It is now tradition in our marriage to celebrate each anniversary with a commemorative gift and a special dinner. For the fifth anniversary, wood is recommended. Etsy has really wonderful options but if you can’t find anything that suits you there then check out Not on the High Street. I found a cute, wooden frame which comes with sculpted pieces to represent each member of the family. It was customised to show our family name.

Each year I search the Michelin Guide for restaurants which have been given a new Michelin star. WHy? You are assured of top quality service and food that tastes absolutely fantastic. Or so I thought. To be fair, that has been the case up to now.

This year we selected the Italian restaurant Giannino in Mayfair. I love the simplicity of Italian cooking. As the old saying goes, sometimes less is more. Italians tend to use a few ingredients at a time. As a Caribbean man, I’m coming from a place where the food is overwhelmed with “seasoning.” European cooking is the other extreme. It is only now that I can appreciate the European style of cooking.

For starters we had a fritter which packed a punch of flavours.

I decided to go with the Aubergine parmigiana. If you love a copious amount of cheese, then this is your dish. One could easily miss the aubergine unlike the rich, sweet tomato sauce. The presentation was flawless but this is way too cheesy for me.

My wife had chickpea humous with lime, vegetables, lemon chutney and quinoa chips.

This was fresh, tasty, crunchy, an absolute delight. The plethora of textures to be navigated gave a surprise with each bite.

We skipped the pasta this time around (maybe to our eternal regret) and opted for something a bit more traditional, lamb and beef. What could go wrong?

Rack of Scottish lamb with artichokes, mint, fava beans and olives crumble.

30 Days Aged Beef, mash potatoes, black cabbage and mushroom.

At this point we were left underwhelmed. They got key elements correct but there was nothing in the food, on the plate that made you go “wow.” It was…average. I could have done this at home. The most flavour came from the puree(beef dish). The rack of lamb while having a crispy skin, firm but just juicy texture, there was nothing else to it. As for the beef, it was just…can’t exactly put words to it. Nothing remarkable. The sauce was lacking in character.

The dish that saved the day, strangely, was the desert. No one does a gelato quite like the Italians and they did not disappoint. We shared the pistachio bavarese, a collective of pistachio bavarian cream, amaretti crumble and raspberry sorbet. The sweet, nutty cream was soft and inviting, contrasting with the cold, velvety sorbet. The crunch of the crumble added the perfect texture to a delicate desert.

One thing I will take with me, the olive oil served with the bread at the start. That taste is still etched in my mind. It was so good, you could not be faulted for taking a few spoonful.

All in all, it was an ok experience. Next time, we’ll go for the pasta.