Pizza night! (#15)

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I'm not really sure where the best pizza I ever ate was.  Most likely the first pizza we ate in Italy about 18 years ago.  I remember we were just blown away by the crust and the delicious, simple ingredients.  Well, we had pizza for dinner last night that was right up there, probably in the top 3 pizzas I've eaten...and I found it in the Cotswolds!  

The first day we arrived in Chipping Campden, we could not find our delightful little cottage so we asked a woman who was working in her garden for directions.  She ended up walking us to our cottage, and along the way I asked what her favorite restaurant or pub was in town.  She mentioned that there is a very good Italian restaurant in town.  We ate our first Chipping Campden dinner there, at DaLuigi Bistro...Gary had veal and I had seafood pasta...both wonderful.  It was super busy that night as it was Friday night, and the place was buzzing!  The owner was as Italian as it comes; handsome, charming, with a very thick accent, and full of life!  Our waiter (also Italian) was adorable (the back of his tee shirt read "I'm not flirting...I'm ITALIAN!"). We were happy of find out all the pasta dishes, except the lasagna could be made GF, and all the pizzas can as well.  Well the pasta and veal were so good, but even though I was stuffed, I made room for the most amazing lemon dessert!

Lemon Victoria sponge cake with lemon curd filling, covered with a layer of lemon mouse, and topped with whipped cream and lemon zest!  I am convinced that this is what the angels in heaven get served for dessert every single night1. It was out of this world.

Well last night we just had to go back and try the pizza - I looked forward to it all day!  And it did not disappoint.  Once again we were greeted by the owner, Raffaele Esposito.  There is a small dining room on the street level, and a slightly larger one downstairs.  Both nights we were seated downstairs.  This place is lively and cozy at the same time.  It is decorated casually, but very intentionally.  It's hard to describe a decorating style of "Italy meets Cotswolds" but this is it!   Our pizzas arrived quickly and they were fantastic!  The entire time we were eating, we were commenting on how good the crust was, how good the sauce was, how the pepperoni was not piled on but was so flavorful...
Gary's had salami, pepperoni, and grilled peppers...(and don't worry, Gary likes his crust to be a bit "well done" so he asked for it this way)

Mine was pepperoni, red onion, buratta cheese (which just oozed cheesy goodness when I cut into it)  and basil.  The sauce was just amazing...light, fresh, not acidic at all, not too thick, not watery...just pure tomato deliciousness!  And the crust - perfectly crisp and soft all at the same time!

The pizzas came uncut, but each of us got a industrial size pizza cutter which we put to good use.  We both had Italian wine, but I noticed that the table across the room from us got an entire case of wine to go...and I was intrigued!  We each only ate 1/2 our pizza...so guess what?!  We get yummy left overs for dinner tonight!  I resisted having the lemon dessert this times and opted for an affogato which I always love.  

As we headed out, the owner asked how we enjoyed our dinner.  I, of course told him that of the 5 nights we had eaten in Chipping Campden, 2 of those night had been at his restaurant.  I was so mystified how this super Italian guy ended up in this tiny village...I started chatting him up!  He is from Napoli and fell in love with an English girl.  They got married and moved to London where he opened a restaurant.  His wife wanted a second home in the Cotswolds and she bought a vacation home here in Chipping Campden.  For 2 years, Rafaelo never came as he was so busy with his London restaurant.  His wife and daughter vacationed in the "country" house.  Eventually he came here during the pandemic, instantly fell in love, noticed this lovely empty store front, and thought it needed to be a restaurant.  5 years ago Da Luigi opened.  The entire kitchen staff is Italian, as are several of the waiters. 

Gary asked him about the wine that we saw another table buy and Raffaele explained it is from his family's vines in Italy and he has it shipped over for his restaurant.  It is basically the "house" wine (both red and white) at the restaurant.  It is £26 on the menu...he sold it to us for £18.  (I'm not flattering myself, that's probably what he charges everybody!) As I write this, Gary is enjoying a glass of it and says it is quite good (and I like the story behind it!)



 

Comments

  1. AnonymousMay 13, 2026 at 10:59 PM

    The food looks and sounds scrumptious!! Lmk

    ReplyDelete

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