Benoli in Norwich - Phone Number, Reservations, Reviews

The food and service were excellent but a bit pricey.

Norfolk’s best Italian restaurant to date. Fresh ingredients cooked perfectly. A wonderful experience thank you.

The food is excellent as is the service. You know you're getting class food when the menu isn't crowded. But benoli is a special restaurant and I'll be back.

Refined meal with original dishes. Loved the attentive service. Found the Kiev delicious and original, brioche was light and airy and whipped butter fresh, burrata was too small a portion and a bit underwhelming. Courgette flower with ricotta incredible ! Place is beautiful but maybe lacks a bit of light.

Was thoroughly underwhelmed by the food here. It was overly complicated and I found that all the pastas just had too much going on at once.

Clearly elevating Italian food to a near gourmet level. Certainly the prices reflect that. As did the need to ask for explanations of uncommon Italian words on the menu. The only meal I recognised fully was carbonara Plus side The staff were bright friendly and smiley. And the food we had was unusual and it was good to experiment and I quite enjoyed what I had. Downside. The place lacked atmosphere or any connection with Italy and its cuisine. Music, art, photos? The chairs are particularly uncomfortable. Ultimately I left craving an Italian classic from the oven. Melanzane or Cannelloni for example

We had a delightful meal, wonderful food served quickly with very attentive wait staff. Highly recommend!

Sensational food. Hands down the best pasta we’ve had outside of Italy.

Amazing pasta dishes and the cannoli desert was unbelieveable!

It's the best Italian restaurant I have been to. Visited with my son and partner. Nice relaxed atmosphere, helped by the staff who are helpful and friendly. We had a selection of nibbles to start, followed by the pork collar ragu for 2 of us and a parmesan agnolloti. Had to follow with the panna-cotta which was wonderful. All the dishes were amazing, full of flavour and well presented. Sorry, no pics as we were too busy enjoying our food 🙂 Thoroughly recommend to visit. I'm sure you will return, we certainly will be.

Went for the first time to celebrate a birthday. Couldn't fault at all lovely service, food and atmosphere. They are happy to explain anything on the menu and are always happy to help.

Topping off a brilliant weekend in Norwich, we started our evening at Benoli with a single origin Prosecco, so good that we decided to order a bottle while we selected our starters. We chose antipasti of parmesan croquettes and, what seems to be the house speciality, the hake kiev - absolutely incredible. Probably the best thing we’ve tasted so far in 2024! We stuck to the pasta section of the main menu as Benoli is a specialist Italian restaurant after all. The pork collar ragu and agnolotti carbonara were our choices and boy were we happy with our decision. Everything we sampled was fresh, light but filling. Our sides hurt as we left but the stomach stretching pain was fully worth it for the pleasure it bought our tastebuds. Ollie the owner worked the floor and gave us an insight into each dish and even shared some of the recipes with us. The customer care was really well balanced between attentiveness while allowing intimacy. The layout of the restaurant worked well too, it was refreshing to be sat with space around us, not being crammed in like so many other establishments of the moment. We can highly recommend the food your only issue will be whittling it down, our solution was to share everything.

Outstanding food and plenty of it. Really good value and lovely staff, who were engaging and informative Lovely atmosphere too. Will also try their sister restaurant Bar Cerdita

A great little place! I’ve heard of its reputation from my friends and took a chance as a walk in! I loved the experience from start to finish. I believe my friend had the tortellini and I had the pork collar pasta dish. We finished with desserts, the tirama-choux and the pannacota. Hanna was our main server and another girl Alex? Both were great…the only negative…they don’t get to keep the cash tips! I, the customer don’t get to have a say who I give my money too. Great food never the less!

An exceptional evening. A very different twist on the 'usual' Italian restaurant. Loved the minimal menu but still difficult to choose. Staff were spot on with recommendations 👌. Hake starter was sublime... perfectly delicious. Mains had such depth of flavour.... dessert... what more can I say! Alex our server was very attentive, friendly and such a delight to meet. Could not recommend this place more..

