The one draw-back to Ealing’s world-famous pizzeria, Santa Maria, has always been that it’s “nigh-on impossible to get a table”, well, now they’re adding a second branch in Chelsea. The 25-cover site is located just off the King’s Road and will open on Friday 8 April with a 50% off food soft launch offer until 13 April.
Owners Pasquale Chionchio and Angelo Ambrosio believe it’s the hundreds of little touches they make on a daily basis that makes their pizzas so good – and are looking forward to making a new home near Stamford Bridge.
The Ealing original opened five years ago and became a firm favourite with Harden’s reporters with some hailing it as “the best pizza in London” and others saying “I’ve seen Italians travel from East London just to get their fix!”.
The new site in Chelsea will serve up the same wonderful pizzas and daily specials – such as stuffed meatballs with ricotta, smoked mozzarella, nduja and their Aubergine Parmigiana. Thankfully Santa Maria SW6 will even take some bookings and is also able to cater for larger parties, unlike its sister.
Always the central feature at a pizzeria, the pizza oven is state of the art, comprising handmade bricks from Sorrento cooked at 1,200° and lays on sand from Mount Vesuvius. Santa Maria cook their pizzas at 450° and only use San Marzano D.O.P tomatoes (a sought after variety that must be pre-ordered from Italy). Their Fior di Latte Mozzarella and cured meats are all Italian, and the sausage is free-range rare breed from North Yorkshire. Vegetables are mostly locally sourced and seasonal.
