Can a Foodie Like a Pizza?

Of course.  Providing said Foodie is standing in some Italian square snacking on the real deal before nipping into the next wine bar.

Ha! 

We're still human and I don't know about others, but I like a drink.  And when I have a drink (rather when I have a few) I get peckish.

Living in town, a lot of nights out with friends end up with everyone back at ours and the lads being sent out to fetch pizza.

Normally it's Murdoch's.  They're cheap and cheerful and around the corner; perfect for that 3am pizza fest. 

And I tell you what, at 3am after a night on the town, these pizzas taste truly amazing.  With that in mind, Gav and I tried them sober once.  Urgh!  Not good.  Not good.  At all.

So my experience of pizzas is rather limited, and poor.  If we ever have them for dinner at home, we will either make them from scratch or buy them from Waitrose (bar far the best supermarket for pizzas).  The takeaway pizza is reserved for drunken nights only.

So when Domino's asked me if I would like a voucher for a free pizza in return for a blogpost, I wasn't too sure.  I like to keep things honest and although I'm not scared of writing a bad review, I don't like to kick a gift horse in the mouth either.

Hmmmm.  In the end I decided to just do it.  After all Domino's approached me and I didn't owe them anything.  Free pizza or no free pizza!

So one sober(ish) Friday night I and my voucher popped out to the West Street, Sheffield branch.  Gav and I had already perused the pizza menu set our minds on the Firenze which is new to Domino's thanks to their Gourmet Range.  It's described as 'Ventricina Salami, Pepperoni and Peruvian Roquito Peppers on a thin crust base'.  We like a bit of heat, it was free of chicken (I'm funny about non-free range chicken) and, let's face it, it sounded a bit posh.

The thin crust base did it for me too.  I hate deep pan (it ruins the cheese to dough ratio) and after a rather bad experience of Domino's Double Decadence, an attempt to sandwich the bases of a pizza with some vile cheesy sauce (my first and last Domino's pizza before tonight), I know not to mess with the crust, so there was no stuffing either.

As I entered the shop (which is still relatively new) I was immediately welcomed by about 16 members of staff.  I handed over my voucher and mass confusion ensued.  Eventually we got there and my order was processed.  A large Firenze.

Immediately the production line got to work.  I swear, at one point there were about 5 different people working on my toppings!

When I made the order I was told it would take 8 minutes.  Now I didn't time it, but I reckon 8 minutes was about right.

Back home, I opened the box.

It looked good.

I took a slice and went for it...... and you know what?  It was alright! 

The crust was thin, as promised, and light.  And, I'm not sure, but there may have been some panko breadcrumbs in there too (at least I saw one of the 16 in the store roll the dough in some crumb like stuff, and it would explain the crisp, but not crunchy texture).  Edit - Quick thanks to @GazzamatazzZ who can confirm that it's actually semolina, not panko breadcrumbs that are used.  Panko breadcrumbs?  Whatever was I thinking?!

The meat was tasty and the peppers were sweet and all in all it was a good pizza.  In fact, if we'd have put the heating on and shut our eyes we could have been back in that Italian square.

Ok, maybe it wasn't that good, but it was way better than I thought it would be and I enjoyed it.

The only hurdle for me is the price.  My God.  It was good, but £15.99 for a pizza?  Really?

Now this is where the offers come in.  Under their Carryout Special offer you could pick up one of these for £10.99.  There's also a buy one, get one half price deal which is pretty good if there's a few of you eating.  Ok, it's never gonna be as cheap as Murdoch's, but that's probably for the best really.

Will I eat there again?  Maybe.  But I will stick to the cheap and cheerful for those drunken moments when quantity is top priority, not quality. 

For a quick and easy tea, Domino's ain't a bad takeaway option.