Best restaurant in Norwich! And, the best pasta outside of Italy. Incredible service; the staff are welcoming and enthusiastic, the food is out of this world and we return time and time again. The blonde manager excels at customer service - she is 5* and explains each dish with such passion it's a pleasure to see. I can thoroughly recommend the brioche, croquettes, hake and nduja Kiev, carbonara and, the tiramachoux. They even surprised my Mum with a beautifully presented, birthday sorbet dessert! A must visit when you're in Norwich.

Best restaurant in Norwich. Food is so fresh, tasty and homly. Always leave there looking forward to go back! Only thing I would possibly change is adding a wider variety of cocktails.

As a well seasoned foodie both in England and abroad found this neat restaurant a pleasure to eat at. In a word outstanding, I had the lamb shoulder!! Sublime, if you enjoy eating good food made with care and the best ingredients put this place on your food map. OUTSTANDING

Great place, amazing service, super welcoming staff. I think it was expensive but great for a birthday treat! They even made the effort to write a birthday message on our pudding plate :) We were also late for reservation and they were so helpful and even gave us some extra time with the table. Antipasti was incredible definitely the highlight

Food tasted amazing and beautifully presented, definitely not your average Italian.

Best Italian food I’ve had outside Italy. Authentic dishes with a good modern twist, reasonable portions, amazing wine list, great service and good value for what you’re getting. Will absolutely be back.

The food at Benoli is undeniably very good - we had the courgette flower, hake Kiev and 2 pasta dishes. The dishes were thoughtfully put together and really enjoyable. However, the prices the restaurant is charging for relatively simple pasta dishes are crazy. £25 for a plate of pasta is really eye popping - especially for one that doesn’t even include meat. In central London at Michelin guide pasta places like Trullo or Padella you’d pay 12-£16 for a pasta dish. This isn’t about being stingy, as im happy to pay premium prices for good food, but pasta is inherently a cheap, pastoral comfort food. There’s no justification for it beyond high margins for the restaurant. Overall, we worked out that we paid £2 per minute we were sat in the restaurant (including £6 for precisely 5 olives). The service also wasn’t great - Our antipasti were served to us but we then waited 10 minutes for our wine, I had to ask if it had been forgotten. We also had to ask 3 times for espresso. This wouldn’t have been too much of a problem if the restaurant weren’t charging so much for its food. If you’re going to charge top class prices you should have the service level to back it up. Overall, the food is great but i don’t think I’ll be going back, you can get better value at similar restaurants in central London. Paying over the odds left a sour taste in the mouth.

Really really nice! A must place to visit in Norwich

Great place, been here every time I come to Norwich. Good food, interesting menu that changes and staff is lovely

Wow! I can't begin to tell you how amazing the food & service was. We were seated 2 flights of stairs up but wasn't disappointed. It soon filled up. The top was mainly couples of parties of 4. The next floor down parties of 4 & more. The staff were very attentive, across the way food arrived but 1 member of the party missing so the staff waited for their return! Amazing! We had our started and main course within 50 minutes! Not rushed, food was the best I've ever had! I recommend booking, as it filled so quick! 👌 This is the best Italian I have ever ate! Thank you Benoli for the experience 🙏

Booked this place 2 weeks before we visited Norwich, I always go through the reviews to find a nice place to eat. This place is amazing, they have a small menue which is perfect as the quality and speed of the food and service is amazing. We had the Garlic brioche & whipped garlic butter and Rosemary focaccia to share for start, both very nice and the garlic butter was excellent. Mains were Pork collar ragu, and Agnolotti carbonara, thes were recommended as the most popular and I can see why, not sure we will be finding an Italian restaurant any better than this. We booked for 7pm and the place fulled quickly afternoon I'd definitely recommend booking a table.

Great place. Super good Italian dishes. Service friendly and quick. Good selection of wine. Highly recommend. One of, if not, the best in Norwich.

Incredible food and great service.

