STRICTLY’S Giovanni Pernice treated Rose Ayling-Ellis to a delicious birthday meal at an Italian restaurant that boasts aphrodisiac ingredients.
The popular dancing duo sipped red wine and tucked into tasty cuisine over the course of three hours last night.
It was the perfect remedy to a gruelling 10 hour shift in the rehearsal studio ahead of the next live show.
Giovanni, 31, wore a black cap and hoodie while EastEnders star Rose, 27, matched in a black roll-neck.
They ate an incredible selection of desserts served on top of a luxurious mirror while Giovanni filmed and wished her a happy birthday.
Rose, who is in a strong seven-year relationship with her boyfriend Samuel Arnold, left the restaurant holding the bouquet of roses she’d been given earlier in the night, and the pair climbed into a waiting car.
Fulham restaurant Gola – Italian for gluttony – is a hive of decadence that revels in excess.
Its owner, Aaron Rutigliano, told Flux magazine: “When I started out, I wanted to bring the flavours of Puglia, my home, to London. As I researched my region’s cuisine, I realised – all of our foods are aphrodisiacs. I thought, ‘That explains a lot’. So then I knew how I would make my restaurant different.”
Giovanni, who recently split from Love Island’s Maura Higgins, is said to be a changed man after meeting Rose.
A source told Heat: “Giovanni has really changed since meeting Rose, and for the better.
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“He’s seen the obstacles Rose has had to face in life and he’s just in awe of her.
“She’s one of the first women who he’s met who’s not taken in by his charms, and she isn’t afraid to challenge him or take the p**s out of him, which he loves.”
The pair reduced viewers to tears on Saturday night with a stunning piece of choreography that included a period of dance to silence to raise awareness of deafness.
