A place for the perfect pizza in Romford-Di Napoli restaurant review.

The Havering Daily went on a food adventure recently to explore some Italian cuisine in Romford. We sent our reporter and food lover Charlie Keeble to review a restaurant he discovered that delighted his senses.

DiNapoli is a small Italian restaurant on Victoria Street in Romford town. When I went in there was a warm cosy atmosphere with a fabulous décor of colourful walls and pictures of Italian landmarks. One can wander into this place and be right at home dining in the rustic vibe of Italian cuisine and culture. The aroma of the food and the ambiance is to be savoured as it enlightened my senses. 

It’s run by the husband and wife team Afrim and Sonja Sonilaand they hail from Rainham. Originally from Albania,they have brought with them a wealth of knowledge and good understanding of Italian food and drink. Afrim told me that he trained as a chef specialising in Italian cuisine. He used to work in Ninos, another Italian restaurant in Upminster before setting DiNapoli up with Sonja in 2019. I had always walkedpast this restaurant and with this review I have now become a regular of their restaurant.

I came to DiNapoli with St Albans Conservative Councillor Judith Holt and we had dinner together. She was just as excited about this place, as she had been meaning to come for quite a while. This looked like a good opportunity for us to try their food together with completely different dishes. We had garlic bread for starters and it had a very nice appearance where it was served as a flatbread pizza. Judith and I liked the buttery texture, which wasn’t too garlicky. The bread bases of all their pizzas here are made from sourdough made 24 hours in advanced. It gives a dusty and earthy feel and I like breads that are served in this way.

For my mains I had a Calabrese Pizza and Judith had Linguine Frutti Di Mare (seafood with chilli). I like pizzas especially from DiNapoli for the way they cook them in a gas powered stone bake oven that works for the sourdough base. It rises with a dense and chewy texture that adds a crafty flavour with the toppings of my pizza. Most of the items on the menu here are from the Sonila’s home made recipes.

I choose a calabrese for this occasion because it was new to the menu and I like to try new flavours once in a while, like the last time I came here and had my first eggy pizza. The mix of spicy sausage (nduja), mozzarella and red onion was mind blowing and they went really well together. It was hot but not too spicy for me, and the onions and meat were cooked really well with the very creamy cheese base. Judith’s linguine was just as good. She told me it was a good place for ladies who lunch and I look forward to coming along with other friends from the Havering Daily to enjoy. It was just like Italian food should be. 

Talking of Italian pizzas if you were wondering where the name of the Margherita pizza got it’s name it comes from theItalian Queen consort Margherita of Savoy. In 1889 a pizzaiolo called Raffaele Esposito invented a dish in her honour and for the unification of the Kingdoms of Italy. He used ingredients to match the colours of the Italian flag. Basil for green, mozzarella for white and tomato for red and the name has stuck ever since. 

I would highly recommend this place for dining out in Romford for lunch and dinner. It makes for a great food adventure in Romford and I would recommend it for families, groups of friends and happy couples. You can order for takeaways but I would never miss an opportunity to dine at this venue. I’d give it 9 out of 10.

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