What: A new pizza brand that has made its debut in London’s Westfield Stratford. Described as a ‘hotwire hack straight into La Dolce Vita’, Super Club Roma is an unashamedly bright and bold edition to London’s jam-packed pizza scene.
Who: The Fulham Shore, the group behind Neapolitan pizza brand Franco Manca and The Real Greek, has had its head turned by the burgeoning market for non-Neapolitan style pizzas in London and increasingly across the country. The brand is the brainchild of Marcel Khan, who was appointed CEO of The Fulham Shore a year ago.
The food: Super Club Roma serves a menu of ‘delicately charred crispy Margherita direttamente da Roma’ pizza – otherwise known as thin Roman-style pizzas - and a whole lot of deep-fried food to boot. The eight-strong pizza menu includes the likes of a Marinara Sbagliata, made with San Marzano tomatoes, confit garlic, chilli flakes, and Calabrian oregano; the ‘Nduja with tomatoes, chilli flakes, mozzarella, smoked mountain ham, sweet peppers, roquito honey, and pecorino; the Finocchiona with tomatoes, fennel seeds, fennel salami, goat’s cheese, Tropea onions, mozzarella, and chives; and the Super Nova with toppings that include salami, habanero hot sauce, burratini and pecorino. Pizzas start at £8.50 and rise to £14.50 for the Supernova. The fritti selection, meanwhile (£5-£6), includes cholesterol-inducing but no doubt delicious lasagne with pesto, pecorino and basil; spaghetti with béchamel, garlic, chilli, and aioli; potato crocchettas with smoked mozzarella, aioli, and chives; and ‘nduja bombs’ made with nduja honey. The dessert offer is tight but no less striking - you can choose from a bomboloni soft serve served either plain, with sea salt and extra virgin olive oil, or with chilli and roquito honey; a chocolate pizza; profiteroles; and a rum baba.
To drink: Khan is keen for people to let their hair down when they visit, and this is reflected in the cocktail-heavy drinks offer. Kick off proceedings with a spritz (Aperol, Italo Disco, or Peach Blush) cocktail or frozen cocktail, which include the Negroni; the Kick Ass frozen Margarita made with blanco tequila, orange liqueur, lime juice, and agave nectar; and a Zero Degree Espresso Martini, and finish with one of four house shots of mezcal, tequila, overproof rum, or bourbon. The wine list, meanwhile, is shorter than Danny DeVito kneeling, and features a sparkling red, a white, orange, and pink and a prosecco, and the draught beer comprises just two Italian options - Spazio 001 lager and Spazio 002 pale ale.
The vibe: Subtlety is not the watchword here. Inspired by the Italian Radical Design Movement and the 1980s Italo Disco scene, Super Club Roma uses white tiles as the backdrop at which to throw a ton of colour in the form of art hanging from the ceiling, pink and red retro banquette seating, and an eclectic selection of objet d’art that includes a ‘melted’ glitter ball, a furry table and lamp, and leopard skin curtains. It’s the rebellious, delinquent little brother of Franco Manca, and all the more fun for it.
And another thing: You can access Super Club Roma’s playlist online to get a feel for its overall vibe, with tunes that include Funkytown by Lipps Inc, All That She Wants by Ace of Bass, New Order’s Blue Monday ‘88, and err, Baby One More Time by Britney Spears. We did say it was eclectic...
2 Chestnut Plaza, Montfichet Road, London, E20 1GL
www.superclubroma.com