Some pasta is about the sauce. Ravioli are about what's inside. At Fiena, our family-run Italian cafe, bar and restaurant at 4 Medway Court, Judd Street, London WC1H 9QX, near King's Cross St Pancras, ours are filled with ricotta and spinach and finished in sage and butter. Here's a short guide to one of Italy's oldest stuffed pastas.
Little parcels of pasta
Ravioli are a stuffed pasta: a filling wrapped in thin pasta dough. They're usually square, though round and half-moon shapes (mezzelune) are made too, and they're served either in broth or with a sauce. One raviolo, many ravioli.
Nobody knows for sure where the name comes from. One theory links it to rava, a northern Italian word for turnip, but the earliest recipes don't include turnips at all.
Seven centuries of ravioli
Ravioli have been around for a long time. They appear in letters written by Francesco Datini, a merchant from Prato, in the 14th century. A Venetian cookbook from the same period describes ravioli of minced green herbs, egg and fresh cheese, simmered in broth. They even turn up in English: the 14th-century cookbook The Forme of Cury lists them as rauioles. By 1549, ravioli were so well known in Rome that the papal chef Bartolomeo Scappi served them, with boiled chicken, to the cardinals electing a new pope.
Ricotta and spinach: the Roman filling
The filling changes from region to region. In Rome and Lazio, the classic is ricotta cheese, spinach, nutmeg and black pepper. In Sardinia it's ricotta with grated lemon rind, and in Campania ravioli are usually round and filled with ricotta. In winter, some regions serve them with ragù. Wikipedia's ravioli page has more.
Our ravioli ricotta & spinach
On our main menu, Ravioli ricotta & spinach (V) are stuffed ravioli cooked in a sage and butter sauce. Butter and sage is one of the simplest Italian pasta sauces, and it lets the creamy filling do the talking. It's served from midday every day, and it's one of the vegetarian pastas on the list.
R C summed up their meal of pasta, risotto and a walnut dessert in three words: Great, authentic food
(R C, Google review). David was impressed by the quality: It is worth every pound I spent.
(David X., Google review)
Other vegetarian pasta and risotto
- Spaghetti pesto (V): double cream, sundried tomatoes, zucchini and pesto.
- Penne arrabiata (V, VG): tomato sauce, chilli and garlic.
- Risotto mushrooms (V, GF): creamy Arborio risotto with mushroom, parmesan and butter.
Our posts on vegetarian and vegan Italian food and autumn comfort food have more ideas. If you need to avoid gluten, gluten-free penne is available for all of our pasta dishes.
A glass of wine with it
Butter and sage want a white with some freshness. From our drinks menu, the Gavi di Gavi is bone dry, with aromas of white blossom, lemon sherbet, green apples and honeysuckle. The Pinot Grigio is crisp with citrus fruit. If you'd rather have red, the Pinot Nero has fragrant red berries with a herbaceous lift of sage and rosemary. Our guide to our Italian wine list covers the rest.
“Very good experience, lovely food, also waiter called Eldi was very helpful.”
Ronita, Google review, October 2026
Good to know
- When: the main menu runs from midday until close, 22:00 Monday to Saturday and 21:00 on Sunday.
- Booking: tables for up to eight can be booked online, and walk-ins are welcome whenever we have space.
- Allergies: information on the 14 major allergens is available on request. Please speak to your server before you order.
- Address: 4 Medway Court, Judd St, London WC1H 9QX. Phone 020 4618 6314.
Small parcels, big comfort. Book a table or walk in at 4 Medway Court, Judd Street.