Ballaro in Richmond upon Thames

Ballarò is now closed. This location is now Ristorante Sorrento

I love this place, and they have needed to support delivery services, but this has impacted quality. We have received cold pizza the last 4 or 5 times.

Terrible service; started cleaning my table when I was finishing my meal. Dined there twice and encountered same attitude. Portions are small, but the food is good. No atmosphere in the place. Better to choose something else, there are other options in the area.

Delicious pasta dishes, especially the tonnarelli with king prawns and pistachios. Desserts were amazing. All food freshly prepared (I would assume). Presentation, especially of the desserts, was great. Pizzas looked great (wood oven). Tap water was brought to the table, but a nice touch would be for it to be cold. Also maybe offer bread for those Italians wishing to indulge in a scarpetta. It would be a crime to leave the remaining delicious sauces in the pot! 😁. I'll definitely visit again. Well done.

Popped in on an off-chance on the way back from Twickenham Stadium. It finished off our day perfectly tbh. They were able to accommodate us even though they were fully booked (they had a table free for an hour). The pizzas were delicious and the staff were friendly. My wife is dairy free and my sister-in-law vegetarian. They had options for both, no problem. No point needlessly giving less stars than they deserve, we enjoyed our time there. 🙂

WE HAVE LITERALLY JUST COME BACK FROM BALLARO, AFTER A FANTASTIC FATHERS DAY LUNCH......WE HAVE BEEN BEFORE , BUT THAT WAS SOME TIME AGO, AND , LUCKILY FOR US, THE STANDARD OF FOOD AND SERVICE HAS NOT SLIPPED AT ALL.... ARANCINE, INVOLTINI, GARLIC BREAD, PIZZA, PASTA....ALL EXCELLENT, AND SERVED WITH A SMILING FACE.... I RECOMMEND....HIGHLY......

recommended by the owner of a large Sicilian company I ordered fried fish and at 17.99 a very small portion arrived with some fried vegetables and a very small squid. I felt scammed. I work with the Richmond Council and I report what happened to anyone of duty

Exquisite service and food. Thanks to Smita for a very warm welcome.

Beautiful pizza place with authentic Italian vibes. The staff was immediately welcoming and helpful, making a table available despite short notice and the fact that we needed the space for a stroller. Their pizza menu is really comprehensive, so we picked a Bufalina, a Pistacchiosa, a Burratina, and a Casereccia. Useless to say that for 4 people, we might have exaggerated a bit... but it was well worth it! It's just a shame that we had no space left for the desserts, as they looked excellent. The prices are also very honest. Definitely recommended.

The best pizza around. Ballaro is always a great choice for a weekday meal or birthday celebration. Delightful pizzas and pastas. My most recent visit for a birthday they were so accommodating and sang happy birthday. Vegan pizza available too!

Best italian restaurant in Twickenham

Good food and nice environment!

Excellent all round; food and service. Definitely amongst the best Pizza available in Twickenham!

Decent Italian, can get busy though.

Visited Ballaro for dinner with my mum. I ordered the Diavola Pizza which was amazing. However mum’s vegan La Vegana pizza was the most disgusting vegan pizza I have ever tried. Blobs of unmelted cheese and vegetables just thrown onto the pizza with no care leaving it soggy and just a mess. Have to say service great and they didn’t charge us for the vegan pizza.

Fantastic food and very genuine, friendly service. My daughters love the fish- shaped pizzas. More menu options for gluten-free guests would be most welcome.

It was a lovely meal. Great food, and having forgotten the name of the vegetable side dish it was very authentic according to my chief taster! The special gin and lemon tonic was good too. Thoroughly recommend to everyone.

This place does really good pizza, ingredients were all full of flavour, service was good, good value for good food

Great food, amazing taste and freshness. Recommend the duck Ragu.

Really great pizza 🍕 still warm delivery and really well presented bruschetta

Had takeaway pizzas, capricciosa, picantina. Both excellent, thin crust, good quality toppings, very good dough. Friendly staff. Pickup in person or via the usual 3rd parties.

Visited Ballaro for the first time recently. My wife and I had the great value 2 course lunch menu. Both had pizza for the main and it was cooked perfectly. The staff were friendly and ensured we could take our time and linger over lunch and drinks. Really enjoyed lunch at Ballaro👍

Went saturday at 5:30 & it was super packed! Amazing food & atmosphere. We travelled to this neighborhood specifically for the food and were so glad we did. 🤤

Highly recommended for those who like REAL italian food. Great food and atmosphere. You can feel that whoever is running the business know what they are doing. British restaurant owners should learn from italians how to serve food and do customer service. Will definitely be comming back.

