Pizzas with a Desi Twist

Although pizzas were more or less invented in and around Naples in South Italy, they only shot to fame once Napolitans travelled to the USA and set up shop there, selling pizza to other Napolitans. Once the first few Americans tasted this novelty, history was created. It is certain that Chicago-style, New York-style and deep dish pizzas have little to do with Italy, so when quirky fusions take place in Delhi, it is par for the course. Here is our pick of desi pizzas:

• Ignore all the original pizzas made at California Pizza and ask for the desi ones. They are brilliant, combining as they do chicken, a bit of spice by way of green chillies and a twist of lime as in chicken fajita pizza and krapow kai pizza. There are no thin-crust pizzas here: all the pizza bases are pleasantly bready.

• Ambrosia Bliss: You are spoilt for choice here. Not only does the Indian Shakahari press all the right buttons, it has paneer tikka and green chillies. Even better are the keema curry pizza and the Punjabi kukkad even has a dollop of lime pickle. We love that we can sit outside on the balcony and wolf down some serious pizzas.

• Amici has many branches. All serve classic Italian pizzas, but seriously, how can you resist one whose name is Confused Chilli Chicken Pizza or Nawabi Paneer? That too, when you know that the owner is part Italian!

• When the mighty PizzaExpress features an Apollo on its menu that has tandoori chicken, coriander, green chillies and yellow peppers, we go weak at the knees. Absolutely any pizza served in Italy would never have chicken! Salami yes. Oysters, sometimes.

• When we want to have an orgy, we’d head straight to World Pizza Journey and overdose on the falafel pizza, the Mandarin Madness and the Bombay Bhaji Pizzas.