LA PIAZZETTA, HORSHAM
Published on 1st March 2025
La Piazzetta in the Bishopric celebrates its 10th year in Horsham town centre this year.
Adopting the Italian translation of ‘Little Square’, the Horsham restaurant was the second La Piazzetta opened by Dino Shillova, following the success of the first in Petersfield. From the outset, it has been managed by Tomasso Zak and proved successful, thanks to its commitment to fresh food at fair prices.
Dino said: ‘We have a simple concept built on fresh produce. It arrives daily and we use these ingredients to prepare pizzas and pasta dishes in-house. Since opening our first restaurant, we have established close relationships with many excellent suppliers, sourcing meat from Hampshire farms and fresh fish and mussels from boats operating along the Sussex coast. ‘
‘We bake our own pizza dough too, very much in the Roman style, which is lighter and easier to digest than Neapolitan pizza. We use traditional methods, using only warm water, yeast and olive oil, allowing the dough to ferment for 48 hours to bring out the full flavour and texture. We also make many of our desserts, with home-made banoffee pie, tiramisu, Panna cotta, cheesecake and chocolate fudge cake, which we serve with ice cream sourced from an Italian-run company that makes beautiful gelato.’
TUDOR CHARM
The restaurant opened on the site of the old Merrythought Restaurant, a family-run business which served diners for 80 years before its closure. La Piazzetta has maintained the charming characteristics of the Tudor building, such as its beautiful front fascia and exposed interior oak beams. With only 55 covers (outdoor tables are also introduced in the summer months) the restaurant has a quaint, cosy atmosphere. While it might be separate from the bustling restaurant hub of East Street, this homely aura attracts loyal customers.
Dino said: ‘We are one of very few restaurants to have succeeded away from East Street. We have to work hard to attract business and many people have told us that we should be at the other end of town, but we have established a loyal customer base now and they keep coming back to us. We have got to know some of them very well and consider them friends. The opening of John Lewis has helped businesses like ours in the Bishopric and every week, customers are discovering us for the first time and thinking that we’re a new restaurant!
‘Like any authentic Italian, we love to serve everyone, from children to grandparents. It’s nice to see families spanning several generations, so we have a children’s menu where they can enjoy pizza or pasta with a soft drink and a scoop of ice cream for only £6. We also have a set menu on Monday to Friday, 12 – 4pm, with two courses for £13.50.
‘The cost of living has pushed up the price of ingredients and some produce costs twice what it did pre-Covid, but we’ve kept our price rises down to an absolute minimum to give people an affordable dining-out option in Horsham. We still offer fantastic house wines for under £20 and you will not find many restaurants with Costasera Amarone Classico, Masi for under £40 and a good Barolo for under £35. Customers can enjoy fresh food with a decent bottle of wine without breaking the bank.’
ROMAN-STYLE PIZZA
Antipasti options including Portobello (mushroom with goat’s cheese) and favourites including bruschetta. We opted for Gamberoni Piccanti, a generous serving of sweet, delicate tiger prawns in a delicious spicy tomato sauce. We also enjoyed Cozze, a dish of fresh mussels that were nicely tender, with a slightly chewy texture, coated in a moreish white wine, garlic and cream sauce. Some diners like to share Antipasto Misto, which includes a selection of dried cured Italian meats, buffalo mozzarella, artichokes, olives and home-made bread.
There are 11 classic pizzas including Margherita, Firenze, Nepture, Caprino, Pollo, Toscana and Diavola (tomato sauce, mozzarella, salami, nduja spicy sausage and fresh chilli), which range in price from £11.50 - £13.95. We chose the Quattro Stagioni, cut into four slices of salami, mushroom, artichokes and olives on a base of tomato and mozzarella. Created in a southern Italian style with a soft texture and lightly crisped base, the pizza was very good, with a light dough covered with fresh and sweet Italian tomatoes and melted mozzarella.
On an extensive menu, there’s a selection of meat dishes too. These include Filetto de Manzo (grilled fillet steak), Saltimboca alla Romano (tenderised veal wrapped in Parma ham) and Costolette di Agnello (grilled rack of lamb). Fresh fish dishes including Orata (fillet of seabream) and Fileto di Tonno (pan-fried tuna steak). La Piazzetta also has risotto dishes and Insalata, though many of its best sellers are pasta dishes. These include Lasagne, Spaghetti alle Vongole (fresh clams), Linguine Carbonara and a delicious Fettuccine al Salmone. Experienced chef Adriano Zuta also makes a delicious Lobster Ravioli with a spicy marinara sauce, which we couldn’t resist ordering. It’s easy to see why it’s one of the most popular dishes.
Dino said: ‘We make fresh pasta and they are our best sellers. Some of the dishes are very affordable, including Spaghetti Bolognaise (£10.95) and Penne Verdi (£12.95). We also add interesting dishes for special occasions, such as Guinea Fowl on our Valentine’s Day menu, which customers appreciate. Compared to other small restaurants, we have a big menu, but after 10 years, we have customers who have their favourites and don’t want to see them disappear!
‘It took a while for us to become established in Horsham, but now the restaurant is very popular and that is because we serve good, home-made dishes using traditional recipes, while maintaining the feel of a friendly, family-run restaurant.’
WORDS: BEN MORRIS
PHOTOS: ALAN WRIGHT FOR AAH
FURTHER INFORMATION
La Piazzetta, 5 Bishopric, Horsham, RH12 1QA
Tel: (01403) 273133
Email: hello@lapiazzetta-horsham.com
