FRESCO

You'll find Fresco tucked into the Cowley Road stretch where things actually get interesting — past the student haunts and into proper local territory. The room's got that warm, unfussy Italian trattoria feel: exposed brick, soft lighting, the kind of place that doesn't need to shout about itself. The kitchen takes their pasta seriously, doing the sort of thing that makes you realise how much mediocre Italian you've been putting up with. There's real skill in the details here, from properly made sauces to sourced ingredients that taste like they actually came from somewhere.