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ShortList's search for the UK's best pizza

ShortList's search for the UK's best pizza

ShortList's search for the UK's best pizza
30 March 2014

By cramming a mountain of cheese, sauce, vegetables and assorted meats into slice after slice of belt-loosening euphoria, pizza rarely fails to spectacularly sate our appetite.

So, after filling our bellies in the hunt for the UK's best burger, we turned out attentions to the UK's burgeoning pizza scene, quaffing slice after slice in the name of journalism, three times a week for 12 months.

Quite frankly, we've never eaten so much pizza and we probably need to sit down for a while - but it's been entirely worth it because now we have the entire list for you in full:


April 1st

Alfie Birds, Birmingham

Address: The Custard Factory, Digbeth, B9 4AA

Pizza of choice: Peter Piper's Pulled Pork Pickle

Toppings: Pulled pork, pickles, cheese, bbq sauce

Price: £11

Thoughts: Proportions. Get them right and prepare to look stone baked nirvana square in the face. Get them wrong and your soggy-bottomed greed will be punished. At Alfie Birds - Digbeth's laid back, Eastside dah-ling - the good news is that the dough to topping ratio is bob on, resulting in a crisp base of modest depth, shifting the pressure on to the clincher: the flavour combinations. Toppings-wise, an accomplished handful of pulled pork is kept honest by a tangy BBQ sauce and moreish tickle of pickle, which accentuates the sweetness of the meat without dominating it. And we're not usually down with pickles. All-in-all, a satiating yet refreshingly light slice. And one that is at its happiest alongside a chilled can of Beavertown's Gamma Ray. 

Star rating: ★★★★✰

Alfiebirds.co.uk


March 30th

The Birkbeck Tavern, London

Address: 45 Langthorne Road, E11 4HL

Pizza of choice: The Devil

Toppings: tomato, mozzarella, salami, chilli, garlic

Price: £5.50

Thoughts: Considering that the local football team, Leyton Orient, was taken over by an Italian billionaire last summer, we're surprised that it's taken this long for the taste of Italy to also reach the area. But the time has come at last, in the form of the new Italian food range at the Birkbeck Tavern, located 5 minutes from Leyton station and a sprightly 10 minute walk to the ground itself. The Birkbeck is a treasure - a proper, East End boozer complete with boxing memorabilia including flyers for fights involving a certain pair of twins known as Ronnie and Reggie, but has more traditionally associated itself with drinks, rather than the food side of things. However, with a new Italian chef in, we investigated and found a pleasingly hearty - and cheap - dish in the form of the no-nonsense 'Devil' pizza. If you're looking for subtlety and haute cuisine then you'll be disappointed, but it's sloppy, big and big of flavour in the best tradition of pub grub. For a fill up before the big game, you can't really go wrong. With East London becoming increasingly gentrified, get down here for the feel and taste of a real pub.

Star rating: ★★★✰✰

The Birkbeck on Twitter


March 27th

Ply, Manchester

Address: 26 lever Street, M1 1DW

Pizza of choice: Artichoke and pig’s cheek 

Toppings: artichoke, tomato, mozzarella, smoked pigs cheek, chilli

Price: £12.00

Thoughts: When you think of disco balls you probably think of a nightclub that hasn't caught up with the times yet. You certainly don’t think of disco ball tiling around a clay-fired oven which fires pizzas for the great and the good of Manchester. Well that’s what we found at the newly launched (the doors officially swing open this weekend) Ply, another sure-fire Northern Quarter crowd puller from the folk behind Kosmonaut. Impressively decked out Scandi-style space, it’s got a good menu to match. We sampled a variety of their pizza creations but were taken by the artichoke and pigs' cheek. At first for its intriguing name alone; then for the flavour. The base was everything you'd expect from a clay fired oven pizza, crunchy crust with a pillowy soft centre and the ingredients worked well together. The sweet tomato sauce, the salty smokiness of the small chunks of pig’s cheek and the subtle heat of the chilli to finish. The only downside was that the flavour of the artichoke didn't really come through. In an area dominated by bars that also serve food it brings a refreshing spin to things and we'd certainly encourage you to give it a whirl.