We went to Benoli for my friend’s birthday meal which unfortunately was an average meal. Starters were good, other than the honey glazed bread which was brick hard. We couldn’t cut into it. Two of the main courses were a disaster. The cod course came with risotto and lobster bisque which was extremely salty. Looks like the food is not tasted by the chef before sending it out to the table. No dessert was vegetarian friendly and most of them had alcohol in them. I asked for a scoop of ice cream and was told it’s vanilla flavour but when tasted, it was their Gorgonzola ice cream! It tasted horrible and left a bad taste in the mouth. Again staff apologised on behalf of the chef. Service was okay but seemed a bit pushy at times. Looking at other people’s reviews; it looks like we had the same average experience. I don’t think I will be returning to this restaurant any time soon, not good value for money!!

We visited Benoli last night as a group of 10 and we ate in the private room. The waiters were great & there was a good balance of attentiveness and leaving us to chat and eat. The wine was nice (I tried both the rosé option and the Pinot Grigio) and I shared the garlic brioche and the parmesan croquettes with a friend, which were tasty “snacks” from the menu, costing around £7 each which I didn’t think was too bad. The antipasti dishes were around £14 each which seemed a little steep for the portion size. My main was a mushroom agnolotti which was tasty and rich but the pasta was a little bit hard for me and there was lots of sauce left in the bowl with nothing to mop it up! The tirami-choux dessert was delicious. The meal came to around £50 pp with drinks so a little more costly but we really liked the atmosphere - a great place for a special occasion.

My family I went here for my fourth birthday and it was exceptional. The minute we arrived I realised that it was over two floors and my parents couldn't walk up the stairs. They swiftly moved our table without question. We ordered food with help from the staff, who didn't make is feel unintelligent for not knowing the Italian foods. Then the food arrived. I can honestly say this is some of the best food I have ever eaten. We had three courses and every course was utterly delicious... And the wine was wonderful too! The bill came and we were pleasantly surprised - four people, three course and alcohol for under £200! A restaurant has to be special to visit again and I will most definitely be visiting here again soon.

I can cook better myself in all honesty and both our dishes were excessively salted. Boring dull and I will not visit again.

Stunning food, great menu, very attentive staff. Highlights for us were the Hake Kiev and Pork Collar Ragu. Oh, and also the Tirami-choux. In general I don't think you can go wrong with any dish on the menu! Only one star marked down for atmosphere, the decoration could do with a bit of an update on the floor we ate on (same level as toilets.)

Super thoughtful environment and music create a sublime atmosphere. The food was only rivaled by the excellent service

Divine. Already planning when I can go back.

Amazing food! Delicious! Friendly staff

We had lunch at Benoli's. We hadn't booked but we were welcomed and found a table. The food and service were very good. I would have given the food five stars but the portion of risotto I had was a little small although the favours were excellent.

Benoli is lovely - absolutely delicious food and excellent service from smiley staff. But they need to improve their vegan offer! There’s one choice for each course which is totally fine. The main (pasta) was faultfree and yummy. But the starter - of a courgette flower - was just deep fried and empty - why stuff the offer for a standard diner with ricotta and not stuff the vegan offer??? Pop some mushrooms in. Or vegan cheese. Disappointing! And the dessert was just a bit of rhubarb used as a topping on the standard pudding. Again such a shame. Pop a biccie with it. Or some sorbet. Not just a stem of chopped rhubarb. It needed contrast and substance. Hoping Benoli can sort their offer out for their vegan customers soon!

Yum, kudos to kitchen. Lovely staff. Will be returning. Pricey but absolutely worth eating here.

Food was absolutely exquisite. Service was 10/10. My partner is very fussy and said he loves everything about it. Will be returning!

Had a lovely lunch with friends, we were well looked after and not rushed. Food was delicious 😋

Exquisite food and very friendly service.

Superb food. Exquisite flavour. Pricey but worth it.

Our group had pre booked a table - they effortlessly handled it and we chose on the night - not needing to pre order - bonus. Lovely vibe and the food was very good - great tastes and some inventive twists. Staff were super friendly. I really liked the ciabatta - seemed crispy/sweet (something different) - never seen/tasted that before - outstanding. If they carry on like this they would surely get a Michelin star? Would come again.

honestly went a few years ago for our anniversary and it was the best Italian we’ve ever had. From memory we both had Pork Cheek and it was beautiful

Great experience. Delicious pasta with seasonal ingredients and great service. Glad we booked as it got really busy even though it was a Monday evening!

