Zizzi is the first restaurant chain in the UK to provide a vegan menu and vegan pizza options that include a mozzarella alternative, allowing anyone who is dairy free or vegan to enjoy great pizza when dining out.
Amazing to hear of the UK’s first vegan cheesy pizza at mainstream restaurant Zizzi and even more delighted when VeggieVision TV was invited to be one of the first to try it out.
Seeing a vegan menu in a high street restaurant is so exciting and a step that we know other eateries will follow if they want to move with the times and cater for us vegan foodies – we have money to spend like everyone else!
Zizzi are using a dairy free cheese called Mozzarisella and as well as being 100% vegan it is organic too and made entirely from germinated, Italian whole rice, without milk and lactose.
Having never been to a Zizzi before we loved the décor and service too.
We went for the giant olives, the best we have ever eaten and shared garlic bread and a bruschetta. All were delicious. The garlic bread is a flat bread and Callum loved it. The tomatoes on the bruschetta were rich and delicious although Glyn felt it needed more herbs.
The pizzas are on quite a thin base and at £7.95 a reasonable price. You can add any toppings you like at 80p each so don’t get too carried away.
We had a pizza with olives, one with garlic and artichokes and one with caramelised balsamic onions and field mushrooms.
The cheese is mild and the consistency is like a thick cheesy sauce. We all loved it and there was something quite super about having something cheesy off of the menu – and much better than taking your own cheese in too.
Although we loved the pizza we are a fan of lots of toppings and when made at home you can’t see the base for the amount of toppings we have on our pizzas however this is unlikely to be the ‘proper’ way of making a pizza!
We also tried their Coconut & Mango Swirl Gelato – it is really creamy and we feel will become a firm favourite whether you are dairy free or not and although we didn’t indulge this time it’s great to see that the majority of Zizzi’s wines are vegan-friendly too!
Vegan sides include;
- Tenderstem broccoli
- Mixed leaf, tomato & spring onion salad
- Green beans
- Italian naked slaw of rocket, fennel & beetroot
- Tuscan potatoes
Not a cheap night out, however you get what you pay for! Zizzi is also part of Tastecard and they have flyers for a free desert or starter when buying a main meal mid week so there are a few deals to be had.
We also chatted with Kathryn Wilson Head of Food Development at Zizzi….
Why did you think of catering for vegans Kathryn?
We like to offer as much diversity as possible for our customers, we have had increasing enquiries regarding vegan food and can see there is a growing demand for great tasting vegan food that does not require items to be removed from the dish to make it suitable.
We wanted to find a great ‘Cheese alternative’ product that we could utilise to provide our vegan customers with a full Zizzi pizza experience. We were really excited when we found MozzaRisella – which is made germinated wholegrain brown rice. It was designed by a third generation cheesemonger and an expert on germinated cereal products, not only are the makers extremely passionate about the product, it is the best tasting vegan cheese on the market and melts exactly like a buffalo mozzarella so vegans can have an authentic tasting pizza.
And it is delicious! We wish were could have come to the food tastings! So do you see a lot of vegans at Zizzi?
We did have a small amount of vegan options previously, but the demand has increased, we especially see more enquires at Christmas time with parties.
Thats great to hear. Us vegans love our food however sometimes we are not as vocal as we need to be. Were customers asking for dairy free cheese?
This was not something we had huge amounts enquires about but we were conscious of providing full dishes for customers rather than having to customise existing dishes.
How long are you planning on keeping a vegan menu? Is it a case of use it or lose it?!
Our reason for listing it was as we like to offer diversity, so will absolutely be keeping this on our menu. Our new vegan range has been live for 3 days and we have had a great up take of the product, much more than initially expected! and are looking to build on our offer.
Amazing to hear! Will you expand and change the vegan offerings if you see a good response?
As the initial feedback has been overwhelmingly positive we are already working on further options for our Autumn & Christmas menu.
Well on behalf of all of the vegans in the UK who feel un heard, and ignored we thank you Zizzi for thinking of us and helping us to enjoy a great night out like everyone else can. It really means a great deal. Us vegans love our food! And we certainly are loyal and spread the word for those who cater for us!
Thank you!
