ONE of the city's restaurants has unveiled a new pizza for this year's food festival.
5 Borough's Pizza, on Jewry Street, has created the 'Mr Darcy' for A Taste of Winchester - an event which will feature more than 25 events, showcasing the local food and drink scene from June 23 to July 6.
The announcement was made in a surprise delivery to the Chronicle's office on Upper Brook Street. One of the owners, Matt Sanger, dropped off the 22" version, which would retail for £30.
Matt said: "We're excited to be offering something a bit cheeky. This is Mr Darcy. It's going to be our 'Taste of Winchester.'"
5 Boroughs on Jewry Street (Image: Charles Elliman)
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The pizza-fanatic said the pork and watercress toppings were from Hampshire suppliers. Pointing to the pork from Hogget and Boar, he said: "We get as much as we can for the local area - we're always looking for local suppliers."
Matt was asked if there was any particular reason why he chose to make the Jane Austen link. He said: "We know that there are going to be tourists coming here from America and New York for the anniversary."
Questioned if Colin Firth's famous Pride and Prejudice scene was an inspiration, he said: "No, but could he pop down and have a slice?"
According to the owner, one of three co-owners, the restaurant comes up with special, limited-time-only pizzas throughout the year.
The Mr Darcy is the most recent, but they also just had one with clams, and they are making a chicken caesar version for July 14 - Independence Day in the US.
5 Boroughs Pizza, named after New York's boroughs, came to Winchester last year but has already made a name for itself.
Matt said: "It's been great; it's a busy market in the city [...] We are an independent, but people think we are really a brand, because of how good things look.
"We are rapidly growing our reputation throughout the country. It's pretty exciting."
The restaurant specialises in the pizza style from New York, big and flat, even though Matt lived in San Francisco for three years.
All the owners spent time in the States, and it was their experience of its pizza culture that inspired the business. Matt said: "I lived in America for a bit and could not understand why we didn't have slices over here."
Ahead of opening 5 Boroughs, they all took a trip to do 'market research', according to Matt and "We all tried to sample as much pizza as we could in two days. We also saw the New York Yankees play, as you do."