Kindly taken by generous friends, we had one of the best eating experiences ever. The food was absolutely sublime and the service friendly and efficient. We were very impressed that when asked about our wonderful dish, the waitress was fully up to speed on the recipe and did not need to give the usual reply of "let me go and ask the Chef." Brilliant! Unpretentious but superb!

My partner & I went for lunch today - absolutely outstanding. We shared a few starters and antipasti; anchovy & tomato crostini, Parmesan croquettes, beef carpaccio & hake Kiev - they were all amazing, the hake particularly stood out with phenomenal flavours. We then shared a bowl of pasta - Parmesan agnolotti, wild garlic & morels. We both agreed this is probably the best bowl of pasta we have ever eaten - and we’ve eaten a lot of pasta! Thankyou so much Sophie & Oli, absolutely phenomenal. Hope to be back back soon xx

The best Italian I’ve ever eaten! Service was very good and the food is incredible. Having been recommended this place by lots of friends we gave it our first try and we’ll definitely be returning.

Fantastic delicious food. Would thoroughly recommend a visit. You will not be disappointed with the food, customer service and the atmosphere

Very nice food, delicious. Amazing service. Food came out very quickly. 10~ minitue wait for both courses. Only complaint is i wish there was pictures for food / more descriptions for them.

All in all quite disappointing. Forgot to bring us cutlery. No guanciale in the guanciale carbonara, also covered in chives(quite sure they brought the wrong dish out although this was denied) no check backs during courses. Affogato had no ice cream left by time it reached the table. All the food was lovely however none of it lived up to the expectations set as "the best Italian in Norwich" Go to Yard for better pasta

Very impressed with everything here. The atmosphere, the staff and of course the food. All excellent and the perfect experience. Can't recommend it enough.

Third trip here and the food gets better and better. Now apparently in the Top 10 Italian restaurants in the UK. I haven’t been to a better one. The fabulous thing about here is it’s just so unassuming; delightful staff and simple decoration. But the food just blows you away. They are just really, really good at what they do. And- bearing in mind the standard- so reasonably priced. It’s a gem. When asked if everything was OK I was so tempted to say no. Because it wasn’t OK. It was wonderful.

Wow! Food was amazing, the textures and flavours were sublime. We tried quite a few things and loved them all; croquettes, garlic brioche, hake Kiev, sausage fritti, carbonara and pork collar ragu. Everything was bursting with flavour, service was excellent, attentive, friendly and always with a smile - thank you Oli. Might have been a nice touch for there to have been a complimentary chocolate or limoncello with the bill!! Great night, would highly recommend if you're looking for something a bit special.

Food was lovely but a couple more Vegan options would be great ☺️

Best meal I've had in any restaurant in Norwich. Service was good with friendly staff and we felt very at home. We tried a few antipasta dishes which were all excellent and the main dishes were all of an equally good quality.

This was the best meal I have had out in a long time and we eat out a couple times a week. We had 2 starters, 2 appetisers and a main and a dessert to share and it was all phenomenal. Can’t wait to come back.

Birthday celebration and the food was amazing, I think everyone in the party of six are in agreement. We were sat in the private dining areas which I would say at a squeeze could seat 8 and it was at no extra cost. I would say if you want an intimate family/friends evening ask if this is available it has a cozy feel and the lighting is lovely. I think between us we had just about everything on the snack,antipasti’s, main and desert menu. The food was delicious prepared with great care from start to finish, the service was such that you felt you were being really looked after. I wonderful evening from start to finish and will definitely be returning.

Delicious fresh psta - excellent food and very enjoyable evening. Would recommend. V lowkey and worth a visit. Staff v friendly

Starter was a bun with garlic butter £8 main Cod on a mush of unflavoured risotto £32 and desert disgusting £10, never again so disappointing

Great food, reasonable prices. Staff very nice! Will be back when back in town!

Worth booking, even on a Monday. Service good. An enjoyable experience. Great presentation of food. Ambience…different. 3 course, glass of wine, sparkling water & 2 coffees Would I go again….yes..when menu has changed, which it does frequently.

