Review: Pizza Express Limited Edition Seasonal Specials

Y’all know all about my love affair Pizza Express. The forumla works wonderfully for a family night out together. Pizza Express have just the right mix of activities/food to capture the attention of kids and adults. And of course a large glass of a fruity and intense Barbera is always welcome.

We’ve spent many family evenings in the restaurant. So many, that when I Facetimed (is that a word?) my mother in California earlier in the day and told her we were going out to dinner that evening, she immediately guessed we were going to Pizza Express.

This time however was slightly different, Pizza Express asked us to try out their new Limited Edition Seasonal Special menu. The menu contains four seasonal items, each oozing “comfort” and are perfect in this cold weather. The items are only available until 31 March – so hurry if you want to give them a try.

For starters, we tried the DOUGH BALLS “SPECIALE” (vegetarian); £3.95. Think the famous Pizza Express dough balls, baked and sprinkled with Gran Moravia cheese. You can dip them in garlic butter (included), or order a dip of hot n’duja sausage with olive oil (slightly spicy and tangy), or pesto (the girls’ favourite) for an extra £.50. Two orders were perfect for the five of us, though they were so yummy they disappeared in about 5 seconds. OK, 6 seconds.

The VESUVIO pizza, £12.75, was my personal favourite. It’s a selection of pepperoni and slightly hot, soft n’duja sausage on a creamy sweet potato base baked with mozzarella. It’s sprinkled with rocket, shaved Gran Moravia cheese and a splash of chilli oil. It’s an awakening combo of spice (not too heavy, but enough to let you know it’s there), sweet, and tangy from the rocket, all sitting on that wonderfully crisp and light Romana base. I completely forgot about the creamy sweet potato puree, it blended in so well with the rest of the ingredients. If you order one thing from the new menu, don’t miss this pizza.

My husband tried the CIPOLLINI pizza, £11.95. This vegetarian option combines spinach, sweet baby onions, red onions and mozzarella, and is baked with garlic oil and fresh rosemary on a creamy sweet potato base, and sprinkled with chopped parsley, Gran Moravia cheese and chilli oil. Another fabulous sweet/tangy combination from the Pizza Express team, but not the explosion of flavours you get with the aptly named VESUVIO.

For dessert, we all tried the RHUBARB & APPLE CRUMBLE, £5.55. This was a rhubarb and apple fruit compote, spiced with ginger and baked with a layer of crème Anglaise and a classic crumble top. Needles to say, this was HUGELY popular. We ordered two to share, and felt very cosy and smug inside, while we watched the weekend storm rage outside.

Note: Our meal was provided by Pizza Express for the purposes of this review. All opinions are mine and my family’s.