Chertsey, Pizza Restaurant Guide

“Worth a detour” – “some of the best pizza outside Italy” is found at this “excellent Neapolitan pizzeria”, “run by an Italian family in an unlikely suburban location” in Ealing. “The barman makes a mean negroni to get the evening off to a great start”.

“The pizza is second to none”, combining “top-quality ingredients and fabulous bases” at this quartet of “bustling” pizzerias founded 15 years ago by Neapolitan-born Angelo and Pasquale. Since launching in Ealing, they have expanded slowly to Fulham, Islington and Fitzrovia – and the extent to which they’ve maintained their ratings is an achievement for an expanding group.

This “good, reliable Italian local” in Wimbledon Village majors in home-made pasta and thin-crust pizza, while “other items like calves’ liver are lovely”. “The midweek offers are not as good as they used to be”, however, while “the menu rarely changes”.

“Thin and crispy pizza with coarse semolina in the base” is the main focus at this smart Notting Hill pub conversion, where “the tapas-style starters and excellent pizzas are rather more interesting than the main-course choices”. The Oak W12 near Ravenscourt Park and the Bird in Hand at Brook Green operate on similar lines.

“Lush pizza” that’s reliably “top-quality” has driven the expansion of this Islington-based group that has developed four different 48-hour ferment bases – including gluten-free and ‘black vegetable charcoal’ versions to reduce stomach gas; so “everyone’s happy”. The eight-year-old group now has nine sites in the capital (including a new one labelled as ‘Chelsea’ but on Fulham Broadway) and one in Reading.

“More hit ’n’ miss than they used to be, but still a go-to chain” – the Elliot brothers’ successful group is heading towards 20 branches in the capital, but “still producing quality dishes despite becoming quite a brand”: “lovely scorched, pillowy-based pizzas with plenty of power in the ingredients” and “reasonably priced for the quality!” Latest to launch, in June 2024, was a branch by Euston.

“The pizza is second to none”, combining “top-quality ingredients and fabulous bases” at this quartet of “bustling” pizzerias founded 15 years ago by Neapolitan-born Angelo and Pasquale. Since launching in Ealing, they have expanded slowly to Fulham, Islington and Fitzrovia – and the extent to which they’ve maintained their ratings is an achievement for an expanding group.

This seven-year-old independent a couple of doors along from Chez Bruce on the edge of Wandsworth Common is reckoned by fans to offer among the “best pizza in town”. “I only discovered it recently but it has become a favourite”.

Review: “The pizza is second to none”, combining “top-quality ingredients and fabulous bases” at this quartet of “bustling” pizzerias founded 15 years ago by Neapolitan-born Angelo and Pasquale. Since launching in Ealing, they have expanded slowly to Fulham, Islington and Fitzrovia – and the extent to which they’ve maintained their ratings is an achievement for an expanding group.

“Evolving the humble pizza into something that’s much more”: Michele Pascarella opened five years ago in Chiswick just off the high street in this “small, rather cramped and noisy” spot. Fans say that pizza “doesn’t get better than this” and they are “imaginative” in style, with a selection that‘s “seasonally changing, plus classics”.

“Excellent tapas, half a dozen paellas and good pizza as well” make this “homespun” local by Chiswick’s Bedford Park a “pleasant but simple place to eat”. It’s “very good value”, with an attractive terrace for warmer months.

“The secret is well and truly out now” – “Carl (the owner) makes some of the best pizza in London”, selling out daily from the unpromising-looking Hammersmith boozer he was born in (near the bridge, behind Riverside studios). His ‘pies’ are “insane”, fully justifying “the hype about being the best” created by influencers including Dave Portnoy of America’s Barstool Sports and rapper Action Bronson. A former semi-pro footballer, Carl McCluskey developed his own recipe for NYC-style crisp-base pizza when he took over the Chancellors pub in – yes – Crisp Road when his grandmother retired during the pandemic. He has talked of moving to Mayfair, but as of summer 2024 was still pumping out the pizzas on home turf.