Ballaro is the best Italian in the Twickenham area. We have been many times. The pizzas are particularly good and the staff are extremely welcoming. In summary, a family friendly local restaurant serving food of the highest standard.

We have been here a few times after rugby games, it is good food and decent service, not cheap but good value. It has an in and out feel about it for sure, no thinking about what you want or pausing between courses - quick turnaround. Good food though. Had pizza and pasta (2 different people).

Pizza and starters are very good. We had a pasta and it was disappointing.

I ordered food for delivery so the review is for the food only. I ordered la vegana pizza - it was a good size with lots of toppings. It tasted nice but it wasn't amazing. Unfortunately, the pizza was quite wet - possibly from the sauteed greens, or from the olives, sundried tomatoes and artichoke pieces not being drained properly. It was quite difficult to cut/eat and went cold very quickly because of how sloppy it was. I had been looking forward to eating here but there are better pizza places nearby

A very nice Italian restaurant in the centre of Twickenham. Some of the dishes were unusual, but very tasty. A great place to meet up with friends

If you want quality Italian food; you'd get it from Italians, right? Of course you would, and right here is exactly where you should start. Amazing friendly service with a personal touch. Cracking tasty food and excellent menu choices. Absolutely loved it.

The food quality and services are top-class. You should try it once. I'll visit this restaurant over again!!

The food here was excellent and the service was great too. The only (small) criticism would be that the lighting is too bright but that's just being pedantic. The pizza is cooked on the lightest homemade base and you can taste the quality of the ingredients they use right down to the delicious tomato sauce. I will definitely be coming back to try the pasts dishes and other delights. Update Sept 2023 the food was still excellent and the service superb

Amazing pizza! Excellent quality food ! Thank you and will definitely be back x

Amazing pizzas and that's all you need to know. Service was okay as they seemed very busy and possibly a bit understaffed.

We’ve just ordered from Ballaro and we are so disappointed with what we have received. I’ve been to their restaurant a few times and have always had great food but unfortunately this was not acceptable. We ordered a couple of expensive main dishes which were very very small when they arrived. A £17.99 main portion of calamari and fried zucchini was starter size (see photo posted). It’s sad that companies do this when you order out as they loose loyal customers. We won’t be going back.

Il miglior ristorante Siciliano di Twickenham e dintorni che conosca. Ottima la qualità ed il servizio 👍🏻

A gem of a place. Food, and the service was excellent. Portions are large. We will be back!

I had been recommended to visit this restaurant in Twickenham and decided to make a booking prior to going to a rugby match. Having guaranteed the booking with my credit card (perfectly reasonable as so many do not honour their reservations). I was a few minutes early, and was told the table was not ready in spite of it being clear there were several vacant. We were shown to one of the tables rather reluctantly. An order of two rib-eye steaks and two beers was made. The drinks arrived promptly. One steak was delivered a while later - we asked why there was only one and it was clear that an error had been made. The disappointment was compounded by what was presented to me! As you will see from my many reviews, I seldom include a picture of my food, but on this occasion I feel it will allow you to judge if my comments are fair. The steak was poor, and the salad devoid of dressing - this dish is priced at over £25. I was given some olive oil, balsamic and salt. I did enquire if there were to be any chips, and was asked if I had read the menu, as they could be provided at extra cost. I politely refused. By now, my friends steak had arrived presented in the same manner. Bizarrely, having refused the chips, two portions arrived when we had almost eaten the steak. We enquired again if these were at extra charge, and refused them when this was confirmed. The bill was paid minus service - this appeared to be a surprise for the gentleman who appeared to be the manager of the restaurant. I can only suggest that you consider very carefully patronising this establishment as there are so many others in the Twickenham area which are so much better. I truly regret my booking (which was “cancelled”later in the evening) presumably in an attempt to stop me writing a review. Poor overpriced food - I will never return and would suggest you don’t take the risk of booking in future.

