Purezza

Purezza is a vegan pizzeria operating in Brighton, London and Manchester. It is Europe's first all-vegan pizzeria,[1] opening its first branch in Brighton, UK, in November 2015.

Purezza
Founded2015 (2015)
Brighton, UK
FoundersTim Barclay, Stefania Evangelisti and Filippo Rosato
Websitepurezza.co.uk

The company also manufactures its own vegan cheese, dubbed "Mozzarella 3.0", and it has set up a factory to mass produce it for foodservice and retail.[2][3][4] The cheese is made with aquafaba.

History

Purezza, meaning 'Purity' in Italian, was founded by Tim Barclay and Stefania Evangelisti, who were inspired by the lack of vegan Italian options.[5] Their second restaurant was announced in November 2017,[6] and opened in Camden in March 2018.[7] Purezza tripled the sized of its Camden branch in February 2020.[8][9]

The company received an initial £35,000 investment to open its vegan cheese factory in July 2018 at an investment pitching event in London, with a view to raising additional capital through Crowdcube.[10] Purezza has stated that the cheese will be free from major allergens and palm oil.[2]

In addition to its plant-based menu, Purezza also has an extensive gluten free menu,[11] for which it has won a Silver Award from the Free From Eating Out Awards.[12]

In August 2019, Purezza was mistakenly caught up in a drugs bust at Gatwick Airport, when ingredients for its food were seized by police.[13][14][15]

A Manchester branch opened in June 2021.[16][17]

Food

Purezza specialises in vegan pizza, but also provides a range of vegan alternatives to other Italian dishes such as lasagne, macaroni cheese, and tiramisu.[18][19] They are also known for a range of raw food dishes, including raw cheeses and a raw pizza.[20]

Awards

Purezza took part in the National Pizza Awards 2018,[21] National Pizza of the Year 2018 in the UK with the Parmigiana Party pizza.[22][23][24]

They also won UK's Best Vegan Restaurant 2018 according to Vegfest UK.[25]

Purezza's head chef, Filippo Rosato, won Best Pizza from Abroad 2018 in the #pizzAward 2018 competition held in Naples.[26]

The team also won an award at the World Pizza Championship for the Pizza Classica category. The winning pizza was titled "The Promised Land" and used cavolo nero, tempeh, pioppini mushrooms, and a borlotti bean sauce. The dough was infused with BrewDog Punk IPA.[27][28][29]

References
  1. "Get stuffed crust pizza at Europe's first all-vegan Italian restaurant". Metro. 3 February 2016. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  2. "Vegan pizzeria opens dairy-free cheese factory". The Independent. 18 July 2018. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  3. Bronte, Georgia (16 July 2018). "Grater things: Purezza plans to launch vegan cheese factory". Big Hospitality. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  4. Cornall, Jim (24 July 2018). "Purezza wins investment to set up vegan cheese-alternative facility". Dairy reporter.com. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  5. Turner, Ella (10 March 2016). "Pizza is back on the menu! Europe's first vegan Italian restaurant opens in Brighton". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  6. Coghlan, Adam (30 November 2017). "Brighton-Born Vegan Pizzeria Will Open in Camden Town Next Year". Eater London. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  7. "Vegan Pizzeria Purezza To Give Away 100 Free Pizzas On Opening Day". www.plantbasednews.org. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  8. "Purezza vegan pizzeria triples size of Camden outpost to..." The Caterer. 5 February 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
  9. bighospitality.co.uk. "Purezza aiming to triple in size in 2020". bighospitality.co.uk. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
  10. Ridler, James. "Pizzeria secures £35k investment for vegan cheese factory". FOOD manufacture. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  11. Delahaye, Julie (15 January 2019). "London's best gluten-free restaurants from dinner spots to bakeries". mirror. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
  12. "Purezza – FreeFrom Eating Out Awards Winner 2017". www.freefromeatingoutawards.co.uk. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
  13. Emily Dixon. "'Huge drugs bust' seized at London's Gatwick Airport found to be vegan cake mix". CNN. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
  14. Media, P. A. (30 August 2019). "'Huge drugs bust' at Gatwick turns out to be vegan cake mix". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
  15. "Huge drugs bust at Gatwick Airport turned out to be vegan cake mix". Metro. 29 August 2019. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
  16. "title The UK's First Ever Vegan Pizzeria Is Opening A New Restaurant In Manchester City Centre". Secret Manchester. 28 May 2021. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  17. Jackson, Daisy (14 April 2021). "Popular Manchester pizza restaurant replaced - by pizza restaurant". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 8 June 2021.
  18. Gil, Natalie. "The UK's First FULLY Vegan Pizzeria Is Coming To London". www.refinery29.com. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
  19. "5 London vegan restaurants that'll ease you into Veganuary". Time Out London. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
  20. Vegan-Food-UK (31 January 2017). "Brighton is going RAW and Purezza is leading the way!". Vegan Food UK. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
  21. "Vegan Pizzeria Purezza Reaches National Pizza Awards Finals". www.plantbasednews.org. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  22. "The best pizza in the UK is vegan". The Independent. 5 October 2018. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  23. "Vegan Pizza Named as Best in the UK". www.casualdiningmagazine.co.uk. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  24. "UK's National Pizza Awards Honors First Vegan Pizzeria | PMQ Pizza Magazine". www.pmq.com. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  25. "VegfestUK Awards 2018 - Full Results". VegfestUK Awards 2018 - Full Results. Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  26. "Contest #pizzAward 2018 - vince Stefano Miozzo - MYSOCIALRECIPE - Questa ricetta è mia!". www.mysocialrecipe.com (in Italian). Retrieved 3 April 2019.
  27. "Vegan pizzeria wins top prize at World Pizza Championships". The Independent. 25 April 2019. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
  28. Griffiths, Elle (29 April 2019). "UK vegan pizza wins surprising award at World Pizza Championship - have you tried it?". Daily Star. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
  29. "Vegan pizzeria win best traditional pizza in the world". The Argus. Retrieved 9 May 2019.
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