ASK Italian - Taunton

You're walking past that striking converted Post Office building on North Street and wondering what's inside—it's ASK Italian, and it's exactly the kind of straightforward neighbourhood spot Taunton needed. The dining room's got that casual-smart energy: stripped brick, open kitchen, the kind of place where you can actually hear yourself talk but there's enough life in the room to feel buzzing. They nail the fundamentals—proper San Marzano pizzas from the wood-fired oven, homemade pasta that doesn't taste like it came from a packet, and they won't mess about with your order. It's not trying to be fancy, which is precisely why it works. Come with mates, bring the kids, take your mum—it genuinely doesn't matter.