Up on the roof....

When London is kissed by the sun, there are fewer places in the world that I would rather be. Sadly, we seem to be in the midst of one of those summers where the seasons in colour is grey and dappled with rain. Thing is, when the weather does take a turn for the better, there aren't many better places to be than on a sunny rooftop, eating, drinking and being merry.I'm not sure how I did it, but I managed just that, two sunny days in London, two rooftops and excellent times.

Santa Maria, pizza to make you smile

"All men are made equal", but the more I eat and try new food, I realise that those immortal words certainly don’t ring true about food. All food is different. Even the same food is different. For example, take the humble burger, one of the most hotly discussed topic amongst my food loving twitter friends. Open or closed, sauced or unsauced, cheddar or American, pink, how pink? With such a plethora of requirements and protocol around the humble burger, I guess it is unsurprising that many other comestibles have a strict list of points to make it “right”.

Cheeky Preview: Pizza Pilgrims, Soho

We all know street food is kind of a big deal at the moment, and rightly so. Everybody discerning Soho worker loves a big blow out on a slap up meal, but this is normally restricted to dinner times (unless you are a media guru with a wanton disregard of your companies expense budget and/or afternoons). Being able to pick up something cheap and delicious that you can enjoy on the go/at your desk is never that easy a task and is often disappointing, but can you imagine a world where you can get a delicious pizza quickly and cheaply as a takeaway lunch? Me neither.

That is until I met the Pizza Pilgrims. Two brothers who spent a few months travelling around Italy eating and learning about pizza, only to return to London to set up their own company. Jacking in their careers in media, and joining up with a 3rd "pilgrim", they created their travelling pizza oven on the back of an old three wheeled Piaggio van and are planning to bring hand held pizzas to a street side near you.

I was invited along to a pre-pre-launch tasting to see if they could make their pizzas better, and oh boy, those boys have got it nailed. First up was an ingredients test, trying out some Laverstoke Park buffalo mozzarella versus their cheese of choice, an imported Italian fior de latte, both unique in their own ways, but equally delicious raw. Best of all was a taster of their scamorza (or smoked mozzarella) which had a subtle oaky flavour. Finally, a shot of san marzano puree and a taste of their cooked dough. So eager was I to taste the final product, that I reconstructed their deconstructed pizza. And good it was too.

So there it is in all it's beauty, the finished pizza. Looks good doesn't it? Upon the first bite, the quality of the ingredients were clear. Even as the slow dribble of molten cheese slowly made it's way down my chin, burning everything in its path, I couldn't help but stick it out and savour the sweet mingle of dough, tomato and cheese. As I finished up that slice, more just kept on coming, just different variations on cheese and even one flecked with nduja that was top notch.

Whilst we digested the frankly obscene amounts of pizza we had just consumed, we had bowl of buffalo milk ice cream drizzled with flecks of salt and olive oil, another taste sensation (seriously, you should all try it). I love what these guys are doing, and the fact that they were already producing a top notch product out of the back of what is essentially a robin reliant, which can rival any high street pizza restaurant is just madness. Or genius. Keep an eye for updates via either their twitter account or their website, but expect an announcement over the next few weeks to find out where you too can get your chops around their pizzas.

Pizza Pilgrims - TBC (but Soho)

Will the real Franco Manca please stand up, Chiswick

When I think of Franca Manca, I think of getting up far too early on a Saturday morning so I can avoid the queue. I think of stinky fish markets and of cramped benches. Most of all, I think of Brixton.



All that has changed. I never thought it would happen, but Franco Manca have taken their outdoor(ish) venture and moved into a proper restaurant. It has heating and it's own roof too! Located on Chiswick High street, it is bright, airy and colourful with another of those Neapolitan wood burning ovens taking center stage. The only hint of fish came from the anchovies littered on their "number 4" pizza.



The first thing that struck me was that it was surprisingly empty. I am accustomed to queuing and looking on enviously for my turn, but the rather large space had few customers. It is very early days so I anticipate the queues will soon form but I for one was pleased to be able to sit down straight away.





So how was it? Well, I found things slightly "off". From the minute the orange lemonade turned up without the tart hit I am used to, to when I found what looked suspiciously like the top of a pine cone in my pizza, I felt rather underwhelmed. You cannot doubt the quality of the pizza, although the salt content was through the roof. And when the waitress took the offending item away to check that it wouldn't "poison me" (she came back claiming it was the top of an aubergine, it clearly wasn't), my heart just sank.



Franco Manca Chiswick is still home to an excellent pizza but it has a long way to go if it wants to be an excellent dining experience. I would immediately address the saltiness (I am sure it has never been this salty in Brixton), I would add some desserts to the menu and I would let the punters have milk in their coffee.

Franco Manca (website) - 144 Chiswick High Road, London W4 1PU

A not so hidden gem in Brixton. Franco Manca

Its taken me a while, but I have finally managed to make it all the way to Brixton and sample the delights of Franco Manca, a pizzeria making and selling Neapolitan style pizzas located in the heart of Brixton Market. The embarrassing thing is that I live literally 10 minutes away by bus, and coming from a self-confessed pizza fan, I hang my head in shame that I had never made the journey earlier.



Anyway, confessions aside, Brixton Market can be a bit of a maze. Split up into various sections, it came across as a warren of corridors, filled with exotic fruit and veg, strange people selling even stranger produce and a wealth of shops peddling African women's hair products. In amongst the madness, you will eventually come across Franco Manca, an open fronted restaurant split in half by the meandering halls and a massive wood fired oven either side.



We were early, as we were warned that arriving a minute past twelve meant certain queuing. In fact, so early were we that we ended up in the deli/bakery next door (Wild Caper for those that may be interested), where we sampled two lovely coffees and bought some fine sourdough bread (my sister bought some sprouts, but I'm not really into that sort of thing).



Dang, we took our eye off the ball. 11:50 and the seats were all nearly filled! How this happened, I will never know but we managed to snaffle the last two seats and gazed at the menu. The menu is curt to say the least with 6 pizzas on the main menu and 2 on the specials. I desperately wanted to try one of the "white" pizza specials, but I needed to try the tomato base first so chorizo with extra mushrooms for me. The sister went for a number 4, the salty special (capers, anchovies, olives etc...).



We had also ordered a side salad and I hate to say it, but this nearly stole the show. Not only was it beautiful to look at, but each constituent part was well thought out and tasted fresh and light. Purple sprouts, an assortment of herbs and leaves and even a few chickpeas added great contrasts in flavour, pepperiness and texture, with the slightly sweet vinaigrette adding the icing on the cake.



And then the pizza's appeared, and they were everything you could want in a pizza. Arriving with that slight char from the wood ovens, dough bubbling at the edges then crisping up to give that requisite crunch. Thin and light throughout, complemented by top quality ingredients, all sourced by the owner himself, the proud providence of the ingredients displayed on each and every menu. This really was quite special.



I really want to proclaim Franco Manca as one of those hidden local neighbourhood gems, but as the queues testify, this is anything but. The word is out and the masses flock to Brixton to sample these fine pizza's. I asked the waitress if they were considering expanding and she politely declined to answer. Secretly, I hope they don't. If they rolled this out it would certainly lose a large amount of its charm, and I certainly don't think your going to find a better location than in the heart of Brixton Market.



Franco Manca (website) - 4 Market Row, Electric Lane, Brixton, SW9 8LD