Review: Pizza Hut

Location: All across the UK and across 5 continents

Style: Chain pizza (I think that's a style in itself)

Budget: A meal can be around £10 if you don't try too hard to budget, or less if you have a coupon, of which there are usually plenty around. Prices are not inflated for gluten free products.

Gluten Free options:.A gluten free pizza base is available, and gluten free diners have full choice of all toppings and sauces*. They seem to have good kitchen practices for avoiding cross contamination. The launch was in consultation with Coeliac UK so I feel reassured that they have been given the best guidelines possible. You are served on a different type of plate with your own cutting wheel, the pizza itself is square to avoid confusion, and I think the pizzas are cooked on different trays and made in a separate part of the kitchen. There is also a salad bar with some gluten free options in it, although not all are and they are not all marked. There is ice cream which is gluten free for dessert, if you still have room.

What I ate: A gluten free pizza with extra cheese, bacon and sweetcorn. Having been a couple if times now (ahem), I find that they can sometimes come up a bit short with the cheese. I am a cheeseaholic so I like to order extra, just to be sure. I also find that sometimes, with their own pizza topping options, the ratio of topping to base to sauce sometimes isn't quite right (too much topping/not enough sauce/not enough base) so I like to make my own.

The pizza itself is pretty good. I mean, it won't win any culinary awards but I personally like it a lot. The base is thin but squidgy, the sauce and toppings are tasty, and they have all the usual options. The food arrives hot and all in all it's pretty tasty.

Service: Generally decent, although due to the fact that it's a huge chain, naturally it varies.

Good things: Pizza Hut were one of the first big chain restaurants to start offering gluten free bases back in late 2012/early 2013. 

Top Tips: Choose your own toppings for the pizza, look out for voucher codes, and book ahead if it's a busy day. I'd also call ahead just to double check whether they have gluten free bases in stock, as they have been known to run out before.

Areas for improvement: There is only one size of pizza available and, whilst it’s perfectly big enough for me and I usually have leftovers to take home, it may not be big enough for everyone. You can’t go for the buffet, which is usually the best value and most interesting option, as there are no gluten free pizzas on the buffet (which I'm very glad about – can you imagine the cross-contamination?!). I personally wouldn't risk the salad bar either, for the same reasons. If you arrive at the start of the day then perhaps you might be able to select the gluten free salad options without worrying about stray bits of croûton, but you’d be a braver person than I. Also, hardly any of the starters/sides are gluten free

Final score: I'm giving this a 3 out of 5 because whilst it has a good selection of gluten free items and is good value, arguably some of the the best bits of the restaurant are off limits (the buffet, the salad bar). Also, whilst I personally really like the pizza and the type of base, it won't appeal to everyone especially if you like a more "authentic" thin and crispy base. 

*Just checking the allergy information sheet and some toppings are marked as a risk of cross contamination from the supply chain. These are not marked on the main menu, which I think they should be.