Fantastic quality food and service. The Hake Kiev anti pasta was absolutely delicious. Great vegetarian options. Not the most extensive menu but lovely flavours.

Slightly hidden, unprepossessing entrance, but a real gem. We didn't book but despite it being Saturday night, and a steady flow of customers, we squeezed on to a table at the front, and were thrilled we did so. On a long weekend of birthday meals and treats, my husband rated this dinner the best: he had delicious carbonara ravioli, and I had cod on crab risotto in a crab bisque. We could not have been looked after better, and the food was delicious. We'll be back.

I went here with my wife after receiving a voucher for Xmas. I can honestly say this is by far the best food I have eaten in Norwich (possibly ever). Such a lovely place situated in the centre of Norwich. The food and wine was absolutely incredible and so wad the service. The value for money was also amazing. To get that quality of food for the price we paid is unbelievable. Couldn't recommend this place higher. It is an absolute must try if you like Italian food. Thank you so much for a great meal and evening.

Excellent meal on a shopping trip to Norwich. Not cheap, but definitely a treat.

We had a wonderful lunch here. Delicious food, great service and the atmosphere was warm and friendly. A memorable meal for all good reasons!

Absolutely incredible meal, the desserts are a MUST

Had an excellent dinner for our anniversary. Would thoroughly recommend the garlic brioche, beef cheek mafadine and Clam Bucatini. Wine selection was excellent. Was served by Elliot who was eager to help and serve us quickly. Perfect for a fancy treat out and pasta was fresh and cooked to perfection.

Wow just wow !!! My wife and I traveled from Ipswich to Norwich for some shopping ect and we both fancied pasta,popped into this lovely place and was told the bar was the only seating left,long story short……the pasta we had was the best pasta we had ever tasted Ever !!!! It was so tasty and cooked perfectly ! Definitely going back for some more !!!

Benoli’s management have not responded to any email from me regarding their gift voucher policy and their complete in flexibility and good will to honour a £200 gift voucher 1 month over expiration date which was missed due to family bereavement. They have since deleted Facebook and tripadvisor reviews . The £200 has not disappeared into thin air its in their account and they have offered nothing for it . As a customer from their first year of trading and a business owner I find this extremely sharp practice shame on you.

Incredibly friendly staff. Chic/trendy atmosphere. Great food.

All brilliant as usual when we visit. 1 star off atmosphere only because it was a quiet lunchtime!!

My wife and visited your restaurant on Sat 24/2/24, whilst my wife was happy with the food that she ordered i was most disappointed with the food that i ordered one of the most expensive dishes on the menu, so i sent it back to have it replaced by an equally disappointing dish where the pasta was dry and ham in the dish was chewy and stringy then to top it all we were presented with an affogato which was stone cold come on guys!! i,ve eaten with you a few times now and your food is ok but this time it was not even ok and the prices with this standard are to high you put yourself as an Italian style food restaurant but i wonder whether you understand italian food which i believe if done correctly is some of the best on the planet yours definitely is not in this category i,m afraid on my experience i will take a lot of persuading to return.

A memorable meal. Excellent friendly service and quite the best cooking we’ve had in a long time. Every dish was delicious. Not cheap but good value for what we had.

When the menu is limited you know it’s a quality restaurant. And so it proved to be. From the initial greeting to leaving this proved a great experience. The staff were friendly, confident and helpful. The food was simply superb. Home made pasta with black truffle followed a terrific take on chicken Milanese as an entree- crisp shell, succulent chicken. The finale was Gorgonzola ice cream, yes I know what you’re thinking but even the staff sang its praises and rightly so. Fantastic experience, go!

Fantastic food and a really lovely vibe. The staff were incredibly friendly and welcoming. It was a real pleasure to dine here. Thanks to our daughter and her partner for the gift.

Was really looking forward to eating her but was disappointed. Firstly, turn some lights on! It was so dark in there you could barely see your food. Also, I think it is supposed to be fine dining so cutlery in a pot didn't really reflect...

Second visit to Benoli and it didn’t disappoint, lovely sophisticated decor, a menu that makes choosing difficult, and lovely friendly, professional staff. Started with snacks of anchovies, focaccia, and amazing croquettes. Starters of chicken Milanese and the beef carpaccio, followed by truffle pasta & clam...

