We had to save something till last. We decided when El Piccolo Diavolo moved this would be the one.

The service – super friendly Italian family. Though sometimes not the easiest to make ourselves understood!

The food – let’s start at the beginning. Jo’s Dad was less then impressed that his wine glass was considerably smaller then everyone else’s!

For starters we had Brushetta and Burrata. The burrata was deliciously creamy and roasted veg and pesto bread a great accompaniment. The brushetta was tasty too.

The mains. Pizzas were spot on. Delicious base, great crust and good quality toppings. The pasta is homemade and sauces both had tasty flavours. Clear plates all round.

The deserts: were not such a hit. The mini tiramisu was mostly cream and the vanilla ice cream and panacotta wasn’t outstanding.

The atmosphere – the place is much bigger then the previous location and therefore not as cosy. Busy on a Monday evening and still a chilled out vibe.

Value for money – £175 for 3 courses for 6 people and 2 litters of red wine. Which at just under £30 a head feels quite reasonable. For once we managed to pay when Jo’s parents have joined us. We are definitely still in debt at end of the year.

I struggle a bit with this shop. Sometimes when I go in they are super friendly (usually when spending lots of money). However, more often then not I am going in for an avocado and then paying is always difficult. Don’t take card for under £5 and never want to give changer for a £10 note. Always makes me leave wishing I had just gone to Sainsbury’s or Tesco’s.

The Service – today was a good day. Friendly staff. Asked how much ginger I wanted in my juice.

The Atmosphere – this is more of a shop than a deli or cafe. There are wooden seats outside but not a great place to sit in December.

The food – excellent. The avocados are amazing. Don’t think I have had a bad one yet. (Which is why I keep coming back!). The juice was delicious carrot, orange, apple and ginger. Made fresh in front of me and Lots of it. Plenty to share between two for breakfast. Coffee was very strong, but good.

The vegan sausage roll divided opinion. Jo thought was excellent lots of different flavours. Jon agreed but still would have preferred a Greggs vegan sausage roll.

Value for money – Just the wrong side of £10 for the above section of food and drinks.

Always been intrigued by this flower and coffee shop on the corner of Finsbury Park bus station.

The service – super friendly. I think the owner knows most people who were coming and going.

The atmosphere – excellent comfy chairs. Amazing that somewhere on such a busy junction and with so many windows can still feel super cosy.

The food – great selection of hot drinks and cake. The hot chocolate with cinnamon was very Christmassy and the coffee was good too. With the added bonus that you could definitely taste the rum in the vegan rum cake.

Value for money. – £8 for two drinks and a slice of cake was excellent.

So Jo’s Dad had never been to Nando’s before so this was a first time experience for him.

The atmosphere – probably the most representative of the community than any other place on Stroud Green Road. Buzzy, busy atmosphere on a wet December Friday. Only restaurant we have been too with a bouncer on the door!

The service – efficient. Swapped items that came out cold and cleared table promptly.

The food – so for the first time this year we forgot to take photos! All round good – not spectacular but not rubbish. Standard. Halloumi always a good addition to a wrap.

Value for money – £60 for one course and drinks for 4 always feels a bit steep for lunch. But for a Friday night dinner wasn’t to bad.

Been saving the Old Dairy for the possibility that we may go for Christmas Dinner. However, a change of plan meant we were free to go for Sunday lunch.

The atmosphere – so many different rooms and changing atmosphere in each. We sat in one of the front rooms which is more relaxed then dining room and not in with the football fans in the main rooms.

The service – quick to get to bar. Slow to bring food but it was a busy Sunday lunch.

The food – We have had excellent food previously but on this occasion was very disappointing. Let’s start with bad – the French onion soup was thick and flavourless and cheese on toast was all dried up; the meat in the roasts was dry and felt pre prepared rather then cooked from a joint, and was all swimming in gravy. (Which some might say is a good thing!)

The good – pork tacos were tasty with good consistency and lots of flavours. If we were watching the football we would have these for dinner. The vegetables with the roast dinners were tasty and freshly cooked.

