Homeslice Neal's Yard

It’s not how big it is: it’s what you do with it. Take this new joint in Neal’s Yard’s, which is serving pizzas that wouldn’t be out of place on ‘Man v. Food’.

Served fresh from the wood-fired oven, most of these thin crusts are available by the slice (£4). Or, you can order a whole 20-incher (£20), which is enough to feed you and two of your pals. They’ll even let you have more than one choice of the topping selections if you ask nicely.

A well-put-together margherita can be a little slice of heaven, as can other classic pizzas. But if it’s done right (no chicken, no sweet chilli sauce, no pineapple etc), a bit of innovation doesn’t go amiss. And here they have a couple of ingredient combos that wouldn’t get the green light in Naples, but taste pretty good.

On one, slivers of bone marrow are melted over the tomato base, imparting a meaty savouriness. Scattered with watercress and roasted whole spring onions, the pizza was oozy and delicious with a chewy cornicione (crust). A white anchovy, chard and Doddington cheese pizza also had a good balance; finished with a twist of orange zest it was filled with sweet, bitter and salty notes.

Service was impeccably attentive and chummy, and there are craft beers and even prosecco on draught. The pizzas here are certainly good quality, but it’s hard to achieve a crisp, puffy base when you’re turning out cartwheels. Maybe they should just stop worrying about size…

By Celia Plender