PIZZA Baracca, based on The Grove in Christchurch, opened its doors a week before the first lockdown and has just been recognised by their industry peers by winning a Gold Winner Award from PAPA – The Pizza, Pasta and Italian Food Association.

Pizza Baracca is a takeaway run by a Christchurch husband and wife team who are passionate about their Italian inspired pizzas using authentic Italian ingredients and fresh produce.

“As a newly opened single site Christchurch business, we are overjoyed to be recognised by our professional industry peers at PAPA” says Sarah Veakins.

“We are incredibly well supported by our local community in Christchurch, our customers appreciate our a Italian inspired pizzas and have enabled us to also receive a 5* Tripadvisor Travellers Choice Award 2021.”

After years of working in the hospitality field as consultants, they decided it was time to open a fixed based site and they moved to Christchurch and opened a takeaway aiming to offer their new community the best handmade pizzas in the area.

A week after their launch day, the first lockdown came into force and because Pizza Baracca had created their own click and collect online system with the ability to order food in advance and for the order to be ready on time – chef prides himself on this – then Pizza Baracca stayed open throughout the lockdown.

“We had a fantastic response from our local area, we were very busy and it was wonderful to see how people felt it was important to support their local independent businesses,” said Sarah. “We will always be grateful for that.”

With their own dedicated chef, with decades of food consultancy experience, their mission is to change the way people think about takeaway food.

Their menu is forever changing and adapting to suit the seasons and ingredient availability and by offering a menu that is restaurant quality but to eat at home.

“We get a lot of calls to book a table because people presume we are a restaurant and are surprised when we explain we are a takeaway only,” said Sarah.

“Takeaways don’t always have the best reputation, which is a great shame because there are some amazing Dorset takeaways.

“It is telling that there are no Dorset food or hospitality awards specifically for takeaways – that really needs to change!”

Pizza Baracca is at 36 The Grove, Christchurch, at pizzabaracca.co.uk and on Facebook and on Instagram (@pizzabaracca)