Arthur’s has opened up a Pizza Express on Havelock Road and we decided to pay them a visit. It’s located right before OM Space, and opposite the Royal Institute. Their pizzas are wood-fired, thin crust and reasonably priced.
The Food
Aside from pizza, they also serve burgers and pasta. Unlike the one in Mount, they do not serve alcohol. We tried two pizzas, both half-and-half.
The first one was half Veg Nai Maris (Rs. 600) and half Prawn Amu Miris (Rs. 825). The prawn half was a big disappointment as it had about one tiny prawn per slice but it was quite delicious because of the amu miris. The veg nai miris was quite better in terms of toppings as they had been very generous with it. As you can see, they did not hold back on the mozzarella; which probably overpowered the spiciness. I was expecting flaming hot level heat when it came to the nai miris, but it was mildly so.
The next pizza had half Paneer Masala (Rs. 750) and half Salami Pizza (Rs. 750). The salami was of course pork, but it wasn’t that good in terms of flavor. Frankly, it tasted like chicken sausage. The paneer masala was really good. The paneer was well cooked with a strong masala flavor. Both the vegetarian options were quite good.
For dessert, of course, we got their popular Chocolate Biscuit Pudding (Rs. 320). It’s less sweet and very chocolatey, and we loved it. The thick texture of the chocolate made it more of a ganache than a pudding. The biscuit layer on the bottom certainly helps.
The Drinks
We opted for two juices. They also have smoothies and milkshakes as well.
We did not like The Lime Juice (Rs. 120). It wasn’t refreshing at all and while it had a strong lime texture, the elements were overbalanced. I asked for some ice to see if it would make it better and sadly, it didn’t.
The Pineapple Juice (Rs. 180) was somewhat better with freshly squeezed pineapple. However, that too was not very refreshing but certainly better than the Lime.
Service and Ambience
The staff is not intrusive and lets you take your time when placing the order. Our food took about 20 minutes to arrive, a little late than we would normally wait for a pizza.
It’s an outdoor section overlooking the streets, with a few high chairs and wooden tables. It’s a pizza express, so it is not the most accommodating place for a dine-in meal.
Conclusion
There’s certainly room for improvement in terms of the food since we actually found the one in Mount to be better than this. However, if you’re ever in the mood for some pizza with a spicy Sri Lankan twist, head down to Arthur’s Express.