Value for money – I think this is the worst value for money on the road £100 for two course dinner. Plus another £40 in going to the bar.

The service – very friendly, possibly the best yet! While our order was being prepared I was given free pudding on the house!!! The only bad thing was that it ruined my main as was no longer hungry.

The atmosphere – Despite being the only person in, it was friendly but not awkward! This was the first week of opening so hopefully the midweek trade will pick up.

The food – The pudding (puff puff) was fantastic, like a deep fried doughnut with strawberries and cream. We wanted to order peanut butter chicken and beef skewers. Unfortunately these options were sold out on the opening weekend. We ordered salt fish and lamb with rice. Upon opening the fish, it didn’t smell good and looked like it had lots of bones. However once we got stuck in, it was nice. The lamb had a good flavour, but would have been better to have more vegetables with the rice. The highlight of our order was the plaintain, which was the best that we have had in Stroud Green road.

Value for money – £21.70 felt a little expensive for the quantity, but might have felt differently had we had a full menu to choose from.

This cafe has always intrigued us. During the week it is busy with police and network rail officers. On a Saturday morning a more local affair

The atmosphere – couple of people in. The main atmosphere is from the music videos playing on the screens.

Service – not super friendly but efficient and capable staff.

The food – the star of the show were the tomatoes. Sometimes tomatoes can be a disappointment. One dried up thing in the corner. These were juicy and tasty. Too much bacon on the meat breakfast and sausage was average. On the veggie breakfast the bubble and squeak was tasty, and there were enough mushrooms to share! Overall a good breakfast and not too greasy.

Value for money – under £15 for two set breakfasts with good quality veg felt good value.

The service – welcomed in on a cold evening and given an extra big table for the four of us. Maybe they could tell we were going to over order… One of our party has a food allergy, the staff were very helpful at providing guidance, the chefs could also amend some plates to help us. Importantly the staff were good at spotting when we needed more drinks!

The atmosphere – lovely big table at the centre of the restaurant. The tables are all nicely spaced out which even though it was a super busy Thursday night, we could hear each other clearly.

The food – the advantage of going with four people was that we could order 7 dishes. All of of our choices were nice, however with so many small dishes there were always going to be favourites. The black squid rice was fantastic, beautifully cooked, of the meat dishes the ribs and meatballs were sublime! The potato bravas were a little bit average, needed some Dele Alli (Ali Oli). The highlight of the tapas was without doubt the scallops, which came with a rich tomato sauce with chorizo.

Value for money – £160 for four with two bottles of wine and a round of gin and tonics. Not one for every day but great for a treat

Great to see the deli open again in this spot following the closure of the original Italian Farmers a couple of years ago. This is now our closest eatery at 77 steps from the sofa!

The service – Ed and his team have been friendly, with recommendations and tasters, every time I have been in (just a few in first few weeks!) Took our order promptly and food and drinks arrived quickly.

The food – will start with drink – wine was delicious had the Romanian Pinot Noir and the Malbec both delicious. Ordered the mixed charcuterie board and which was immense and all super tasty. Selection of cheeses included brie, manchego which were especially good. The meats were excellent too. The portion sizes were extremely generous, which was obviously great!

Atmosphere – cosy. The seating is tucked away at the back which means that you don’t feel in the way.

Value for money – excellent. £40 for four glasses of wine and a huge board.

Now just need a dumb waiter to deliver food and wine up to the flat!

The service – Good. She bought our order to our table rather than us having to stand in the way of people doing their shopping.

The food – The savoury quiche was nice with a great texture and taste. The hot chocolate definitely wasn’t a Cadbury’s hot beverage as wasn’t too sweet and very drinkable. The coffee was slightly too hot but still tasty! The custard tart was the best item that we ordered, however the fruit tart wasn’t the best, but still very eatable.

The atmosphere – Loads of Labour leaflets and posters which meant that the Deli at 80 was always likely to be a hit. The plates were also very interesting and unique. There were a lot of comings and goings, because as the name suggests, it is a deli!

Value for money – very good £12 for two hot drinks, two cakes and a quiche