Uffizzi - Walthamstow

3:31pm Wednesday 5th March 2008

BEST PIZZA in London, proclaims the large sign boldly on the side of Uffizzi, quoting from an undated Time Out review.

Friends who have eaten at the authentic Italian restaurant, named after the famous gallery in Florence, have also spoken highly of the place.

But there is only one way to truly test whether such claims match up to reality, and that is to eat there, so one sunny Sunday two friends and I decided to do just that.

We were offered the special Sunday lunchtime menu, which allows you to have either a pizza or pasta dish and a bottle of Perroni or glass of wine for £6. However, something more substantial was needed so we delved into the a la carte menu instead.

The choice is certainly excellent and also provides value for money, with starters priced between £3 and £6 and mains from as little as £3 for a basic pizza to £13.50. And there were also plenty of non-meat options for the vegetarian in our party.

She opted for the Avocado Della Casa (£5), avocado grilled with gorgonzola cheese, I decided on the cream of asparagus soup with garlic croutons (£4) from the specials board, and the other member of our party went all fishy on us and chose the Calamari Fritti (£5).

Both avocado and asparagus can prove quite overpowering flavours, but happily this wasn't the case, with the Avocado Della Casa very nicely presented and even better tasting, and the soup going down a treat.

The calamari was perfectly cooked, plentiful and came with what appeared to be a whole bag of salad, and although the accompanying tartar sauce more resembled Thousand Island dressing, there were certainly no complaints.

And then it was onto the moment of truth... the pizza. Well, for two of us, anyway, with the other opting for the Cannelloni Della Casa (£6.50), or pancakes filled with veal, beef and herbs and topped with tomato and white sauce, as well as extra cheese.

Sadly the food didn't quite live up to the exciting description, and while tasting fine there was nothing to set it apart from the same dish at any other Italian restaurant.

Onto the pizza, though.... I'm the type of person that pizza chefs hate, as I don't eat cheese. But happily our excellent waiter didn't even bat an eyelid at my request for the Frutti Di Mare (£9.50), or seafood pizza, minus the one thing that essentially makes pizza.

It came topped with squid, clams, mussels, prawns, plus a king prawn in the centre, and plenty of tomato to make up for the lack of cheese, and kept me so happy that I managed to plough through the lot.

Of the six non-meat or fish options, our vegetarian chose the Romana (£7).

This came topped with wild mushrooms, tomato, rocket, mozzarella and ricotta, but sadly didn't prove quite such a hit as it was rather bland with no discernable flavour, despite the generous coating of rocket.

Only one of us chose dessert, the Tiramisu (£3) nice but nothing you couldn't whip up yourself at home, with the others going for tea and coffee (£1.20 each).

Although we ate on a Sunday, there was still a very pleasant atmosphere despite being fairly empty, and the service was certainly excellent , attentive and also just the right amount of time left between each course.

So would I go back? Well, the jury's still out on the pizza at this stage, so it would only be fair to give it a second try.

And if you are looking for somewhere offering excellent value for money for a romantic meal or for a large group, Uffizzi would be a great choice.

UFFIZZI
753-755 Lea Bridge Road,
Walthamstow,
E17 9DZ,
Tel: 020 8509 2259

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