About us
Voted Best Local Restaurant by TimeOut for both Islington and Hammersmith, featured in the global foodie guide Where Chefs Eat, awarded Best Pizza in London by The Slice – Metro, Zia Lucia is a neighbourhood pizza brand bringing 4 types of dough to London. Our queue-generating special selection of doughs, unique in the London pizza scene, combined with a flair for real Italian community style, make Zia Lucia a distinctive experience for pizza lovers across the city.
Zia Lucia’s unique variety of Italian 48-hour slow fermented doughs are inspired by ancient traditions brought from across Italy to London. The recipes range from the traditional flour dough to an unusual vegetable charcoal black base, from a healthy wholemeal option to special dough made without gluten. The menu at Zia Lucia continuously evolves to include new experimental doughs, following the creativity of Zia Lucia’s formidable pizzaioli.
Zia Lucia, which translates as ‘Auntie Lucia’ is run by a team of passionate Italians. Founders and friends Claudio and Gianluca have created Zia Lucia with the help of family and friends. Inspired and named after Gianluca’s Auntie Lucia: a warm, generous figure in her family and community in Rome, these important values are recreated in this neighbourhood pizzerias the team behind Zia Lucia has also founded:
– the fresh homemade pasta concept Berto Pasta (berto.uk): the restaurant is next door to Zia Lucia in Islington (155 Holloway Road, N7 8LX).
Claudio and Gianluca ethos is to provide the highest quality food at the most affordable prices.
How did Zia Lucia come about?
Claudio and Gianluca, the two founders, are both Islingtonians and pizza lovers. We would go for a pizza together to talk about anything, from sports to politics, from gossips to business ideas, almost once a week. But to get a proper pizza we would have to travel far so we thought, why don’t we open one ourselves, where all our friends can go?
So we decided to embark into this fabulous adventure. The concept was clear from day one: no compromise on quality of ingredients, a huge handcrafted wood fired oven from Naples (where pizza was invented), open plan cooking with a counter where guests can eat and look at the amazing art of pizza baking, moderate prices, cozy atmosphere. In terms of the pizza, we both thought that there were several good pizza places around, however too few pay attention to the dough. For us, the dough is a religion: we put a lot of research into it and we decided to bring our 4 types of 48h slow fermented doughs to London. The key factor is the combination of both taste and digestibility: pizza needs to be super tasty and flavoursome, but at the same type light and digestible.
Eating is not just about the moment when you sit at the restaurant, but also all its phases. Otherwise, how can you eat several pizzas per week?
Clients can enjoy the 4 types of dough also via delivery through Deliveroo from all restaurant locations.
Zia Lucia has been awarded Best Local Restaurant on Time Out Love London Awards 2018 both for Islington and Hammersmith. It is featured in Where Chefs Eat Guide 2018, and is ranked among the 100 London Best Cheap Eats for Time Out.
As Giles Coren states reviewing Zia Lucia on Times Magazine: “The tomato sauce is rich and tangy. The cheese is milky and ripe. It is an incredible pizza. And it is less than a tenner”.
Zia Lucia has been featured in 200+ press articles, magazines, newspapers and blogs including The Financial Times, The Times, The Guardian, TimeOut London, Easy Jet Magazine, British Airways Magazine, Metro, Evening Standard, GQ and numerous others.
Zia Lucia opened its first restaurant in Islington in 2016, and in light of its success launched a second one in Hammersmith / Kensington in 2018. It has then been invited to open inside the fabulous food & drink hall BoxPark in Wembley a stone throw from the Wembley Stadium. Early 2020, Zia Lucia opened in Aldgate East, overlooking a gorgeous piazza with alfresco dining.
We have now secured a site in Wandsworth and will be opening soon in Old York Road W18!
The wood&gas fired pizzas feature fresh, classic Italian as well as innovative toppings, all available on the four types of dough. The menu also features the signature Arianna pizza, with truffle oil, fresh Italian sausage, gorgonzola (blue cheese) and mozzarella – ideally paired with their black vegetable charcoal dough.
Alongside the pizzas, the menu features a selection of Italian style starters, salads and home-made desserts, including an award winning tiramisu.
In the press
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