A new business is bringing a pizza the action to villages across Norfolk where residents can miss out on takeaways due to their rural location.
Pizza Roma was started in June by mum-of-three Julia Kirby from Bawdeswell, near Reepham, in a 1969 Astral Ranger van which she bought on eBay and collected the day before lockdown.
Ms Kirby first had the idea to open a mobile pizza business 20 years ago, but after becoming a single mum she had to sideline her dream while she raised her children.
Now her two eldest chidlren Cameron, 17, and Bonnie, 15, are old enough she has decided to take the plunge and is in Bawdeswell every Friday, near Floranova in Norwich Road.
Customers are being encouraged to pre-order, with walk-ups allowed too, and two other nights of the week she is touring Norfolk villages.
The pizzas on the menu include a Neapolitan, with mozzarella and pesto, Milano, with Italian salami and tomato, and a veggie option too.
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At each event there is also a few pizza specials, which has included cheeseburger and Brie and cranberry, and customers can get potato nuggets and mozzarella bites too.
Ms Kirby said: “I couldn’t do it until my children were old enough and now they are involved as well and it is a proper family business.
“We live in Bawdeswell where you can’t go out for dinner and people in rural communities miss out on this side of things.”
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Ms Kirby, whose full-time job is in complementary health, has experience working in hospitality and recalls fondly the three years she spent working at Leeders burger bar in Prince of Wales Road while at college.
Since launching, Pizza Roma has sold out every time and Ms Kirby is also planning on doing weddings and other events.
Ms Kirby added: “The response has been amazing and we have sold out every night so far.
“The pizza is freshly made and it is authentic with real ingredients and as a takeaway goes it is pretty healthy.”
Visit the Pizza Roma Facebook page for upcoming dates and to order.
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