We rarely go out as a couple
anymore, largely because we don’t have the time. Part of me kinda likes that,
because if Alfie isn’t involved, my mum guilt goes through the roof. But we
have vowed to go on more dates. Luckily, we had a cinema and restaurant voucher
to use, so what better excuse than to go out for the evening? My lovely
neighbour/friend Rebecca said she would look after Alfie – so that was that!
As we were going to the cinema at
MK1 (the football stadium), we weren’t exactly blessed with a choice of
restaurants, particularly ones where we could use the voucher. We quickly
settled on Pizza Express and I honestly don’t think I’ve ever had a bad meal
there.
Despite booking a table for 6:45pm,
it had been match day after all, it wasn’t overly busy when we arrived and I’m
sure there wouldn’t have been a wait for a table. We were in the middle of the
restaurant, but there was a partition behind my padded chair, so there was a
kind of seclusion. But I was facing the open kitchen, which I loved.
As we were going to the cinema
straight after (we saw Instant Family, btw), we decided not to have starters or
sides and just go straight in with a massive pizza. I ummed and ahhed about dough
balls for ages and ended up being really indecisive, but time wasn’t on our
side (and I needed to save room for popcorn and a frozen Fanta).
More often than not, I order the
same thing at Pizza Express – the Leggera
Pollo ad Astra. But I was feeling hungry and a small pizza and salad wouldn’t
cut it. So I went all-out and ordered the Romana version. I totally underestimated
how big the pizza was going to be and while I gave it a good go, I couldn’t
manage it all. It was enjoyable: I love the tasty Cajun chicken, the sweet red
onions and those little pepper dew peppers, which are just so lush – but it was
an eyes bigger than belly situation.
Ash chose the limited edition
carbonara Romana (it’s not longer on the menu, but will no doubt make a
comeback again). It was one that I’d been eying up too, but I thought it would
be a little heavy. When it arrived, I knew I’d made the right decision – it did
look rich with the béchamel sauce base, Italian ham and mozzarella, and even
more so with the baked egg in the centre. I say Italian ham – they were out of
pancetta and while our waitress initially said they were unable to make it,
they replaced the pancetta with ham instead. I didn’t even try any, which I do
regret.
The service was good throughout –
we were given time to settle before ordering drinks and ended up ordering our
food at the same time. We explained that we were going next door afterwards,
but didn’t feel rushed. Even though it wasn’t busy, it was difficult to chat,
but it was still nice to go out. Next time, we will probably choose somewhere
that gives us the opportunity to talk.
As we had the voucher, I think we
only had to pay for our round of drinks, and maybe a couple of pound towards
the meal – so a cheap date (ha).
Has anyone tried the Piccolo menu?
Just wondering whether it would be suitable for Alfie, or whether we would need
to wait?
Love, Lucy xx
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Love, Lucy xx