Star rating: ★★★★✰

Plymcr.co.uk


March 25th

Brutti Ma Buoni, Glasgow

Pizza of choice: Antipasti

Toppings: Salami Milano, Proscuitto, Olives

Price: £10.95

Thoughts: Situated in the basement of the trendy, boutique Brunswick Hotel, Brutti Ma Buoni (“ugly but good”) is a quirkily decorated cafe-bar with a Mediterranean flavour. Prominent on the menu is its Brutti Bread, misshapen, thin and crispy pizza which encourages gripping around the irregular sides and scoffing with your hands. It might be larger but the antipasti is generously festooned with salami and Proscuitto ham, obscuring satisfying tangy tomato sauce and subtle cheese. Crucial to its appeal are a fantastic smattering of olives, firm, rich and slightly bitter, demanding to be plucked and singularly wolfed rather than consumed on the pie. Solid if not quite special.

Star rating: ★★★✰✰

Brunswickhotel.co.uk/eat


March 23rd

Aces and Eights, London

Address: 156-158 Fortess Road, NW5 2HP

Pizza of choice: Il Bacio

Toppings: Parma ham, asparagus, rocket and parmigiano.

Price: £9.00

Thoughts: Aces and Eights, just next to Tufnell Park tube station, combines a live music venue with pizza because, as everyone knows, adding pizza to anything makes it better. After being told to sit “under Jimi Hendrix” (there are pictures of musicians all over the walls) by very friendly staff we ordered the Il Bacio pizza, which comes with Parma ham, asparagus, rocket and parmigiano. As soon as it arrived we had our reservations: the cheese was the colour of someone in the late stages of jaundice and had the cheapish tang you might expect from Dr. Oetker, not a place specialising in pizzas. The Parma ham was fine but the asparagus was almost entirely flavourless and came chopped up into tiny little chunks that looked like they’d been dropped on by accident. Aces and Eights is a great place to go for a drink - seriously, if there's a better saloon bar in the whole of the UK we'd like to hear about it - but not a place for great pizza.

Star rating: ★★✰✰✰

acesandeightssaloonbar.com


March 20th

The Olive, Liverpool

Address:
 
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Star rating: ★★★★✰
 
Oliverestaurants.uk.com

March 18th

Italiano Coffee Co., London

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Star rating: ★★✰✰✰
 
Icco.co.uk

March 16th

Pizza Peddlers, Manchester/Liverpool

Address: Various street food events across the North West
 
Pizza of choice: Pancetta
 
Toppings: Fire roasted red peppers, goats cheese, Gloucester old spot pancetta (crumbled and strips), mozzarella – optional extras: Rocket, garlic oil and black pepper.

Price: £6.50

Thoughts: According to Joni Mitchell they paved paradise to put up a parking lot. But little did she know that on a cold Manchester night, one car park in town was actually going to provide us with a slice of paradise in the shape of a pizza. Based out of a vintage catering van the chaps at Pizza Peddlers are travelling around serving up some of the finest pizza that money can buy - this time it was at the recently launched Manchester Urban Food Fest. Based on their recommendation we went with the Pancetta and, boy, we were not left wanting. Everything about this wood fired pizza was superb, from the dough with its soft centre and crunchy crust, through to the sweetness of the fire roasted red peppers, to even the spiciness of the rocket and the depth of the goat's cheese. The star of the show, however, was the pancetta, sourced from an award winning local butchers, so you could taste the quality and the crispy meaty salty goodness that kept you coming back for more. Yep, it was so good we ordered up another straight away. We urge you to do likewise.
 
