Croma is a set of independent Italian restaurant chains with 7 stores in the United Kingdom, mainly in the Manchester area.
I visited Croma two times in late November / early December 2015, and sadly have only got round to writing the review now, but it is quite a nice place in Prestwich.
Croma is located inside a small complex with a cafe, a bar and a Costa Coffee and is near enough next to Marks and Spencer, but the complex it is in requires parking outside. Croma don't own this so it is just the luck of the draw with opening a restaurant here.
On my first visit, the car park machines were out of order so I was concerned in getting a ticket, the staff seemed polite enough and even told me that they are not licensed to issue tickets anyway, still they got the number for me and I rang them to explain.
On my first visit, I ordered an Aglefino which is usually £8.65, but was an extra £1.50 for gluten free, I found this to be a little expensive especially for the pizza, which is basically haddock, leek, egg, lemon juice and parsley. I didn't like the combination on the pizza - I guess it was okay but still it was just a combination that shouldn't happen, the only reason I couldn't stop eating it in disgust was probably with the parsley and egg added, and the gluten free base was quite nice.
This is quite a nice higher end place, but still some of the prices do not warrant that, although some do depending on the pizza you order.
The second visit, I ordered just a pepperoni pizza, to take out, It was quick enough and was ready by the time I pulled up in my car and entered the restaurant. The pizza was once again quite nice, although more cheese would have been nice, but still it was a nice pizza, and this was much cheaper being £7.75 and then an additional £1.50 for gluten free, which still may be a little expensive, but I don't mind paying for quality and gluten free, and this pizza was one of the better ones I have had from other chains, beating Pizza Hut, Domino's and even Bella Italia by a mile!
The staff on my second visit did seem a little posh and rude, when I asked how long the pizza would take, they basically reacted in shock, but the staff here mainly seem good so I'm willing to let that slide.
One of my pizzas was up to a good standard, and on one, I found it to be quite poor, which although I admit I made the wrong choice, I don't want to blame myself as it wasn't good quality, and they should simply not have put it to the menu. I would say 3 stars is a good rating for Croma, as they have shown stages of a great place to eat, but due to some minor issues such as the haddock pizza, paid parking, minor issues with the staff I feel I can only give 3 stars for now, as I want to see if other pizzas are still up to a good standard - as for now only 1/2 have been, so sadly Croma doesn't warrant 4 stars for me yet. Even charging gluten free at the same of a normal base would be nice, as this is what most other companies do such as Bella, Pizza Hut and ASK. read more