We tried out this new pizza restaurant.

Food

To say the owner of this new bijoux pizza restaurant is ambitious is an understatement. I interviewed Chris a few weeks ago and he’s already started to look at other sites for what he wants to be a 50 restaurant chain within five years.

It’s fair to say, as a takeaway too, he’s not alone in Sudbury. The street where the eatery resides is flanked by Indian, Chinese, kebab and other fast food joints, so he’s going to have to do a lot to stand out.

For starters, the signage, although pale, is quite smart. And inside Chris has managed to create a cool, urban vibe. Admittedly it’s a bit cramped though (but more on that later).

We sat outside in the pebbly garden at one of the benches and soon had hold of the menu, which revealed the pizzas here are made with real fior di latte mozzarella (much creamier) and authentic imported Italian cured meats.

We could have had cured meats, or garlic bread as a starter, but I can’t really do pizza followed by pizza – too many carbs- so we settled on sharing a variety of the ‘pies’.

Vegan alternatives were available, as was the chance to pay a bit extra for a gluten-free base.

Immediately catching my eye was The Hot One – a 12ins pizza covered in crushed San Marzano tomatoes (according to many chefs the sweetest in the world due to their growing conditions in volcanic soil), mozzarella, chilli oil and nduja.

If you’ve never tried it before, nduja is a melty, spicy, oozingly unctuous soft sausage from Calabria in southern Italy. Salty, and with an almost sharp piquancy, it melts into whatever it’s paired with, imbuing it with its fiery sweet essence.

Here, the sausage became one with the cheese, its oil running in rivulets along the cut crevices of the pizza, staining the dough bright orange. It wasn’t too devilishly hot, and the dough itself was ultra thin with a bubbly, not-too-chewy crust. I liked the fact the pizza hadn’t been overloaded with topping. There was enough to bring flavour to the dough, but not so much you felt like it was going to slide onto your lap on its way to your gob.

It was hilarious watching my hubby tuck into The Buffalo Chicken One. Crikey it was spicy. The dough had been spread with buffalo sauce, smothered in mozzarella and topped with barbecued chicken and more buffalo sauce. The sauce tasted like one produced by a brand I love (Meat Lust) and was both tangy and extremely hot. But that was taken care of by a cooling blue cheese dip (essentially plain mayo with chunks of blue cheese in it) on the side. You’ll need extra napkins to mop your brow if you choose this one.

Also tried was a plain Margherita, named for a former Italian queen to mimic the country’s flag (green – basil, red- tomato, white – mozzarella). Fresh green and purple basil garnished the pizza which ticked all the boxes. As did The High Protein One – covered in good quality chicken slices, Parma ham and proper salami.

We didn’t stick around for puds. They stock local ice cream but, ironically, it had gotten chilly outside and we were too cold!

Drinks

There’s a decent selection of San Pellegrino soft drinks, plus the usual coke. I tried to order an interesting-sounding prosecco but clearly hadn’t read the menu that well as I was told they don’t have any booze until August 1. It looked like you could bring your own along until then though.

Service

It was hectically busy as I guess Dough & Co has been a victim of its own success. The poor waitress at the front was trying to take phone orders and handle bills etc. She, and the other staff were polite, but it was obvious they were under pressure. Our pizzas, despite them being busy, took no longer to get to the table than 15 minutes which is pretty decent.

Ambiance

The inside eating space is tiny so you really need to book ahead – it also felt a bit cramped. While I can see what they were trying to do with the ‘palette’ tables and chairs, they felt a bit clunky for the space and I struggled to get out the door when we left, as the space between diners was teensy. That said, there was a nice buzz about the restaurant.

Parking

You’ll have to park at the car park behind the old Argos building, which is free in the evenings, and free for a couple of hours during the day.

Accessibility

There’s a small step up into the restaurant, but it’s quite cramped inside so I wouldn’t want to try navigate a wheelchair or buggy around it.

Price

Very reasonable. The pizzas were all 12ins and came in at around about a tenner. For the quality of the ingredients and significant care which went into making them, I’d say that was spot-on.

Highlight

I was very happy with my spicy nduja pizza.

Summary

If it continues to push out decent pizza like we experienced, I think Dough & Co will do really well. It’s a shame they don’t have a bigger dining area inside as I definitely think they could fill it.