Shamed for going to Pizza Express

[Pizzaexpressshame]

This has been on my mind for a few days. Newish friend and I met up one time and I told her how I was in the same area just a week ago with a friend and we had lunch at pizza express. We planned to meet but not much else, so when we got there we were hungry and PE was just the next thing we walked by.

She pulled a face, saying why pizza express, she knows better places, why did you go there etc. A couple weeks later I met her again at a place she chose and had been to before, which also did pizza and pasta. After we ate she said to me 'So what do you think of this place? I find it much better than Pizza Express'. I just said the food was nice but nothing I hadn't had before.

I felt so looked down upon as if I needed to be shown a better place to have lunch at. I find this friend generally exhausting, as in every conversation, every topic, she needs to come out on top. She had also made some racist remarks a few months ago, which I let slide.

Anyway, I have decided I let go of things friend and know how I am going to do it if she wants to meet up again. I won't ghost her. It was on my mind all week, but I feel really good about myself now. Putting myself first and being assertive. I'll find myself another new friend as I don't feel great around her.

I love Pizza Express but everyone has different tastes.

People love to be snobbish about chain restaurants ....

She's rude. I like Pizza Express. Even if she doesn't, she didn't need to comment like that.

The racist remarks would see her ditched by me, regardless of the food snobbery.

YABU if you didn't have the tiramisu at Pizza Express 😀

Of all the things to get snobby about! I would have laughed in her face. What a life she must lead for that to even be an issue 😅

You can put up with your pal being racist but not her slating pizza?

Seems like a perfectly normal conversation but you know the background, tone etc. To me it's like she's thought ah! She likes pizza, I'll take her to a nice pizza place I know. She's allowed to think its nicer than pizza express, you're allowed to think pizza express is nicer. When she asked you what you thought what did you say?

I like pizza express but I understand wanting to go to non chains and supporting the local area.

I would not let it slide anyone making racist remarks. She isn’t a friend you need!

She had also made some racist remarks a few months ago, which I let slide. oh fgs I missed this bit. Why so passive OP? Why meet up with her again?

So you would not have a problem with her making racist remarks, but her snobbery cannot be overlooked?

I find this friend generally exhausting, as in every conversation, every topic, she needs to come out on top. She had also made some racist remarks a few months ago, which I let slide.

Are you very short of friends?

It doesn’t sound like a friendship worth keeping tbh

@BennyBlancofromtheBronx @hattyhathat she made those remarks at the very start and I couldn't or didn't want to believe she really thinks like that. I was hoping I could connect to her and find out a bit more about her, hoping I'd be proved wrong. In hindsight I was weak and desperate to be out and about with someone.

It depends. If you were in a town (say, Brighton for want of any other place) that has a plethora of really good restaurants and you chose PE over an independent, then I would think you a bit daft but I wouldn’t be arsed to try and ‘re-educate’ you.

At least you recognise it. Now don't stress about pizza express, its fine.

(The racism would have me telling her to go fuck herself however)

When I told her I had been to pizza express, one of her responses was that she knew a much better place. I just couldn't believe that she perhaps thought she needed to show me something 'better' and this was still at it weeks later when we met at this other place.

I have no issue whatsoever with chain restaurants, but cannot stand Pizza Express!
I have a friend who is very snobbish about chains and, when we meet up, they put a lot of effort into finding somewhere non chain, good reviews, a bit different etc. The restaurants are always nice, and I appreciate the effort, but sometimes I just want to meet up and I don't overly care about where

It’s one thing to be snobbish about certain places to eat, but to make some racist remarks? The fact that you let that slide is what makes you are unreasonable, the rest of it shows that she’s not great to have her as a friend and you clearly don’t seem to feel as comfortable around her which is understandable due to her behaviour etc.

@YellowAndGreenToBeSeen honestly we didn't really choose. We just said we meet at X to have lunch first and then browse the shops and cafes. We didn't say we'd have lunch at pizza express. As I said..we got there, were hungry, pizza express was right there and we just went for it. We just wanted food.

I wouldn’t have let any racist remarks slide and wouldn’t have met up with her again after that.
The snobbery and need to “educate” you over a bloody pizza is so patronising and I don’t do well with that either!! I wouldn’t see her again.

Such snobbery. Pizza Express is fine for a cheap and cheerful lunch now and then. I wouldn’t make it a first choice, but that’s purely because it might have noisy kids - the food is ok.

I like Pizza Express. They do a chicken pesto pasta which is delicious & at the one I went to was absolutely huge!

Well done for deciding to ditch her. For what it’s worth, some branches of Pizza Express are in really wonderful old buildings - that used to be part of their USP before the chain got bigger. I can be a food snob but I can’t really find fault with PE. Hope you find a new friend who appreciates a nice Fiorentina with a soft egg!