Pizza Express

Recent visit diisappointing
visit for 3 reasons: (1)
Restaurant had run out of basic ingredients no pesto, no portobello mushrooms.
Staff apparently not empowered to buy ingredients from Waitrose in emergency. (2) Romano
pizzas served on cold plates go cold after about 30 seconds. Not rocket
science. (3) The
feature pizza base preparation area is not a feature when it has a bin bag
(full of rubbish) and cleaning materials stacked on it. Ambience killer!

Hungry for well made pizza with an extra helping of brilliant service… Well you’ve now been warned — Do not go to PizzaExpress Surbiton!
We visited PizzaExpress on Sunday at about 5pm and were greeted by a vibrant, colourful and welcoming restaurant. They haven’t overcrowded the place with tables which is refreshing and there is a brilliant counter area for kids to get creative with pizza dough. They are given the opportunity to mould and sculpt their own dough and have it masterfully (I lie) baked by the chefs. What an inspired idea for a way to entertain the little ones! Brava PizzaExpress!
And now on to the meat and potatoes of this review within which I shan’t waffle as there is much to say and I don’t enjoy writing negative reviews. Bring on the bullet points:
1) We had a total of 5 waiters, not including people who delivered food. The staff were pretty uninterested in their jobs, they were visibly unhappy about the fact that PizzaExpress existed and all potential candidates for either the Samaritans or Weight Watchers. The waitress who was texting by the loos didn’t even crack a mini-​smile at her, I’m assuming, boring text conversation.
2) There were 2 offensively loud crockery breakage incidents, 1 of which was wiped up by a waiter, using paper towels and his feet utilising an innovative swooshy, sweeping motion
3) The female manager was unobservant and uncaring but clearly thought herself quite important. The staff looked like they really needed to be given some kind of direction but they and the restaurant were abandoned to their own devices while the manageress concentrated on delivered food to the tables my dining partner manages restaurants for a living and I had to forcibly restrain her from getting up and rallying the troops into a crack team of efficient, smiling über waiters.
4) Our food was of a pretty poor standard. The mozzarella salad came without the green pesto it boasted in the menu and when we asked if we could have some we were told that our server should have told us they had run out, booooo server. The Brushetta con Funghi was incredibly sloppy and tasteless and came without the red onions, Spinach and Ricotta Cannelloni was delicious but not heated up thoroughly (yes PizzaExpress, we know you only have to unwrap and reheat each portion but at least do that properly!!!) AND the pizza base was soggy.
5) At one point a woman customer walked up to the open kitchen chef, pizza in each hand, to complain about her food female manager lolloping about close-​by but still unaware. When do you EVER have to take your food all the way back up to the chef to complain about it?! Madness
So I think I have stated my case. But let me just surprise you with this little titbit I will be going back to PizzaExpress Surbiton. I have a £12.95 for 3 courses voucher and it’s valid the whole of this month show me your worst PizzaExpress!!!