just to get good service (so they think!), you know the type of person I’m talking about!! However, the jewel in this crown has to be the level of customer service; by the time we left we all felt like part of the family, you couldn’t help but feel that way (in a good sense, not overpowering). All in all, excellent food/wine and absolutely super super service..will definitely be going back in the near future.
We have been to Di Napoli about four or five time with friends & each time the meal was great & the staff made us feel very special would recomend to anyone,looking forward to our next visit
I have been many times to Di Napoli especially the Italian Evening’s, taking family and friends. The atmospher is wonderful and have always had great fun there is always such variety in Menu’s and the staff always make us feel really special
Wonderful place indeed! I once went there for dinner and very much enjoyed the two Spanish guitar players…very classy. Unfortunately I never saw them again though. Anyway, I definitely recommend this restaurant.
I have visited DI Napoli with family and friends several times
the food is exceptional, the place is smart, lovely and clean and the staff are very friendly. They are genuinely passionate about cooking. When visiting the restaurant I think you have an experience. The music and singing make a great atmosphere.
BRILLANT TO HAVE A GOOD RESTAURANT IN SANDWELL FOR A CHANGE!
My first visit was four weeks ago. We were celebrating a friends 50th. We had a great evening. The food and service was fantastic and the atmosphere was wonderful. No live music on our night and that was my only dissapointment. I will definitely be going again and would recommend Di Napoli to all my friends and family.
I visited the resteraunt with my friends and family,last week and i found the food very good and the service excellent. Also the traditional Italian theme for the resteraunt was very pleasing and i would recomend this place to anyone.
what a wonderfull italian restaurant, the food was the best ive ever had the service the staff were just fantastic,they made me and my partner feel special,i will be visiting this restaurant on regular basis, thanks to all the staff,.
we like it. we love it.
italian.
i went to eat at the restaurant last weekend the food was very good but the manager (john) was not very frendley at all