Zizzi Basingstoke

Nationwide Italian chain Zizzi is not exactly the last word in cutting-edge culinary cool, but it’s been quick off the mark to introduce some hot new trends. A range of gelati by Kitty Travers (the artisan ice-cream maker talent-spotted by St John’s Fergus Henderson) & a recently introduced menu of ‘cichetti’ (Italian-style ‘tapas’) as seen at far hipper addresses, are reasons to revisit your local branch. The rest of the menu may not wow, cautions a reader, ‘but it’s nothing to spoil your day’. Pastas are reliable, & the pizzas – some of which come as half & half variations or hybrids – help those stuck between king prawn & spicy sausage or regular pizza & calzone. Zizzi aims to please, & its comfortably rustic, flatteringly lit restaurants usually do just that.