To think pizza express has officially lost its charm and is not the same place it once was.

We used to go using vouchers when DCs were younger and it was ok depending on the branch. I wouldn’t choose to go there otherwise as there are many independent restaurants with better and more affordable food.

I used to love Pizza Express as a child in the 00s! For some arbitrary reason we were allowed to order Coca Cola in Pizza Express. We got to watch pizzas being made, do some colouring, drink coke and eat a margarita. The vibe was great.

However, in 2018(?) I swore I would NEVER set foot in one again until they apologise for the atrocious first ever vegan pizza they released! I went with my husband, then boyfriend, in a pinch and we were interested in their newly advertised vegan options. I wasn’t taken with the descriptions and just ordered a veggie pizza without cheese. Boyfriend insisted on ordering one of the vegan specials and then said we should share! It was some kind of jackfruit and it was like vomit on a pizza. I took one bite. Most disgusting thing I have ever put in my mouth. They owe me a pizza. I can’t remember exactly what we had been doing/were doing but I know it was really late and I left starving!

There is one on our high street, but there are also 3 excellent independent pizzerias (one run by a conspiracy theorist) that are cheaper!

shit pizzas

Surely you realised those ones would be nasty? I'm sure there are other toppings you could have ordered.

Agree, food in my local one hasn’t changed in the years i’ve been going there.

My kids like to go, I’d certainly pick non chains for a nice meal locally but I always get the same, the legerra pizza with the salad in the middle and it still tastes good to me. Personally in my local one, it’s not really changed.

Define “it went shit” @BlueEyedBogWitch

I’ve been going on and off for thirty years, first as a child, then as a young adult, now as a mother.

The garlic bread, doughballs, classic pizzas… I can’t think of anything in this casual dining sector that has remained more consistent in texture, flavour and menu structure. it’s not gourmet. I’m not going to jump on a roof and sing its praises. Or become a shareholder. But it is consistent and hasn’t changed.

What has become so bad about it that we can now call it “shit”…?! That’s a pretty strong word for it.

Or is it more the boredom factor I see a lot on here - how people like to say that overfamiliar things, popular things are “shit?”

I’ve said YABU because I've always thought it was naff. The pizzas are really bad.

I liked it in the early 90s. Agree it's not great now and hasn't been for at least 20 years.

it makes a change from a curry in the local high street. ie lack of choice
service not good
blue light points equals discount

In the cities I’ve lived in or visited for work or family, I’ve seen Zizzi close, Carluccio’s close, ASK (remember them!!) close, and Bella Italia close.

Pizza Express has remained in all the locations I can think of.

It has remained for a reason , the same reason that the Michelin chef quoted earlier in the thread said.

You know exactly what you’re going to get, it’s decent enough for the price point, and the bambino kids menu - you get a lot for the money.

What I find hilarious is how many folk on this thread are queuing up to say “it’s shit” when it doesn’t pretend to be or set out to be as good as your local Italian or whatever else.

Denigrating restaurants like Pizza Express has become a classic identifier of “I’m in the know, me” on Mumsnet.

The rest of us just get use it for what it is. Sure it’s not La Famiglia or Sale e Pepe but it never set out to be that…

It's fine. I haven't noticed that it's changed. We live in the city that the founder is from. Neither Zizi nor Franca Manca have stayed but we also have some independent pizza restaurants which seem about the same a Pizza Express.

DH is a big fan because of their rewards system.

The one in York was beautiful. It’s in an old building on the river with marble and mirrors everywhere and a grand piano playing in the lobby. They used to have a magician going table to table some evenings.

I think when it started in London, it used to host a jazz club.

I haven’t been for years, because like most things…it went shit.

I think it is expensive for what you get, so I am not sure why it is being described as budget. That said, I agree with previous posters about it being a good option for gluten free (DD has coeliac disease and we went now and then when visiting her at university for lunch out)

Pizza in any chain is invariably rubbish. Pizza express has always had cardboard pizza.

Go to a family-owned Italian for decent pizza.

Its never been good. Zizzi is so much better.

@Tigerbalmshark pizza alle noci, best pizza ever. Am also similarly aggrieved.

The one by me used to be great, but now it's got scribble on the walls, is VERY LOUD because of the noise from kids yelling or on iPads and the pull between deliveroo and actual customers means service is very slow. I love pizza and it's my closest pizza place, but it's not a cheap option anymore and for the prices they charge, I could get better food and service elsewhere.

I think, like many things, it's got it's place. We've been a few times recently as we've got young kids and the 4yo adores pizza so will happily eat a kids meal and we can buy a separate small pizza for the baby. Most other places in our town aren't really set up for kids. But DH and I wouldn't go for a grown up meal just the two of us.

Pizza Express was fab when it started, some time in the 70s I think. The problem is it changed hands and now sells American, rather than Italian pizza. The rest of the menu is American fast food, too.

I think is started going downhill after that run of 2-1 meals, what, maybe 25 years ago. Haven’t been in for years now.

it was the biggest treat my husabnd ever gave me - I even had to drag him there

Used to enjoy going there 20 odd years ago with the kids who used to love standing on the stairs overlooking the pizza prep station/oven watching the pizzas being made. Kept them entertained for ages!

YABU for going to Pizza Express and not having the tiramisu.

We went recently to the one in Kew and had a great time. I hadn’t been in a while but I loved the pizzas. Not cheap, at £20 for an individual pizza, but so much better than Domino’s etc.

I used to go a lot with my friend when we were in our early 20s in the 00s and then again when I had small children - I used to get annoyed because they started to get really stingy with the pesto on the bruschetta. I gradually stopped going. I think the last time I visited was about four years ago and I didn’t have the vouchers people mention, so I felt it was overpriced for what I got and the pizza toppings were stingy.

Whenever I had an overnight stay for work on my own, I'd go to Pizza Express for the same reason. Could always find one in any city and knew what I'd order would be reliable with a Montepulciano.