I visited Ballarò on Saturday the 12th of August for lunch at 14.15 with my son-in-law and 8 year old grandson, prior to watching England v Wales. When we arrived, I requested a table for three away from the door, only to be told that it was not possible to move one chair to an alternative table set for two. Also that these tables had already been booked, even though they were not marked reserved and were still empty when we left. Next we discovered that we could only have a set "Rugby Day" three course set menu for £60. A children's menu was not available, nor was the À la Carte. We were given a shrug of indifference and told we could share the adult selections with my grandson! When I booked for lunch, there was no mention of a "Rugby Day" set menu being the only option. Some may at this point be wondering why I simply just didn't cancel and lunch elsewhere. Well any cancellations up to 24 hours before the booking, incur a £25/head charge. As for the food? Having spent time in Sicily, let's just say that I can appreciate good, authentic Sicilian cuisine when I get it! Finally, the day after having lunched at this establishment, I received an email informing me that the restaurant had cancelled my booking! Something another guest/ reviewer experienced. The website for this restaurant needs to make absolutely, crystal clear, that on rugby days, there is no option for anything else other than "The Rugby Day" set menu for £60. Also "the shrug of the shoulders" attitude needs to go.

Antipasti ottimi ma la pasta deludente, stracotta di quale abbiamo mangiato due fili e lasciata………..

I was craving a pizza so thought I’d try this out as it was the most easiest to get to! It wasn’t that busy when I walked in but it did soon get busy. It seems that they have a staffing problem as only two people and when I asked the waitress about it being short staffed she said it was “normal “ they looked rushed off their feet. Anyway I had a couple of glasses of Prosecco and the Burratina pizza. Pizza was average the ingredients didn’t seem as flavourful. So I was a bit disappointed. Service was slow but that’s because it was understaffed, having said that when I was served it was friendly. It is expensive for what it is. So unfortunately won’t be returning.

A delicious Sicilian meal with excellent home made pasta and delicious rabbit ragu. The smoked burata was very good. Very friendly and professional service with smiles.

Thought we give this restaurant a try as we heard about it and being a Sicilian/Italian restaurant, why not! We had an aubergine fried with mozzarella as a starter which was just OK but for over £10, quite expensive for four tiny pieces! For our main I had the seafood spaghetti which could have done with more seafood and disappointed at the tiny quid rings and I mean tiny! This could have been served with a little more sauce as it was more on the dry side. My partner had the seafood risotto which she said was OK but found the stock used for the risotto strong so unfortunately she could not finish her dish. Would we go back?....Ummm unfortunately didn't get the Italian/Sicilian feel or food but if we do go back we would try the pizza's that other people have been giving positive reviews about and hope that it will be better than your local Dominos!

Amazing as always. Really good quality food, good service and value. Third time we have been here and doesn't disappoint. Quite exceptional.

Pizza was okay, a bit boring. The dough was nice but feel toppings could have had more flavour and it was under seasoned. £7.50 for a pint of peroni is a very high price for the area - even in central London that is considered overpriced. Service was attentive and friendly. I don’t think I would come back thiugh

First visit tonight. Friendly efficient service. Fabulous food. Pizzas looked good but I chose the mixed grilled fish with salad. Excellent. Very interesting and unusual pasta dishes on offer. We will definitely go back.

We came across this recently and for a normal Italian in Twickenham it is amazing. Really good food - pasta dishes you don't see in other places and really good service. Mains £16/17/£18. Desserts £7.50.

O Mama Mia! Thank you lovely people fir such a lovely service. Special thanks for Gino! For making a teramisu cake for my mother's birthday. We enjoyed it so so much 💖 Thank you 😊 We also had an opportunity to cook our own steak tonight. 😋 Very happy to have such a place as a local restaurant.

Pretty average experience all round but with very friendly waiting staff. We went on Valentines Day, first they had a set menu which we didn’t mind but the issue was that the stuff weren’t all aware of what was being offered which lead to us having to ask for the cocktail to start (which was part of the set menu) but our waiter had to see the menu to find out what we were talking about . We also waited a while for our order to be taken and then for plates to be cleared away after each course. We were in the restaurant for an hour and 15 minutes with our empty starter plates sat in front of us and no sign of a main course appearing. They forgot our chips with the steak that we ordered and we had to ask 2 different members of staff to get these for us I think perhaps our error was not ordering pizzas as these seem to receive high praise and coming on Valentines Day as maybe they were busier than usual. Either way the staff were lovely but there are many better Italian places in the area.

Best Italian restaurant in Twickenham!

excellent food and service, the cannolo siciliano was exquisite!

An excellent Sicilian meal. Great food great wine and service.

Absolutely amazing pizzas and starters. I haven't tried other items in the menu but will definitely do that next time.

Amazing place with tasty and exquisit food and wines, friendly staff, lovely ambiance! Love it, I recommend it with all my trust!!!

Great pizza, serving. Cool place!