Star rating: ★★★★★

@pizzapeddlers


March 13th

Luna Rossa, London

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Star rating: ★★★★✰
Madeinitalygroup.co.uk

March 11th

Box Pizza, Leeds

Address: Unit 3, The Triangle, 2 Burley Road, LS3 1JB

Pizza of choice: Yorkshire Pizza

Toppings: Yorkshire Chorizo, Black Pudding, Garlic Chili and Pepper jam

Price: £8.95

Thoughts: We've all heard the cries ‘Yorkshire! Yorkshire!’ on the terraces at Headingley or during an encore at a Kaiser Chiefs gig but now the Tykes really do have something to shout about as the good folk at Box have created their very own Yorkshire pizza. Unfortunately, after a journey in cardboard delivery box, this pizza is about as attractive to look at as the back end of Elland Road. Even our mega pixel camera couldn't tart it up how we'd like. But taste-wise, by eck, that Yorkshire Chorizo and chilli jam is right good, a proper treat on the taste buds and what could be better to top things off than a slice of black pudding from God’s county? Given the appearance, it’s difficult to assess against some of the UK’s top restaurant pizzas we've sampled in this quest so far. But we'd have no qualms in hailing it as one of the best takeaway pizzas.

Star rating: ★★★✰✰

Boxpizza.co.uk


March 9th

Franco Manca, London

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Star rating: ★★★★★
 
Francomanca.co.uk

March 6th

O Sole Mio, Glasgow

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Star rating: ★★★★✰
Osolemio-glasgow.com

March 4th

Arancina, London

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Star rating: ★★★★✰
 
Arancina.co.uk

March 2nd

Craft & Dough, Sheffield

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Stars: ★★★★★
 
Craftanddough.co.uk

February 27th

GB Pizza Co, London

Address: 50 Exmouth Market, London, EC1R 4QE

Pizza of choice: Lamb special

Toppings: Lamb salami, mint and basil pesto, tomato and mozzarella

Price: £11.00

Thoughts: Don’t worry - Mel and Sue don’t make an appearance halfway through your meal to bother you about the quality of the pesto (which is superb). The Great British Pizza Company (GB Pizza Co) of Exmouth Market has been serving up delicious creations to this slice of central London for just over a year. With their regular offerings a much-discussed local triumph, we went for their weekly special - a lamb salami on a bed of mint and basil pesto. The base is on the crispy side of traditional Italian - more akin to a flatbread on the outter edge, the brittle texture fading into a foldable fare in the centre. While the lamb and mint do work wonderfully together, it's a flavour pairing you may find slightly disconcerting on a cheesy pizza base. It's great to see a pizza specialist experimenting with something a bit "different" - best give their weekly experiments a visit if you're tired of the average pepperoni offering.

Star rating: ★★★✰

GreatBritishPizza.com


Suede Bar, Nottingham

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Star rating: ★★★★✰
 
Suedebar.co.uk

February 23rd

Vineyard, London

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Vineyardislington.co.uk
 
Star rating: ★★★★✰

February 20th

Atomic Pizza, Oxford

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Star rating: ★★★★✰
 
Atomic

February 18th

The Florist Arms, London

Address: 255 Globe Road, E2 0JD

Pizza of choice: Wild Boar

Toppings: Tomato, mozzarella, chilli, wild boar chorizo

Price: £11

Thoughts: We can't be the only ones for whom pizza is a drug. No matter how hard you try, you just can't keep away from it (so we suppose this Pizza Search is like an addicts' dream). And this tremendous effort from a hidden away pub in Bethnal Green was like the crack of pizza. Despite being, superficially, quite a straightforward affair, we just couldn't stop eating. A nice, thin base, with a perfect balance of tomato and mozzarella on top, finished with small, chewy drops of wild boar chorizo (and we specifically requested wild, not tame), together with a nice kick from just the right amount of chilli. As we say, nothing groundbreaking going on here, but expertly done, and just so moreish. The pub itself had a lovely ambience, warm and welcoming, so we'd thoroughly recommend it - just don't let Super Hans go near this one, or there'll be some serious trouble.

