NOW CLOSED: PizzaExpress have a new kids Piccolo menu. Tell them what you think of it and be in with a chance of winning one of two £80 vouchers

[AnnMumsnet]

PizzaExpress is releasing a new kids menu and to coincide with the launch, they'd love you to hear what you think of it.

PizzaExpress say "We know how stressful meal times can be, so we have worked hard on our new Create Your Own Piccolo menu to make sure that your kids can have more choice, they can now even choose a Gluten-free base. We believe in treating kids like mini adults, they should be able to choose exactly what they want and therefore enjoy eating their favourite pizza".

Here's a link to the new menu if you haven?t had the chance to try it out for yourself yet.

So:

~ Have you tried out the new Create your Own piccolo menu and if you have, what did you think of it?

~ If you hadn't seen it yet, what are your initial reactions to the menu?

~ Do you think your kids will enjoy the 'create your own' element of the menu? Will it make them feel more involved and interested in eating the food? What combinations would they choose?

Everyone who shares their thoughts on this thread will be entered into a draw in which two winners will each win a £80 PizzaExpress voucher for a family meal.

Thanks and good luck!
MNHQ

PS check out their Facebook comp for a chance for your child to win an Italian cookery lesson.

[Newpencilcase]

~ Have you tried out the new Create your Own piccolo menu and if you have, what did you think of it?

• we haven't tried it out yet but eat at pizza express regularly
  

~ If you hadn't seen it yet, what are your initial reactions to the menu?

• I like the 'increase size for £1' as DS1 (7) is just getting to big for the portion sizes and wanted to move up to a proper pizza
  
• my children always liked the cheese pasta but wouldn't eat mushrooms.
  
• I can understand why some little ones would want it but £6.50 for
  

pasta and butter is a bit cheeky.

• desserts look good but something fruity would also be nice.
  

~ Do you think your kids will enjoy the 'create your own' element of the menu? Will it make them feel more involved and interested in eating the food? What combinations would they choose?

• I don't think it would make a difference to them. I think you need to do one or the other. i.e. don't have menu choices and then charge extra for changes, especially when a margherita is the same price as the others on the menu. Just offer standard margherita with 3 toppings of your choice included. They would just choose ham anyway.

[tinypumpkin]

Have you tried out the new Create your Own piccolo menu and if you have, what did you think of it?

No, have not tried it yet.

~ If you hadn't seen it yet, what are your initial reactions to the menu?

Looks good mostly. I would like another veggie option for the pizza. I find these lacking generally tbh. I like the pasta options.

~ Do you think your kids will enjoy the 'create your own' element of the menu? Will it make them feel more involved and interested in eating the food? What combinations would they choose?

Yes, I think the children will like this. Not sure what they would choose, olives probably.

[makemineapinot]

No, we haven't tried it yet but no doubt will do soon!

Initial reaction:
I like the upgrade option to a bigger pizza for £1 as ds is 11 and the previous piccolo menu was getting too small. Would be good if you could also get bigger pasta portions as adult ones are too big, kids size too small. Nice variety, dd will love the chicken pizza! I know my friend's ds will love the pasta with garlic butter option as this is what he always asks for when we go!

Yes both of my dc will enjoy the Make your own pizza but ds will still just choose margarita or may be brave and have chicken. Dd will want her own meat feast with pepperoni, ham, chicken, beef....

[MildredIsMyAlterEgo]

~ Have you tried out the new Create your Own piccolo menu and if you have, what did you think of it?
Haven't tried it yet

~ If you hadn't seen it yet, what are your initial reactions to the menu?
Looks good, with good choices. I think DS would love the bambinoccino.

~ Do you think your kids will enjoy the 'create your own' element of the menu? Will it make them feel more involved and interested in eating the food? What combinations would they choose?
DS likes being involved like this with food and loves to eat food he has helped to make at home, so yes I think the create your own is a good idea. He would probably want a bit of everything available on his own pizza!