Imaginative take on Italian cuisine. Fresh, different and utterly delicious.

The food is excellent and the menu is kept simple and fresh, with seasonal ingredients that are allowed to stand out with quality cooking and complementary accoutrements. What stands out beyond the food (and drink!) is the fabulous and attentive but not overbearing service. Oli...

Consistently amazing food, varied menu and good selection of delicious cocktails. Great service, smiley attentive staff. An absolute must if you are in Norwich.

Amazing service, amazing food! We were served by olly did an amazing description of the menu, definitely made the evening!!

Quite expensive for an ok experience. We went to celebrate valentines as my wife has been quite poorly recently. We decided to see what an evening menu and experience is like after once visiting for lunch . We thought the lunch was nice last time...

It’s a nice restaurant without the typical Italian atmosphere you would expect. It’s rather a bistrot. The wine list doesn’t look great but the food is ok as well as the service. A bit priced.

Went to this beautifully decorated restaurant for the first time yesterday for lunch. Fantastic three course meal…a taste sensation!

Really lovely meal at Benoli for the third time. Special mention to Sophie who was our waitress who was excellent!

It's not often that I get genuinely blown away by the quality of the food here but this place is a real gem. Probably the best Italian food I have had outside Italy and certainly the best pasta. The service is relaxed and informal- fine...

Benoli is incredible. We loved this little treat. The staff are very helpful and knowledgeable of the food they are serving. It’s fresh and romantic setting offers a wonderful dining experience. The dishes are a masterpiece of perfection. We tried many dishes but settled on a favourite: the garlic brioche with rosemary butter. Absolutely beautiful. We have a few more to try and then we will have a go on the desserts menu. Thank you

We went to Benoli's to celebrate my twentieth anniversary since having a liver transplant. This was our first meal at this restaurant and what a meal it was! From the 'starter snacks', through the antipasti and then pasta courses to the dolce, every part was...

Absolutely wonderful! Incredible service and delicious food ✨

Benoli is easily one of the best restaurants in Norwich but our lunch yesterday was not great so I’ve deleted my previous review. Our first two courses were pleasant but the Milanese was dry, the chicken needed seasoning. However our pasta dishes were far too rich, too buttery and greasy. I had the Bucatini with clams - I was expecting something that was light and flavoursome but I got a very oily, heavy bowl of pasta. I couldn’t taste the clams, parsley, garlic or chilli. There was so much butter I picked the clams out and left the pasta. I did tell the waitress that my food wasn’t great. My husband’s Agnolotti carbonara was very rich and again the sauce was very greasy and heavy - I’m amazed he finished it. Neither of us fancied a pudding because we felt so bilious - eating very greasy, heavy, oily food never sits well in my tummy. I really should give Benoli 2 stars but the service was good and our other two courses were OK but paying £110 hurts when you weren’t able to eat one of your courses.

The waiters were very helpful, atmosphere good. My clam pasta dish had far to much oil on it, so did the salad the pasta was far too al dente. I have family in Italy and I think the dish I had would not be served...

I was very impressed by Benoli! I had amazing agnolotti with truffles from Umbria, were I lived for a year in the past which was an impressive coincidence as the menu is short (in my opinion that's a very good sign of quality). I cannot fault the food, what a delic'. The atmosphere is great, very intimate. The staff is amazing, with a special attention for my birthday which was so kind! A really recommended place on my tops in Norwich for sure 😋thanks to the staff for making it special 🥰

Easily the best meal I’ve had in Norwich for years. The staff are incredibly polite, helpful, and friendly and the food was just sublime. Couldn’t recommend this place enough!

Amazing, would highly recommend

I have been trying to book here for a while, but always no availability due I presume to popularity. So was looking forward to eventually dining here. My husband and I both agreed the following: Service was 100%, very attentive, friendly. The food we ordered...

First class from start to finish! Staff could not have been more considerate and service was excellent. A special family occasion was made extra special.

Lovely food, certainly the best Italian in Norwich. I do think they should have tiramisu on the menu full time though!