Star rating: ★★★★✰

thefloristarms.co.uk


February 16th

Spectacular Goat, Birmingham

Address: Street food vendor, tracked down at Digbeth Dining Club, Lower Trinity Street, B9 4AG

Pizza of choice:
 
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Star rating: ★★★★✰
 
Spectaculargoat.comDigbethdiningclub.co.uk
 

February 13th

Railway Tavern, London

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Star rating: ★★★★✰
 
Therailwaytulsehill.co.uk

February 11th

Peter, Loughborough

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Star rating: ★★★
 
Peterpizzeria.co.uk

February 9th

Sweet Thursday, London

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Thoughts: You know you're in safe, dough covered hands as soon as you enter Sweet Thursday. It's not the wall of choice Italian wines lining the entrance, nor the friendly, Italian welcome from the staff (all smiles and hand waving), it's the sight of the vast pizza oven glowing at the back of the homely, packed out restaurant. The pizza offering is vast - growing even longer on weekends with a special English Breakfast Pizza for brunch - but the chefs will put pretty much anything you ask for on your pizza. We stuck with the regular options and went for the Porchetta: no tomato on this one, the base held together with a creamy mix of mozzarella and fennel. The pulled pork belly is roasted on site; thick succulent chunks of ham swimming in a cheesy sea. If you like your pizza sloppy (really sloppy) with a traditional Napoli-style base, you're in for a treat - otherwise you might find yourself drowning in oils. 
 
Star rating: ★★★✰✰
 
SweetThursday.co.uk

February 6th

Jalopy Pizza, Dorset 

Address: Bridport, DT6 and back at various street food events across the region from April

Pizza of choice: Margherita

Toppings: Tomato, parmesan, basil, mozzarella, 

Price: £8.50

Thoughts:
 
Stars: ★★★★✰
 
Jalopypizza.co.uk

February 4th

Pizza East, London

Address:
 
Pizza of Choice:
 
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Thoughts:ShortList.comInherent Vice
 
Stars: ★★★✰✰
 
Pizzaeast.com

February 2nd

Planet Pizza, Bristol

Address: 
 
Pizza of choice:
 
Toppings:
 
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Stars: ★★★✰✰
 
Planetpizza.co.uk

January 30th

Oregano, London

Address: 15 Tulse Hill, Brixton, SW2 2TH

Pizza of choice: BBQ

Toppings: BBQ sauce, mozzarella, chicken, bacon, spring onions, fresh tomatoes

Price: £11.50 (13”)

Thoughts: Since we began our quest to find the UK’s finest slice last year, you've emailed us in your hundreds, suggesting the best places for us to try far and wide, in turn sending us off to discover swanky new restaurants and tucked away hipster alcoves throughout these fair isles. One place we kept hearing about is Oregano, a rudimentary looking post-beers pizzeria parked a 10 minute walk from Brixton station. We'll be honest, it didn't exactly scream excellence. Then we heard the takeaway spot used a wood-fired oven... we ordered the BBQ. Though the decidedly thin crust wasn't quite as fluffy or yielding as we’d hoped, the taste was exemplarily, comprising a real sweet before you even reach the honeyed tang of the BBQ sauce. Shame then, that while the dough was clearly up to scratch, the ingredients were not: the chicken tasted rubbery and the spring onions didn't so much spring as bury themselves deep down in an over-helping of gooey mozzarella alongside the equally helpless bits of bacon. A cut above the normal high street takeaway, perhaps, but this is miles away from gourmet status.

Pizzaoregano.co.uk

Stars: ★★✰✰✰


January 28th

Buca di Pizza, Leeds

Address:
 
Pizza of Choice:
 
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Thoughts:A Life Less Ordinary
 
Stars: ★★★✰✰
 
Bucaleeds.com

Ice and Slice, London

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Facebook.com/pages/Shot-Espresso
 
Stars: ★★★★✰
 
 

January 23rd

Gino’s Pear Tree, Loughborough

Address: 8 Church Hill, Woodhouse Eaves, LE1 28RT

Pizza of choice: Nduja

Toppings: Tomato, mozzarella, hot nduja, onions and peppers.

