The UK’s beloved Pizza Express is taking on America with a new restaurant opening in Florida.
Founded in 1965 by Peter Boizot, the chain, which first launched in London’s Soho, has long been a staple on the British high street.
It’s a level of success that the team are hoping to recreate across the pond with its first pizza restaurant in Florida, which will open next year.
Franchisee Purple Square Management, which currently operates in over 245 locations, including with Dunkin Donuts and Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, will team with the chain to open its first US location.
The move will bring Pizza Express closer to its goal of expanding to 1,000 restaurants globally by 2030, alongside its restaurants in India, Hong Kong, and Singapore, among others.
Chris Holmes, Chief Development Officer of Pizza Express, said: ‘This marks a major milestone in our global journey, as we introduce our brand to one of the world’s most dynamic markets.
‘We are a place where pizza fans, no matter how small, can enjoy Dough Balls on demand, where mates or dates can sip Margaritas with Margheritas or enjoy a Peroni with a Padana.
‘With an American love story behind our popular American pizza, it only seems right that we share this joy with American pizza fans together with our first franchise partner, Purple Square. We are here to raise the bar of pizza in the United States as we bring the best of Pizza Express to new audiences.’
UK chain Pizza Express is set to open its first restaurant in America (pictured: Pizza Express in London)
Meanwhile, Vik Patel, President and CEO of Purple Square Management Company said: ‘This is a full circle moment to bring a brand I’ve loved and grown up with in London to a new market eager for an elevated pizza experience.
‘We know this concept has the potential to resonate with U.S. consumers in a truly unique way.
‘Walking into a PizzaExpress location is a one-of-a-kind experience, designed to welcome everyone—whether you’re bringing the kids out for a slice or soaking in the energy of live music.
‘We’re thrilled to introduce its rich legacy, inclusive atmosphere, and affordable price points to our home state of Florida. This is just the beginning of a journey we’re confident will inspire a new wave of dining experiences across the country.’
It comes after celebrity chef Marcus Wareing said Pizza Express serves the best pizza in London – and he has eaten the same dish there for 20 years.
The Michelin-starred chef sparked a fevered debate on TikTok channel Top Jaw last summer by revealing his love of the chain’s ‘American Hot’ pizza on a ‘Romana’ base with extra chili.
Some urged him to ‘hand back his stars’ or ‘take away his Michelin star now’, while others praised his ‘lack of food snobbery’ and said ‘everyone enjoys what they enjoy’.
Meanwhile, food critic Hannah Evans said theMasterChef judge’s comments ‘simply revealed he’s out of touch with London’s banging food scene’.
The chain, founded in 1965 by Peter Boizot, is aiming to expand to 1,000 restaurants globally by 2030
Pictured: Pizza toppings sit in glass bowls as an employee garnishes pizzas in the kitchen of a PizzaExpress restaurant in London
Others on the video app discussed their favourite dishes at the chain, including the Sloppy Giuseppe – which was also backed by host Jesse Burgess – and the Calzone ‘Nduja.
And he’s not the only high-profile fan. Hollywood star Eva Longoria once told Jack Whitehall the best Italian food she ever had was at a Pizza Express in Cardiff.
Wareing, who owns three restaurants including the Michelin-starred Marcus in Knightsbridge, spoke to Top Jaw last July.
In a clip from the interview entitled ‘Best Pizza in London’, Burgess asked him: ‘What is the best pizza?’
Wareing replied: ‘This one is easy, but you’re not going to like the answer: Pizza Express. I know, I know.
‘I still eat the same pizza I’ve been eating for the last 20 years, American Hot, love it, Romana, a little bit of extra chilli, I love it, it’s got to be a Romana base.
‘And do you know what? Every time I go, it’s cooked exactly the same.’
Burgess said: ‘You know, I like Sloppy Giuseppe on a Romana base.’
How Pizza Express was founded by Associated Press worker who couldn’t find a good pizza in London
Pizza Express founder Peter Boizot
The first Pizza Express opened on Wardour Street in London’s Soho on March 27, 1965, opened by founder Peter Boizot.
He had been working in the Associated Press news photography department in Rome and selling postcards from a barrow in St Peter’s Square, but is said to have been unable to find anywhere in London to buy a proper Italian pizza.
He shipped over an authentic pizza oven over from Naples and was also the first man to import Peroni beer to the UK.
A Pizza Express restaurant, pictured in 1997
The original location in Soho opened selling square slices of pizza in greaseproof paper through the front window, before launching a restaurant designed by Enzo Apicella with a wine menu and dining tables.
