A new riverside Italian restaurant is to grace Folly Bridge, Oxford.

Aqua Vitae will open on March 10 after more than a year of wrangling between city planners and the owner of Island Gallery.

Gallery owner Orde Levinson won an appeal last year after planners laid down conditions for a restaurant within the same building.

Mr Levinson said: "It's taken quite some time. But I am delighted to finally have a tenant. The restaurant looks wonderful. I think it will complement the gallery perfectly."

Aqua Vitae has an outdoor waiting area overlooking the river.

Morris and Louisa Nguyen, who run Aqua Vitae, moved to Oxford a year ago. They live in the same building with their two children.

Mr Nguyen, who trained as a chef in Venice and London, said: "It's our first restaurant. It's a childhood dream come true. We chose Oxford because it's so beautiful and the property is right on the river."