Price: £10.95

Thoughts: Tucked within a scenic pocket of the Loughborough outbacks, Gino’s Pear Tree is a family-run Italian restaurant that houses modern class inside an 18th Century Inn. Don’t let the innocent British village surroundings fool you though - our nation’s typically limp capacity for spice was soon given a cheeky poke by the waiter – spurring our hearts onto their devilish recommendation, the Nduja: a spreadable pork sausage that crackles with chilli-spice and suitably originates from the tip of Italy’s boot. Surprisingly, it wasn’t the meat-triggering heady mercy, but the light, mushy tomatoes and mozzarella circle pits which combined for a firework of hugs and punches. While the finely sliced onions ride the nduja’s sting, the sweet red peppers ensure tastebuds are always nursed for the next Italian bang. From what began as a lofty challenge to our masculinity, we were left unashamedly floored by its softer side. Well worth a trip to the country.

Stars: ★★★★★

Ginospeartree.net


January 21st

Goppa, London

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Stars: ★★★★✰
 
Facebook.com/Goppapizzeriarestaurantbar

January 19th

Honest Crust, North West

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Stars: ★★★★✰
 
Honestcrustpizza.co.uk

January 16th

The London Fields

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Stars: ★★★★★
 
Thelondonfields.co.uk

The Italian Club, Liverpool

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Stars: ★★★✰✰
 
Theitalianclubliverpool.co.uk
 

January 12th

The Bird in the Hand, London

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TheBirdintheHandLondon.com

January 9th

The Herb Garden, Newcastle

Pizza of choice:
 
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Stars: ★★★★✰
 
Theherbgardenuk.com

January 7th, 2015

Luppolo, London

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Thoughts:lot
 
Stars: ★★★★✰
 
Facebook.com/luppolopizza

January 5th, 2015

Kilderkin, Edinburgh

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Pizza of Choice:
 
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Stars: ★★★★✰
 
Facebook.com/Kilderkin

Voodoo Ray's Christmas Special, London

Address:
 
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Thoughts:Home AloneBoogie Nights
 
Stars: ★★★✰✰
 
Winterville.co.uk

December 19th

JAMIE’S ITALIAN PIZZERIA, OXFORD

Address: 24-26 George Street, Oxford, OX1 2AE

Pizza of choice: Funghi

Toppings: Roasted mushrooms, smoked provola mozzarella and tarragon (with sausage meat)

Price: £10.00

Thoughts: Despite being located in the basement of Jamie’s Italian, you'll find no awkward spaghetti twirling here. An entirely separate establishment, the menu is fairly simple – only five pizza options ranging in price from a reasonable £8 to a tenner, with a short but tasty list of sides and extra toppings available according to taste. Our waiter recommended the Funghi with extra Italian sausage, a meat which worked terrifically alongside the mushroom and cheese we found layered atop the thin and ultra crispy base. Famished punters should appreciate not only speedy service but some seriously huge pizzas, best washed down with a neat glass of white from Jamie’s own vineyard. Decanted by Jamie himself. Well, if he's around.

Stars:★★★★✰

Jamieoliver.com/italian


December 17th

Frankie’s Sports Bar & Grill, London

Address: Stamford Bridge, Fulham Road, SW6 1HS

Pizza of choice: The American

Toppings: Pepperoni, fresh chilli

Price: £9.50

Thoughts: Unlike Jose Mourinho, whose Chelsea team talks must resemble a United Nations summit, Marco Pierre White had only two nationalities to work with when curating the menus for Frankie’s - an American-style restaurant owned by Italian race jockey Frankie Dettori. And no sooner had we finished tear-inducing hot wings, arriving in a neat, commendably greasy and generously portioned basket, that we knew they clearly had the American side of things right at this Stamford Bridge establishment. So what about the pizza? Well, as you’d expect with a stone-baked base, it was rigid; really rigid, relying on big thick bites on the outside to make up a lack of subtly and softness in the centre; this overly firm texture also helped by the rich grainy flour coated along the crust, joyfully pouring into the edges of the mouth like dust into the tyre tracks of a Mars Rover. And while the thick chilli goop on top fell some way short of the spiciness we’d found in the wings earlier, it did possess a real sweetness, offsetting the sharp after taste of the pepperoni for a nice finish. Overall, a good pizza in a pretty good venue - despite the match day hubbub, there’s a neighbourhood charm and diner-like authenticity which most UK sports bars lack. Pop in on NFL Sundays for proof of that.