[runningforme]

~ Have you tried out the new Create your Own piccolo menu and if you have, what did you think of it?

No, not yet.

~ If you hadn't seen it yet, what are your initial reactions to the menu?

It looks a bit sparse....suitable for kids that are picky eaters, but nothing particularly interesting. And only one choice of starter?

~ Do you think your kids will enjoy the 'create your own' element of the menu? Will it make them feel more involved and interested in eating the food? What combinations would they choose?

Can't you do this anyway when you order pizza, not sure why this is seen as 'special' for the kids....they do enjoy this though

I think that having the option to order half portions of the dishes on the adults menu is a better approach to kids' dining than a few standard meals that aren't that different to what I'd serve at home

[supergreenuk]

No haven't tried it or seen it but now I have looked at the menu I like it. Prezzo so a similar thing and the children love the variety that turns up on the table for them. They share a meal though as its too much food for one. They love the baby chino too.
I can't see how much this is? I happily pay £5.99 at prezzo. Seems expensive at first glance but they get loads.

[whatagreatname]

Have you tried out the new Create your Own piccolo menu and if you have, what did you think of it?
No not tried it yet

If you hadn't seen it yet, what are your initial reactions to the menu?
I like the extra pasta choices as my daughter often chooses pasta over pizza, she will love the garlic butter. I really like the extra choices of desserts. My son doesn't like ice cream and so we have alsways ended up getting him a full size choc fudge cake or brownie - this is much better!

Do you think your kids will enjoy the 'create your own' element of the menu? Will it make them feel more involved and interested in eating the food? What combinations would they choose?
When they have pizza, my children do tend to stick to Margherita or sometimes have La Reine but without olives. I don't think this would change with the new menu.

[lifeishunkydory]

~ Have you tried out the new Create your Own piccolo menu and if you have, what did you think of it?

Not tried it yet, went last week without the children (shhh )

~ If you hadn't seen it yet, what are your initial reactions to the menu?

Not read the whole thread but I have seen a few replies that echo my own, not really spectacular and I am sure there used to be the option od dough balls with nutella for a dessert. However as there is only dough balls for a starter I can see why this was dropped, I would prefer a couple of other starter options. The pasta loks particularly uninspiring.


~ Do you think your kids will enjoy the 'create your own' element of the menu? Will it make them feel more involved and interested in eating the food? What combinations would they choose?

DD and DS4 wouldlove the choose your own, (DS1 is too old for a childrens menu and DS2 struggles with choices), DD would go fr very plain options but would be happy she could add and remove ingredients. DS4 loves big tastes, he would want to add capers and olives to anything and everything.

[Sirzy]

I think its a pretty boring menu really. Wouldn't make me rush to take DS there

[fuzzpig]

Went to pizza express today specifically because this thread alerted me to the new gluten free options! We were child free (a rare date :)) so didn't try the piccolo menu but just wanted to say DH was quite pleased with the GF food. The brownie was really nice, the pizza was good although DH said the base was a bit 'cracker-like'

That said it is REALLY nice to be able to go out for Italian and know that DH isn't ridiculously limited on choice. Very glad PE has stepped up :)

[lorka]

Haven't tried it yet but it looks good. I like the create your own menu and the fact you can upgrade the pizza to make it bigger which my son would like.
The menu looks great - I think the pizzas and bolognese would be favourites. My kids absolutely love Pizza Express especially the dough balls.
Can't wait to try out the new menu.

[MsMarple]

~ Have you tried out the new Create your Own piccolo menu and if you have, what did you think of it?

Yes, but DS1 (creature of habit) just wanted what he always had from the old menu. I like that you have a children's menu option, but it would be much better for us if the items were priced individually as DS1 rarely has room for three courses, even at child sizes. It feels like a waste to pay for it all then not eat it.


