Unlock's pizza chef at work
What can you tell us about Unlock?
This is the latest opening by the canal in the ever-growing and changing area of Hackney Wick. It comes from Napoli-born siblings Arianna and Giovanni Izzo. Arianna was formerly a pastry chef at Naples bakery, Tarallificio Leopoldo. Here in London, they've opened a Neapolitan pizza restaurant that is also aiming to be a showcase for both local and Italian art.
Where can we find it?
Head to Hackney Wick overground station and it's a slightly winding 10-minute walk to get to the other side of the Canal, where you'll find Unlock on the canalside.
Outside the restaurant, you'll see their latest artist collaboration. from Napoli-born photographer Mario Guarino
What about a drink before?
If you are coming from the train, then a quick pint at Crate Brewery is a good option, particularly if you're blessed with decent weather. But Unlock itself is part bar, so you can always pop in here beforehand, or linger a little longer after you're finished with the pizza. There's a short wine list starting at £35 a bottle (Picpoul), Moretti beer on tap and a short cocktails list (around £15 each).
This is the main restaurant section of Unlock. We'd definitely like to see much more of the artwork on the inside of the restaurant too, but we visited pretty early on so we'd expect the presentation to evolve in the coming weeks.
And what about the food?
There is a short list of starters and snacks, with options like a smoked stracciatella salad (£8) or meatballs and fries (£9), and these are fine but frankly not quite up to the standards of the pizzas that follow. We'd say either order a salumi and formaggi board (£18) or save the room for an extra pizza, because that's where the real talent lies here.
You have the option of classic pizzas, including a margherita, quattro formaggio, diavolo and the usual suspects (all between £11 and £13). If you're feeling a little less adventurous then we're pretty sure you'd get an excellent classic pizza here. But the gourmet section is really where it starts to get interesting. In this part of the menu you have nine pizzas which are all using ingredients that aren't seen in a standard pizzeria. That includes everything from Jerusalem artichoke cream to panko tempura prawns with pistachio cream.
Here are the two pizzas we tried:
The Unlock - mozzarella, truffle paste, deep-fried mushrooms, prosciutto crudo, parsley (£18.50)
The Lab - Aubergine cream, mozzarella, mortadella, fresh ricotta, lime zest (£16)
Now, we love a classic pizza any day of the week but every so often we like to see something that takes a few more risks, and Unlock definitely fits the bill. We loved both these pizzas - the dough game was strong and the somewhat unusual toppings worked very well. Based on these, we'd be up for trying more of the gourmet options. Apparently, the team here are looking at offering a set menu which pairs different gourmet slices with cocktails - so that's worth looking out for.
Overall thoughts
As above, we very much enjoyed the pizzas at Unlock. While it's not necessarily a pizzeria you'd cross town for, if you're anywhere out east, it's definitely worth a look.
More about Unlock
Where is it? 1 Monkwood Way, London E3 2EG
Find out more: Follow them on Instagram @unlock_pizza.
Hot Dinners ate as guests of Unlock. Prices are correct at the time of writing.
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