Stefani’s makes a splash on Britain’s Top Takeaways – but falls short of top spot

But despite the valiant efforts of Nico Stefani and his assistant Martin Neil, the Cedar Square-based eatery failed to bag the top spot, ranking joint fourth out of five.

Nico, who travelled to Manchester last year for the filming of the BBC Two show, said: “Watching the show brought it all back. I forgot how fun it was. All the businesses there had their own little stories. A lot of us are still in touch now; we all chatted last night after the show, saying it was great.”

Nico and Martin competed against Scream for Pizza from Newcastle, which puts a ‘playful twist’ on pizza-making with unusual toppings, Pizza Cabina from Cornwall with its west country-inspired menu, and Lucky Mama’s, a food truck based in Manchester.

But it was the London-based East West pizzeria, with its fusion menu of Indian flavours baked into a traditional chewy Neapolitan crust, which took home the title of Britain’s Top Takeaway pizza.

Disgruntled fans of the popular restaurant took to social media to express their disappointment.

Tony Rawlinson said: “Pity you didn't get any testers with proper palates or knowledge of food culture. You make pizzas the way that they are supposed to be made and should really have won.”

Angela Nausino said: “You were awesome and should have won as you had the most authentic pizzas in the comp.”

Nico said: “We were very high up in the first few rounds, then lost it at the end with one of our top selling pizza, The Don. That was a bit surprising – but everyone’s got a different taste. I think with the name, they thought it was going to be something extreme, but it’s really one of the first pizzas I ever made at the pizzeria, with pepperoni, red onion, basil, sausage meat and parmesan.

“It was a great experience, filming the show, and we had a real laugh with the cameramen and crew. I hope there’s a season two, and we’re going to win it next time!”

Britain's Top Takeaways, with Sara Cox and Darren Harriott, returns to BBC Two tonight at 8pm with a Mexican food theme.