So fortunate to have this great Sicilian restaurant so close to home: perfect pizzas (and a good range of them); small but balanced range of starters and main courses; perfect ice cream; some really decent wines - house red frappato as good as many wines twice the price. Really nice staff and service too..

The food was amazing and the staff were very welcoming. My partner & I have agreed we will be visiting again soon!

Decent pizza but whole experience ruined by all the extras at the end. £1.50 for chilli's on a pizza, 2.50 for pepperoni in a kids pizza, £2 for mozzarella on garlic bread and a couple of others. Surprised to see the black pepper didn't make the bill. Won't be returning.

Food was very nice but the restaurant was a bit cold

Great restaurant although we had quick meal b4 the rugby.....

Great food at this Sicilian restaurant, the seafood is especially good.

We had our Christmas party here and the staff were excellent and the food was great

Great restaurant with pure Italian cuisine in Twickenham. I strongly recommend to visit and try what the Sicilian food has to offer.

Really good Pizza!! Better to have it at the restaurant than takeaway.

Great neighbourhood Sicilian Restaurant. Home made pasta and thin crust pizza

Good but limited range of sourdough pizzas. No other Italian delights. The desserts are tiny.

Managed to get in after a sold-out rugby game on Halloween. Excellent mixed starter and the pizzas were superb. Great friendly service too. We'll be back !

The absolute best place for authentic Italian wood fire pizza. Has a wide selection of wines and drinks. Owner is friendly and has a vast passion for exotic plants.

Very good welcoming Italian restaurant with a focus on regional Sicilian dishes. We had walked past Ballarò many a time tempted by the smell of fresh pizza and finally decided to pay a visit. We have eaten our fair share of Italian food both in London and Italy and this was very good indeed. We had a calzone and the Fritto misto (fried King prawns, whitebait, squid). The calzone was perfectly cooked with a chewy base and full of cheese, mushrooms and tomato. The fritto misto was fresh and tasty with the artichokes a nice addition. For dessert we had a pana cotta and tiramasu both of which were well balanced and just as they should be. The service was attentive and we'll be sure to visit again.

Had a very pleasant dinner at Ballarò last night. Really enjoyed the food. Excellent starters especially the calamari and zucchini fritti. Pizze were very good. Friendly staff. I like the fact they were wearing masks - shows they care for their customers. The restaurant has a nice family atmosphere. Recommended!

Excellent food, generous helpings top-notch service

This place is worth a visit. They have large portions for convenient prices. Constantly well kept and with awesome character. Would recommend to others.

Fantastic and authentic Sicilian cuisine. Highly recommended in the area. Honestly the best menu selections in Surrey. Kids menu was also a good giggle

**Edit** I have since been in contact with the store manager Boris, he was absolutely lovely and apologised for our order, he has advised we would receive a store credit that I'm absolutely excited to use and visit in person, first family dinner out as 4. Thank you again Ballaro and Boris for all assistance in this matter and I will definitely be recommending Ballaro to others 😊 Review :Just got our deliveroo order, we decided to give the place a go because we had heard great thing about the restaurant.. Wish we never did, food is cold, aracini balls were dry and no bolognese sauce, garlic bread is so burnt it is unedible.. Calzone is empty and cold, capricciosa soggy and cold.. Could have saved the £40 and gone to domino's at least it would have been warm.

I call this superb place many times since I love the good air that is outline this restaurant. The personel is extremely attentive and professional. The service is remarkablywonderfully efficient. Needless to say, the food they cook is great. I frequent many times and I was always happy. The expense is honest. I suggest this restaurant to my friends and family.

Buonissimoooo.Era tanto che a Londra non mangiavamo come si deve.Sapori eccezionali e freschi.L'antipasto di pesce è favoloso per non parlare della grigliata di pesce. Il mio primo? Meraviglioso.Pasta al sugo di polipo e bottarga. La mousse di ricotta con pistacchio e la fine del mondo. Ci torneremo di sicuro.Gentile e dolcissima la cameriera Nimshi.

As a walk in we didn’t have a reservation, but thankfully a table was available outside as guests were just leaving. Covid safe and menu was on the table (as a table mat) which was perfect for us. We had heard the pizza were good, so after ordering drinks we decided on which pizza to have from the varied and unique choices available.Pizza was very very good. Sour dough style, delicious and good topping combinations.Let down was sadly the staff, who themselves were good, but only 2 staff to cover 12 occupied tables seems a lot and both girls were run off their feed making drinks, taking orders and serving food as well as seeing to the constant flow of delivery drivers collecting orders. Overall am enjoyable relaxed dining experience, and we will return.

