Grappa: I tried the food at the new Italian on West Street in Sheffield city centre & here's my verdict

West Street has long been one of Sheffield's busiest streets for hospitality.

While it has some fantastic restaurants, and a whole host of great late-night bars, it is rare that a venue comes along that tries to combine both.

That is exactly what Grappa aims to do, providing daytime coffee and lunch, after-works drinks and dinner, along with late-night music and dancing until 2am.

There certainly seems to be a gap in the market for that sort of establishment on West Street, and if the food delivers, it could prove to be the must-visit destination on the bustling and lively strip.

The restaurant is the brainchild of leading Sheffield restaurateur Steve Zsirai, who has previously enjoyed great success in the Glossop Road and West Street area. He landed his first restaurant management job at K-Pasa in the late 1990s. He previously worked at the legendary Flying Pizza and was the brains behind the Tequila Bar, which continues to draw crowds on West Street week after week.

And after a five-month operation to transform Glossop Road’s former Sinclair’s building into 'the region’s finest Italian bar/restaurant' Grappa finally opened to the public on December 11, 2023.

I was curious to try the food and visited on a weekday night, slap bang in the middle of Christmas party season when the city centre is often heaving. I made a reservation via email a few hours beforehand, and was delighted to receive a very quick response confirming our table.

We received a warm welcome, and were quickly taken upstairs to our table next to the glass front of the restaurant, providing a great view of West Street - and a perfect spot for people watching. The interiors combine an Italian feel with modern elegance, and the open kitchen is a nice touch; especially if, like me, you have enjoyed the critically-acclaimed restaurant-based dramas, Boiling Point and The Bear, and like to see dishes being plated up, garnished and perfected before being served.

On to the food and drink. Our orders were taken, and we were furnished with our drinks, quickly enough, but there was unfortuately a 40-minute wait for our starters. We received an apology though, and the restaurant had been open for less than a fortnight when we visited, so teething problems are fairly inevitable.

Grappa boasts a menu of dishes from across Italy, and to start, I chose the Tomino, which was topped on grilled tomato, and finished with a topping of fresh pesto. It was a winning combination of flavours, and the ingredients appeared to be of a high quality.

My dining companion opted for the Calamari Fritti, served with homemade tartar, which he described as being 'delicately seasoned and light batter on tender squid - both rings and crispier tentacles, served with a well-balanced classic tartare sauce'.

On to the mains, I plumped for the Zucchine pasta, which came with spagehtti Chitarra, spinach, zuchinni, garlic olive oil and basil and topped with black pepper. It was tasty and decadent and the zuchinni tasted really fresh and delicious.

There was a simplistic array of flavours, which worked well and allowed you to focus on the hero ingredient of the zuchinni. Meanwhile, my dining companion chose the N'Duja Amatriciana, which he described as follows: "The ridged pasta (mezze rigatoni) reminded me of Italy!

"Rich guanciale flavoured with n'duja (used with restraint to add just a hint of heat), pecorino cheese, tomatoes and black pepper. A classic amatriciana, well made." To drink, I enjoyed a glass of the Montepucliano D'Abruzzo, which was light and fruity, and made for the perfect accompaniment to the food.

The staff were friendly, and there was a nice atmosphere with Italian ballads playing softly in the background.

Overall, I had a pleasant evening at Grappa and I can see it being a big hit with Sheffielders.

The price point was pretty reasonable too, with two starters, two mains - all of which were good-sized portions - and two glasses of wine, coming in at £60.50.