~ Do you think your kids will enjoy the 'create your own' element of the menu? Will it make them feel more involved and interested in eating the food? What combinations would they choose?

He will only really choose the plainest pizza or pasta and is v suspicious of any strange bits. If I assure him something is just ham he might not pick it off, but then again he might. Sorry, but your choices are wasted on him - hopefully others will appreciate them instead!

[yawningbear]

We haven't tried it yet but we are going on Thursday for DP's 40th, lucky him! It doesn't look that different but more flexibility which is good. Pasta option will be helpful for non pizza lovers and I like that you can just order a main for little ones.

DD would enjoy creating her own I think, she usually goes for La Reine as she is a big olive lover but I think she could be persuaded to try something else so long as olives were involved.

[Belo]

I thought I would come back to say that we have now tried the new menu and it went down well. DD1 (aged 10) loved the fact that you could get balsamic vinegar instead of the butter with the doughballs. She thought it was a healthier choice! So, we liked that.

However, there was some confusion about the extras for the pizza. Both dds wanted to add olives. It looked like from the bill they would be free as it was described as 'on us'. However, when we got the bill we were charged 95p per child. That worked out at .20p per olive. I wasn't that impressed. We were refunded the money in the end as the staff didn't seem to know whether or not we should be charged. I think that needs be cleared up.

[GetKnitted]

We haven't tried out the new menu, but actually we've been asking staff to do the la reine without mushrooms for our (5yo) ds for 2 years now, they've always been happy to, so I was surprised to ability to remove toppings as a feature of the new menu. Ironically (at least in the Alanis Morissette way), we have just converted him to liking mushrooms on pizza, so we won't actually have to ask for any changes next time we go in.

I am really pleased to see that you can order just the kids main, that will be excellent for our 1 yo.

I doubt our ds would make use of the create your own, because it is quite limited, and not to his taste. But our local pizza express lets the kids play with the raw dough and have it cooked, which is a really nice touch and makes for a special night out.

[ChocolateMama]

My kids loved the old Picola menu and having looked at the new one, I think that they will love this one even more. They will really enjoy being able to add things to their pizzas as they are quite fussy eaters and like to be in charge of what they eat! Only problem is, think this will mean even more trips to PizzaExpress for our family as it is the kids favourite restaurant.

[snowgal]

~ Have you tried out the new Create your Own piccolo menu and if you have, what did you think of it?

Not had chance yet but hope to get to a restaurant in the near future

~ If you hadn't seen it yet, what are your initial reactions to the menu?

Seems to be a better range of pasta dishes, which suits us well. My son doesn't really like pizza yet (he's only 1.5yr) but loves pasta so the choice of sauces is a great addition. Slightly disappointed that there isn't a fruit alternative for the dessert, he's too little at the moment for me to happily feed him fudge cake or ice cream, I would rather there was a fruit salad/skewer option. Thought I'm sure when he's old enough the current dessert options will go down a storm! Happy with the babyccino, think the boy should be drinking water with meals anyway, I don't want to encourage him to drink juice when we're out and about.

~ Do you think your kids will enjoy the 'create your own' element of the menu? Will it make them feel more involved and interested in eating the food? What combinations would they choose?

I would imagine the "create your own" element adds a little more interest but knowing my niece and nephew they would probably prefer to order something directly off the menu - sometimes choice slows down what should hopefully be a relatively quick meal. I choose pizza express because because it's fresh, and relatively fast food where we can almost start my son's meal instantly, the last thing I need is to be hanging around with a grumbly hungry toddler!

[MadBannersAndCopPorn]

This is the first time I have seen the menu!

I like the fact that it looks like an adult menu. It's hard to get my 10 year old step-daughter to eat from children's menus as they're often babyish with cartoon characters etc.
She would feel confident ordering from it, like an adult.
We have an 11 month old daughter too and I like the fact she could have something to eat with her fingers or be spoon fed. The fact that there's an option for just a main for babies is great as most places will only provide the menu which is way too much for her.

