Eagle-eyed N5 residents will have noticed work going on over the past few months at former arts space Light Eye Mind on Blackstock Road. This week it unveiled itself as an Italian-accented wine bar, Giacco's.
The bar's owners are Leonardo and his partner Danilo. Leonardo is the one with the background in hospitality - he used to run the Farewell Cafe which used to play host to popups from the likes of Ling Ling and Hot4U - while Danilo is in finance. The pair decided they wanted to try something more "grown up" - hence this lovely little wine bar in Highbury. The final member of the team is Edy Piro - the restaurateur behind Farina Pizzeria in Notting Hill and Terrone & Co coffee roasters in Tottenham Hale.
Both Leo and Dan are Italian (from Florence and Milan respectively) and they'll be importing their own charcuterie and cheeses from Tuscany and Trentino, along with wines when they get past all the post-Brexit paperwork. For now, they're working with Tutto Wines and Vine Trail on a list of natural and low-intervention wines and coffee is obviously coming from Terrone.
They're also - a first for a London wine bar we reckon - making their own small batch gelato, with new flavours on offer each night. Bread and cakes come from the newly opened Forno in Hackney. There is an intention to move towards full-blown dining with fresh pasta, but they're still looking for the right chef. In the meantime, you can expect to see the odd guest chef coming in with supper clubs too.
More about Giacco's
Where is it? 176 Blackstock Rd, London N5 1HA
When? Open now
Find out more: Follow them on Instagram @giaccos_ldn
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