Robert Pascall is enjoying working at a highly regarded architectural practice, but with his personal life at a low point, he is enticed by the family he spent time with growing up to leave London and return to Norfolk to work on a major project on their estate. In accepting the project he is required to return to the world of privilege and wealth he grew up surrounded by, but with which he never felt comfortable. The Italian Restaurant offers a secure refuge for him and provides the setting for the events that follow in his personal life, as complex as the relationship that develops with his new employer.