Haven't decided where to eat tonight yet? Manuel's med grill - The best in Italian and mediterranean grill in South London

What is Mediterranean cuisine?

The concept of a Mediterranean diet was popularised by the food writer Elizabeth David's book A Book of Mediterranean Food (1950), which was later expanded upon by other English-language writers.

Many writers characterise the three basic parts of the cuisine as the olive, wheat, and grape, which produce olive oil, bread and pasta, and wine, respectively; others disagree that the Mediterranean basin's highly varied foods constitute a cuisine at all.

The region encompasses a diverse range of cultures and cuisines, including the Maghrebi, Egyptian, Levantine, Ottoman (Turkish), Greek, Italian, Provençal, and Spanish cuisines, however some authors include more cuisines. The cuisine of Portugal, in particular, has a Mediterranean influence.

Outside of the north and the hilly inland regions, Mediterranean Italian food encompasses much of Italy. It is a broad cuisine, but risotto, pizza in Neapolitan and Sicilian varieties, and pasta dishes like spaghetti are among its most well-known and distinctive meals.

Risotto is an Italian dish made with short-grain rice that is both very absorbent and resistant to turning into a pudding when cooked with stock and flavoured with onions and garlic sautéed in butter. Fish and white wine; chicken; eel; mushrooms and grated Parmesan cheese; quails; small bits of meat; courgettes (zucchini); clams; ragù; beans; mussels; prawns; cuttlefish; and asparagus are some of the ingredients used in Veneto risottos.

Pizza, or "pissaladina or pissaladière" in Provence (the cuisines of the French Mediterranean and Italy have something in common), is a thinly rolled out piece of bread dough with a topping that varies by location but is generally much simpler than those in the English-speaking world, as David points out. This is fresh tomato sauce, anchovies, and buffalo mozzarella in Naples. It's onions fried in olive oil with salted sardines in San Remo. Onions, black olives, and anchovies are used in the Provençal version.

Spaghetti bowls come in a variety of shapes and sizes. It can be served "simply with olive oil and garlic," without cheese, or with a sauce of "quite red and ripe peeled tomatoes," cooked swiftly and flavoured with garlic, basil, or parsley, as David suggests. Pieces of bacon, onions sautéed in fat, garlic, stoned olives, and anchovies are served with olive oil and grated Parmesan cheese in one Sicilian variation.

​Where is the best med grill in South London?

Manuel's Restaurant and Bar of course with a mediterranean grill and where the food is centred on classic Italian cuisine.

Our cooking philosophy is straightforward: high-quality, seasonal vegetables with little hassle.

Our atmosphere is light and airy, our service is pleasant and laid-back, and our menu comprises traditional dishes with a twist.

The restaurant has a lovely environment and friendly staff.

Where can I find a menu for Mediterranean food?