Star rating: ★★★✰✰

Frankiessportsdiner.com


December 15th

Streatza, Manchester

Address
 
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Thoughts:how
 
Star rating: ★★★★✰
 
Streatza.co.uk

December 12th

Bocconcino, London

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Star rating: ★★★★✰
 
Bocconcinorestaurant.co.uk

December 10th

Crazy Pedro’s, Manchester

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December 8th

The Oak, London

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Star rating: ★★★★★
 
TheOakLondon.com

December 5th

The Quarter, Liverpool

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Star rating: ★★★★✰
 
Thequarteruk.com

December 3rd

Fields Bars & Kitchen, London

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Star rating: ★★★✰✰
 
Benugo.com

December 1st

Flour & Ash, Bristol

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Star rating: ★★★★★
 
Flourandash.co.uk
 

November 28th

Holborn Whippet, London

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Thoughts:Masterchef
 
Star rating: ★★★★✰
 
Holbornwhippet.com

November 26th

La Favorita, Edinburgh

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Star rating: ★★★★★
 
Vittoriagroup.co.uk
 
 

November 24th

Princi, London

Address:
 
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Thoughts:UK’s coolest coffee spots
 
Star rating: ★★★★✰
 
Princi.com

November 21st

Piccolino, Bristol

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Star rating: ★★★✰✰
 
Individualrestaurants.com
 

November 19th

Rustico, London

Address: 271 Clapham Road, SW9 9BQ 

Pizza of choice: Quattro Stagioni

Toppings: Tomato, mozerella, ham, salami, artichokes, olives

Price: £7.50

Thoughts: While nearby Brixton and Clapham brag a bevy of independent eating establishments, Stockwell all but remains a dining abyss, barren of even a decent pub within the one mile radius from the tube station. This certainly goes some way to explaining why Rustico appeared to us like a mirage, its cosy glow at odds with the darkened shops wedged next door, drawing in nomadic foodies like a middle class tractor beam. And if these sizable mid-week crowds were anything to go by - not to mention our terrific calamari starter - it’s a top-notch place to grab a Mediterranean bite. That goes for the pizza, too, arriving so gooey and hot we weren't sure if the tomato sauce had been mixed up with lava, and when we plucked up the courage to dig in, that rich and bubbly sauce erupted with flavour, particularly when oozing onto a slobber-some meat selection. We can’t say we were too convinced by the olives, mind, rolling straight off our slice with every bite  to make our plate something of a battleground for space; or indeed the crust, which was perhaps a tad overcooked. Though on pure flavour alone, we might be visiting Stockwell more often.

Star rating: ★★★✰✰

Rusticolondon.com


November 17th

Zerodegrees, Bristol

Address: 53 Colston Street, Bristol, BS1 5BA

Pizza of choice: Smoky Mexican

Toppings: Spicy Mexican sausage, roasted mixed peppers, red onions, sweetcorn, jalapeño, smoked cheese, coriander, chilli oil and tomato sauce

Price: £10.75

Thoughts: Perched at the top of Christmas Steps, Zerodegrees is a cool microbrewery with a great rep for pizzas. We ordered a Smoky Mexican, electing for their honey-wheat base. After mutilating the pizza with the pitiful knife provided, we found the Smoky Mexican’s base was perfectly crispy but there was no honey coming through – any sweetness was courtesy of the yummy roasted peppers. And despite the abundance of sausage, it just didn’t bring any flavour to the party. This, combined with some disappointingly bland cheese offering none of the promised smokiness, meant that the pizza was only rescued from being unmemorable by the addition of fragrant coriander. The pizza wasn't bad per se – we simply felt that Tesco's Finest range would’ve offered something just as good. The beer, however, is outstanding.

