Giardinetto moved from Charlotte Street in June 2005 to their new location in smooth, sophisticated Mayfair. Which suits the new establishment perfectly, from the wheelchair-friendly sliding glass door to the ultra-Italian dark panelling with stark white linen. Not much giardinetto about the decor, but it's very classy.

It's also a friendly place though, which immediately makes up for any impression of arrogance that one might get from the surroundings. No tie required, as confirmed by manager Sergio Lovrinovich as we entered, confiding he'd love to be able to take his off, too. Sergio comes from Milan, despite the surname, but the cuisine is based around Ligurian specialities as interpreted by Genoan chef Maurizio Vilona.

Before we comtemplate the complex menu however there's a glass of extremely good Prosecco and some of the best grissini I've ever tasted, either in London or Italy - made on the premises, of course.

So, the menu. It's one of those where each dish takes around two lines to explain, which I can find offputting, but on the other hand does tell you exactly what you're getting. And there's no doubt that there's a creative soul active behind the scenes, which is a good thing because we are definitely talking Mayfair prices.

I started with Medaglioni di aragosta in salsa di zucca e porri - Medallions of lobster in a sauce of pumpkin and leeks (£12.50). It was quite delicious, a small and fragrant bowl providing just enough to really tempt the palette. My companion tried Giostra di gamberetti e broccoli in pasta arlecchino con salsa di zafferano e vongole - Shrimps and broccoli mousse in 'Harlequin' pasta, with a saffron and clam sauce (£10.50). Very, very pretty and also a tasty morsel.

In the interests of being able to report on the pasta in general we sacrificed ourselves and shared a dish of Pansotti con salsa di noci - Pasta parcels stuffed with spinach, in walnut sauce (£12), one of the house specialities. Absolutely delicious, and very rich indeed - I'm grateful I didn't go for the full plate.

There's a very tempting range of fish and meat. I chose Coda di rospo al vapore con pesto e concasse' di pomodoro su riso venere nero alle taggiasche e spinaci - steamed monkfish with pesto and tomato concasse served on a bed of 'Venere' black rice with 'taggiasche' olives and spinach (£18, and good but not as special as it sounds). My companion went the meat route with Agnello al forno con bietola e patate novelle - Oven roasted loin of welsh organic lamb with chard and new potatoes (£27.50) which with hindsight, I would have preferred.

The food is good there's no doubt, but what is really amazing about Giardinetto is their sommelier, Christian Bucci, coupled with their wine list. The former is charming and extremely knowledgable, and the latter is stupendous - 47 wines available by the glass, and that's just a small selection from the all-Italian list, roughly 50% of which is exclusive to Giardinetto in London. There are real treasures here, and my advice is to let Christian choose a glass for each course of your meal - his skill made this a memorable meal. Prices range from around £15, with many tempting bottles in the £30 range, but the sky's the limit for some of the real rarities.

All in all, a classy restaurant made special by the warmth, friendliness and skill of the staff. Oh, I nearly forgot. No, we didn't make it to pudding - so I'm going to have to go back, if only for the Torta fiorentina al cioccolato (Chocolate cake with cream and almond nougatine, £7.50). Nice petits fours, though.