Again, for a slightly older child, getting that individual attention from a waiter/waitress means a lot. Being able to pick and choose what they have on the pizza means they're in control of what they're eating, and are more likely to eat it. For picky and more adventurous children alike it's a great way to make sure that everyone's happy and eating what they want; which is the point of going somewhere to eat out in the first place!

[eteo]

i have not try them yet.

it is interesting but my kids are too young to understand. but i do think it is great. my daughter is very picky as she only eat certain foods.

[moonbells]

Have you tried out the new Create your Own piccolo menu and if you have, what did you think of it?

Hadn't tried it.

If you hadn't seen it yet, what are your initial reactions to the menu?

Still got those dratted doughballs on as the only starter! We all dislike them and so if they don't get eaten they're wasted. Don't like wasting food. Dessert would be nicer if it had fruit with ice cream and not a sickly sauce.

Do you think your kids will enjoy the 'create your own' element of the menu? Will it make them feel more involved and interested in eating the food? What combinations would they choose?

It might be nice to try, DS likes mushrooms and for the past year at P.E. he has been eating a whole adult mushroom pizza and ignoring the piccolo one. He's 5. And a pizza piggie.

I very much suspect he'll still want the big shroom pizza and not the kid's one!

[mrspink27]

~ Have you tried out the new Create your Own piccolo menu and if you have, what did you think of it?

Tried it tonight - DD1 opted for usual bog standard margarita and DD2 had the bigger rolled thinner... at an extra £1... which irked me a bit as it is just the same amount of dough... just rolled out a bit flatter. She did enjoy it though. They both quite liked the choice of pasta, although again, if you go to Pizza Express - you should really have pizza?! They were both disappointed that the doughballs and nutella has gone from the menu though!

~ If you hadn't seen it yet, what are your initial reactions to the menu?

DD's initial reactions were good - especially at the thought of different desserts.

~ Do you think your kids will enjoy the 'create your own' element of the menu? Will it make them feel more involved and interested in eating the food? What combinations would they choose?

DD1 will probably always be a margarita girl and DD2 might one day add a mushroom or two. Apart from that they are disappointingly unadventurous.

As an aside - I used Tesco vouchers with no issue whatsover to pay for the bulk of the bill which included 2 Piccolo meals.

[HannahLI]

We havent tried the new menu but I like the look of it and the choose your own option would really work for us. I didn't see the point of the dough balls and side salad I would just prefer dough balls as thats the same as the adult menu. It would be better to offer the side salad with the pizza in my opinion. I also like the gluten free menu we have lots of friends that this would be a great help to!

[Reastie]

Right, I'm back as we went to Pizza Express yesterday for lunch having seen the menu and commented on the thread (and finding out they do gluten free pizzas which I was very excited about ). I had said gluten free pizza and it was nice. I ordered a margarita but asked for it without garlic oil and it came just passata and mozzarella on the top, no basil which would have been nice. We were given the childrens menu for DD but opted for her to have a little bit of ours. She's only 2 and wouldn't eat enough to buy her something specific.

I must admit I'm now a bit confused about the children's menu. There were alot of children there in the restaurant eating food presumably from the children's menu. There was a big table at the back where I saw 2 children rolling out their own pizza dough and shaping it (didn't seem part of a party of anything and only 2 of them) but I never saw anyone else doing this, so I'm wondering why they were and no one else was

[soundstrue]

~ Have you tried out the new Create your Own piccolo menu and if you have, what did you think of it?

No, not yet.

~ If you hadn't seen it yet, what are your initial reactions to the menu?

Looks good. I think it's great that there is a gluten free option on the pizza.

~ Do you think your kids will enjoy the 'create your own' element of the menu? Will it make them feel more involved and interested in eating the food? What combinations would they choose?

My kids are still young so for the moment they would choose an American pizza. They might like the 'create your own' when they get older.