Mr Boizot sold his shares in the firm in 1992 and the company was owned by a variety of firms until Chinese private equity group Hony Capital bought it in 2014 for £900million.
The chain has 370 restaurants in the UK and Ireland and 80 sites abroad in Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
Mr Boizot died in December 2018 aged 89, and his entire estate was swallowed up by a £45,000 tax bill owed on his death. He lost the bulk of his money by taking over and investing in his struggling local football club, Peterborough United, and buying a theatre, art galleries and a hotel.
In March 2020, all Pizza Express’s restaurants in the UK were forced to shut indefinitely due to the pandemic.
That July, the group announced that ‘dozens’ of its closed restaurants would not be reopening amid reports that it had accrued a debt pile of £1.1billion.
The next month, it was announced that the company would shut 67 of its UK restaurants and cut 1,100 jobs.
In November 2020, the group’s restructure was completed and reportedly helped cut the debt by more than £400million. Then in October 2021, Pizza Express said it planned to open 50 new restaurants in a post-pandemic expansion.
Then Wareing replied: ‘You’ve got your flavours, I’ve got mine. It works.’
Burgess then said: ‘Pizza Express are going to absolutely love that.’
Hannah Evans, deputy food editor at The Times, wrote in the newspaper at the time: ‘I will never be comfortable hearing a chef slag off Pizza Express.
‘It was a stalwart of my childhood. I had birthday parties there. But come on, Marcus. The best pizza in London. Really?
‘Saying Pizza Express does the best pizza is a panicked cop out, like saying the best Italian in London is by Jamie Oliver. Where’s your insider intel, eh?’
A Pizza Express spokesman told MailOnline: ‘Our iconic American Hot has long been a favourite with customers – and now a Michelin-star chef, too!
‘There will always be a marble table with Marcus’ name on it at Pizza Express.’
It is well known that Wareing loves to visit Pizza Express with his children, after he has previously spoken about it in other publications.
Speaking to Spear’s Magazine in 2012 he said: ‘This may be a surprise but I am a regular at our local Pizza Express with our children and I think it is a fantastic business. I have tried other pizza restaurants but the service is lacking.
‘When I go here I know what I am getting, how long it will take, the kids love it and it gives me a day off from cooking!’
When asked by The Guardian where he takes his kids to eat out the former MasterChef judge said: ‘They love Pizza Express, which I think is consistently good. And The Butcher and Grill in Battersea. They get a proper meal, and colouring books.’
US actress Ms Longoria, who writes cookbooks and previously founded an Los Angeles diner, also praised the branch while filming BBC comedy series Decline and Fall in Wales.
Speaking about his co-star on food critic Jay Rayner’s Out To Lunch podcast in 2021, Whitehall claimed Longoria was completely unaware that Pizza Express is a popular restaurant chain in the UK.
Whitehall told Rayner: ‘She said, ”Oh God, I found the most incredible little Italian last night. The owner, I think it’s family-owned, he was so charming and I had the best pasta I have ever had anywhere in the world. It’s called . . . Pizza Express.”’
Speaking to MailOnline at the time, an Italian staff member at the Cardiff branch, who asked not to be named, said: ‘I’m not surprised she liked Pizza Express.
‘I’m from Naples myself and I can tell you that our food’s authentic. Our ingredients are fresh and we have high standards.
‘It’s no wonder she thought it was the best Italian food she’s ever had.’
Pizza Express was founded in 1965 by Peter Boizot, who brought to London a pizza oven from Naples and a chef from Sicily after a trip.
Opening its first restaurant on Wardour Street, the chain now has 370 restaurants in the UK and Ireland and 80 sites across Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
In July 2014, the group was sold to the China-based private equity firm Hony Capital in a deal worth £900million.
Five years later, Pizza Express hired financial advisers in preparation for talks with creditors after experiencing financial difficulties following a downturn in demand for eating out.
In March 2020, all Pizza Express’s restaurants in the UK were forced to shut indefinitely during the Covid pandemic.
That July, the group announced that ‘dozens’ of its closed restaurants would not be reopening amid reports that it had accrued a debt pile of £1.1billion.
The next month, it was announced that the company would close around 67 restaurants in the UK and cut 1,100 jobs.
In November 2020, the group’s restructure was completed and reportedly helped cut the debt by more than £400million.
Then in October 2021, Pizza Express said it planned to open 50 new restaurants in a post-pandemic expansion.