Star rating: ★★✰✰✰

zerodegrees.co.uk/bristol


 

November 14th

Obicà, London

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obica.com
 

 

November 12th

Black Dog Ballroom, Manchester

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Star rating: ★★★✰✰
 
Blackdogballroom.co.uk

November 10th

Crate, London

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Star rating: ★★★★✰
 
Cratebrewery.com

NOVEMBER 7TH

PICTURE HOUSE SOCIAL, SHEFFIELD

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Toppings:Nduja & Salsica, 
 
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Thoughts:if not Sheffield's finest pizza place, 

Star rating: ★★★★✰

 
Picture-house-social.com

NOVEMBER 5TH

OLIVELLI, LONDON

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RistoranteOlivelli.co.uk

NOVEMBER 3RD

FUMO, BIRMINGHAM

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Sancarlofumo.co.uk

October 31st

York & Albany, London

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Gordonramsay.com

OCTOBER 29TH

ARTISAN, MANCHESTER

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Thoughts: T4
 
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Artisan.uk.com

OCTOBER 27TH

Grand Union, London

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Grandunionbars.com 

 

OCTOBER 24TH

Tapped, Leeds

Address: 51 Boar Ln, Leeds, West Yorkshire LS1 5EL

Pizza of Choice: 12” Bit of Blue

Toppings: Gorgonzola, Walnut, Rocket, Cherry Tomatoes

Price: £9.00

Thoughts: Amidst the homebrew equipment of the beer Mecca that is Tapped lurks the unsung hero that is the pizza kitchen. With only pizza on the menu and quite a limited selection at that, the chefs are able to concentrate on getting the food just right and the Bit of Blue does not disappoint. Beneath the verdant layer of rocket the relatively simple palette of creamy Gorgonzola, crunchy walnut and sweet cherry tomatoes is perfectly balanced on a fine base - made with the house wheat beer to deliver a soft centre and a crisp outer. There’s no need to invent brand new combinations when you get these classic just right. 

Star rating: ★★★★✰

tappedleeds.co.uk


OCTOBER 22ND

Pizza East, London

Address: 5 Kingly St, W1B 5PF

Pizza of Choice: Veal meatballs

Toppings: Veal meatballs, proscuitto, lemon, cream

Price: £12.00

Thoughts: While Pizza East might have started in, yes you guessed it, East London, it’s now become available in Finsbury Park, Notting Hill and, ermmm, Chicago. As much as we’d have enjoyed a trip to the Windy City, we felt it was more “authentic” to go back to where it all started. We opted for one of the old classics of the menu because it sounded like a mixture of ingredients that we’d never put together on a pizza. Veal meatballs, prosciutto and cream. Mmhmm. But these guys know what they’re doing. The absence of a tomato base AND CHEESE was made up for rather wonderfully by a creamy sauce and an indulgent amount of high quality meat. Strangely satisfying.

Star rating: ★★★★✰

Pizzaeast.com


OCTOBER 20TH

The Peacock, Liverpool

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Decked out with benches, leather sofas and wallpaper funkier than a Jimi Hendrix LP cover, The Peacock has no real need to serve up hot doughy circles to throngs of hungry punters on Liverpool’s trendy Seel St. It could well survive on booze and easy-eats alone. But this establishment isn't afraid to buck the trend, and we're mightily glad they do. Whipped up by an Italian chef who prepared the dishes not too far from us, there was a real home-cooking vibe on our visit, translating straight into the end product itself. The crust was perfectly crisp (although we wish the base had been a bit firmer), the tomato and mozzarella meshed together smoothly, and the chilli? Well  that was akin to a spicy grenade exploding in our mouth. Overall, it's a very good pizza, and priced at a lowly £5 - we repeat, just £5 - you'd struggle to find a better deal anywhere else.
 
Star rating: ★★★✰✰
 
Peacock-liverpool.com
 

October 17th

La Porchetta, London

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Star rating: ★★★✰✰
 
Laporchetta.net
 
 

October 15

Cornerhouse, Manchester

 
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Thoughts:Coolest Cinemas in the UK
 
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Cornerhouse.org
 
 

October 13th

Exeter Street Bakery, London

Address: 1 Argyll Rd, W8 7DB

Pizza of choice: Tomato & salami

Price: £3.60 (per double slice)

Toppings: Sa