Pizza Express

Through the joys of social networking, I learnt yesterday that Pizza Express are the next restaurant to jump on the gluten free bandwagon.  Great news! 

I then did a bit of research and was quite disappointed after finding out that they'd trialed this in a few of their branches last year. It would seem that back then, they were targetting the fad dieters, even stating on their menu "We know lots of you are now going gluten free.." They also had a disclaimer stating that, although the pizza bases were gluten free, because they used flour in their fresh dough, the couldn't guarantee that they won't contain any gluten. Pointless for anyone with coeliac disease, and not worth the risk!

I have since found out that, like Domino's and Pizza Hut, Pizza Express have been working closely with Coeliac UK to produce a safe menu for coeliacs, not just people who are going gluten free as a lifestyle choice.

Take a look at the e-mail below:

Hello, 

In the last few months you have contacted us to ask about gluten-free options on our menu, so I wanted to write to you with what I hope you will agree is some great news. 

From Tuesday 30th April, PizzaExpress will be offering an exciting new range of dishes that have been certified as ‘No Gluten Containing Ingredients’ (NGCI) by Coeliac UK. Given our love for pizza, we’re particularly pleased to tell you that you’ll be able to order nearly all of our pizza recipes, with the exception of just a couple of ingredients, on a gluten-free classic pizza base. We’ll also have a number of other gluten-free dishes for you to choose from, including a new Risotto d’Oro starter, a gluten-free Brownie for dessert and even a gluten-free Pilsner beer.  

To help us create these new dishes, we’ve been working closely with Coeliac UK to make sure that we fully understand the changes we can make in our kitchens and with our teams. This way we hope that you can have confidence when ordering gluten-free products in our restaurants.
For example, every one of our team members has been trained to deliver gluten-free dishes to our customers safely. We have also taken a number of steps to prepare our kitchens for our new menu, including clear labelling and storage of gluten-free ingredients, as well as new equipment to be used only for the preparation of gluten-free food. Finally, our pizzaiolos use flour to toss and stretch our dough in our restaurant kitchens so, to avoid any risk of cross-contamination, we have replaced all the flour used in these kitchens with a new blend that is gluten-free.  

We sent our new menu off for testing and we’re very pleased to say that all the results showed that our dishes either had untraceable amounts of gluten, or fell within the accepted parameters for gluten-free food. We will, of course, continue to carry out these tests so that you can always be confident in the food that you order in our restaurants.  

Thank you for waiting while we’ve worked to ensure we do our gluten-free food the right way. 

We hope that you love it as much as we do.  

Yours sincerely,
PizzaExpress Restaurants Ltd

Thankfully, my skepticism has been alleviated now I know that they've created their menu with Coeliac UK, rather than just tailoring to fad dieters, and I now can't wait to try their new menu!

REVIEW: Pizza Hut

It's here! The Holy Grail to many coeliacs. With such mainstream restaurants as Zizzi and Bella Italia already long on board with gluten-free pizzas, we have all been waiting for the more well-known pizza joints to jump on board for years. We didn't think it was ever going to happen, and then in the space of a week we hear that Pizza Hut, Domino's and Prezzo are all joining in!

I went to my local Pizza Hut last night and am here to give you my opinion!

When we arrived at the restaurant, we were greeted and seated by the manager, so I was able to ask all my questions before we ordered. I asked how they were prepared, how they avoid cross-contamination, how it is cooked etc and placed my order. A short while later, out came my pizza:

Isn't it pretty? I was made up with it! It comes as a standard 9" square base, which I actually think is better than the round pizzas. No crust, but toppings right to the edge!

It tasted fantastic, possibly one of the best gluten-free pizzas I've had to date if I'm honest. I was expecting a thin, concrete base as I have been served in other restaurants, but it wasn't like that. You can still tell it's gluten-free, let's be realistic here. But it was light and not too cloying. The only downside for me is that there wasn't enough sauce on it, but I think that's just down to personal preference and it did not detract from the taste of the pizza.

HOWEVER. PLEASE BE WARNED! At the time the pizzas were launched, Pizza Hut claimed that all of their toppings were now gluten-free. This is not the case. If you look here and scroll down to the toppings section, Pepperoni and Ground Beef are highlighted as 'C' - "'C' means that this allergen is present in the manufacturing site/factory/supply chain & our suppliers believe there is a risk that this allergen could cross-contaminate the food."

It is entirely your choice as to whether you would risk having those toppings based on that information, I personally would not, but as pepperoni is probably one of the most popular pizza toppings, I think it's worth pointing out that risk.

You still get the free salad bowl with your meal at Pizza Hut, but again this is at your own risk as there is quite a high chance of cross-contamination at the salad station. About half of the products there are gluten-free, but there are also a few toppings, coleslaw, pasta, croutons etc to steer clear of and it would only take one tiny spillage to contaminate some of the 'safe' food. Personally, I did take the risk here after inspecting the area. The restaurant wasn't busy at all and everything looked fine. Had it been during a busy period I probably wouldn't have chanced it.

Take a look at the allergy menu above, there are a few other items on there that are safe for coeliacs such as the Nachos (but not the salsa - what's the point?) and the ice cream (but not the sauces!) and a few of the toppings.

Still, it's a great start to be able to have a Pizza Hut pizza, and hopefully they will expand their menu when they see how popular it is. It might also encourage even more mainstream restaurants to jump on board!

I had a great meal, and no nasty after effects either!

Roll on November so I can FINALLY order from Domino's, instead of looking longingly at my boyfriend's takeaway pizza while I tuck into a plate of salad!