Great atmosphere - loved the food and service was excellent

The pizza here was excellent! I had a vegetarian starter of stuffed artichokes but this tasted quite bland and I probably wouldn't get this next time.

This was my first visit to Ballarò. This restaurant has a lovely interior with big folding doors creating a nice continental feel. I had the Frito Misto which was really nice 👌 The waiting staff were lovely and attentive. Would've given 5 stars however there were a couple of things that lacked a little attention to detail, my expectations perhaps? Fizzy water served without ice and a slice of lemon, delicious sounding cocktails advertised on a little menu, conjuring up an image in my head of sparklers, umbrellas, fruit etc...bit tacky perhaps? A bit too Del Boy?! Lol! Other than that, lovely place to go and do recommend 😊

Delicious Italian food and excellent service. The atmosphere is also quite nice. Would definitely recommend it and would definitely visit again.

Excellent Scilian restaurant with lovely, friendly staff and wonderful food. We tried the pizza with a soft smoked cheese, Italian sausage and pistachio nuts, it was delicious!

We've lived in Twickenham for years and never looked at Ballaro' until, during the lock down, we tried its pizza through a take away service and loved it.Cooked up to perfection, really good and light dough and high quality of ingredients.Now we go to the place quite often and with its overall consistency has not let us down once so far.Furthermore, you get a good selection of wines, nice ambience and a very friendly, attentive, unobtrusive service by the owner and his staff.They always make us feel at home.Special mention to Jessica (I hope I spelled it correctly)!

Loved the calamari and the blood orange sorbet was to die for

Really tastey T bone steak, though perhaps slightly pricey. We did eat close to kitchen closing, so it did feel a little pushed to eat and leave, soon after main meal finished the bill arrived on the table, no question of desert, not that we needed it. Cubicle in one of the ladies loos didn't lock, but all clean and tidy.

I eat the pizza way too quickly in this place. Thank you and we will be back soon for your cool Mediterranean vibes

We decided to dine out tonight impromptu, we were greeted and sat dispute not having a booking. The service from Jessica and her colleagues was outstanding and the food was INCREDIBLE, we had two Bufalina pizza and they came out within 5 minutes!! They were so good, the wine was lovely and the overall experience was excellent! Will be returning!

I can't fault this restaurant. The staff are professional, attentive, friendly and just generally everything you want from a service perspective. The food itself is exceptional and I've never been disappointed. Why you would go to anywhere like pizza express/dominoes and pay more for garbage pizza is beyond me. Try this place and you won't be disappointed.

Perfect!!! Very happy and will definitely recommend it!!! Thank you.

Lovely restaurant, friendly staff, relaxed atmosphere and delicious pizza and pasta 😊

Booked for 60th Birthday meal, have to say we were disappointedMenu was quite minited we felt and we reqauested a modified dish which they could not make for some reason even though it was just a few differences.Service was poor and we felt isolated at the back of the restaurantFood was reasonable quality but not as fantastic as some of the reviews would suggestOne of our party of 4 received their meal ahead of everyone else as they wanted starters for main meal whioch we explained.Underwhelmed by the experience

Amazing pizza. We ordered 3 pizzas yesterday and we couldn't be more delighted. Perfect dough and delicious fresh ingredients. I definitely recommend it!

Only ordered pizza via Deliveroo (not our preferred method) and must say we were delighted. Tasty Neapolitan pizza. Not stodgy at all. Will definitely order again and will try and go direct. Definitely recommended.

Had a fantastic experience in this spot with my girlfriend. The food arrives quickly and the customer service is just good. Prices are fair.

They offer an awesome range of fresh food. I enjoyed dining here. The employees are always friendly, pricing is affordable and the place is always well organised.

We're regulars here both during lockdown as a takeaway or before that eating in. Our favourite Italian in Twickenham!

Been having Ballarò for a few months now and can honestly say we are loving it,

We found this place because Masaniello was closed (9pm), and what a great surprise!!! I would recommend this place, eyes closed!!

We often come for takeaway, but finally able to eat in given the lockdown restrictions. It's consistently good every time and always freshly prepared. Service is relaxed but attentive, always friendly. Really can't beat the price, most pizzas between £10 to £12, desserts all under £5. They really could charge more because it is always great. Cosy atmosphere that you can't get in a chain. Couldn't recommend more.

I eat in this spot a lot since I work close by. I got to say their service is always excellent and they keep the spot neat at all times. Pricing is affordable and they serve generous portions.