Although Homa’s decorative floor tiles make for a pleasing entrance, its new wooden tables and neutral walls are a bit uninspiring, and cleanliness isn’t always up to scratch – we arrived to crumbs on a seat, as well as a bin in the ladies that was crying out to be emptied. A basket of focaccia, delivered by a friendly waiter, was also on the stale side. Things improved with a lovely starter of burrata with a delicately sweet caponata – a perfect match.
Mains, from a list of hearty Mediterranean classics, brought the overall standard firmly back down to average, however. A plate of tender ox cheeks served with a rich gravy was quite small for the price, and served lukewarm; a funghi pizza had a perfect base but a very sparse tomato sauce topping and less-than-generous helping of mushroom. Own-made ice-cream helped to lift our spirits – which were, however, dampened again when we were presented with the wrong (much more expensive) bill. Twice.
Still, Homa’s Church Street terrace appears to be as popular as ever on fine days, and if you’re looking for a pleasant enough spot to have brunch or sip wine (from an extensive list), you could do far worse.