Pizza Express, Pizza Hut, Dominoes etc (UK)

[Demon]

when in the Co-op I found wine that said suitable for vegetarians, is it totally kosha?

Co-Op label thier vegan wines, so if it only says vegetarian it's not vegan.

[Marrers]

Marrers, when in the Co-op I found wine that said suitable for vegetarians, is it totally kosha?

Ha ha, any excuse for new sofas!

As for the wine being kosher I don't know () . . .

In the Co-Op wines are marked as vegan so if it only said vegetarian it probably has used egg or something in the fining.

[Sandy777]

Ha ha, any excuse for new sofas!

As for the wine being kosher I don't know () . . .

In the Co-Op wines are marked as vegan so if it only said vegetarian it probably has used egg or something in the fining.

Thanks Demon and Marrers,
Sorry, - when I said kosher I meant ok/safe not proper kosher!

[Marrers]

I though so, hence the smiley. (Sorry, didn't see Demon's reply.)

[Demon]

Sorry, didn't see Demon's reply.

Well, she was asking you - I just chipped in!

[Marrers]

I think she must have noted from other threads that I am - well, shall we say well acquainted with - alcohol, esp wine!

[alisont]

Ive just phoned a pizza hut as thinking of going with students for end of term meal, as it seesm to suit everyone there. Thanks for the new list Demon with that link

They confirmed that at last they have removed whey powder from the bases so the 2 main bases used are now ok, they say i can have pizza with veggie toppings and if i want can take my own vegan cheese in ,still not somewhere id go on a regular basis but this will make my working life lunch easier if we take students they have altered the bases as so many parents were complaining as lots of kids go who are lactose/dairy intollerant.

Ive had that pasta bake before and it was awful.

Mmmmm pizza - i now fancy pizza for tea

[Cumin]

That's good news Alison ! Did they confirm that the tomato sauce (for the pizza) was Ok too? I seem to recall hearing in the past that it wasn't.

[BlackCats]

Looking at the latest dietary requirements list, most of the bases are vegan

http://www.pizzahut.co.uk/restaurant...ments-1107.pdf

Last time I looked (a couple of years ago), the only one which was suitable was stuffed crust (the one they add cheese to)!

Thanks Demon for that.

[Marrers]

Breaded mushrooms and wedges!!!!

[aubergine]

Hmm. I'd better say clear of Pizza Hut. It's taken me years to lose the weight I put on whilst working there for nine months

[Marrers]

But just think how much warmer the winter would be with a bit of extra padding around those bones!

[aubergine]

Tempted...

If they did a wholewheat sicilian base I'd be hooked for life. I also loved the American Breadsticks with warm dips.

I am so hungry now!

[alisont]

Hummph not going for student christmas do now the dreaded Mc Deaths is on the cards - Il be sat outside then

[alisont]

Went to Frankie and Bennys for lunch today - they were very friendly and helpful offering choice of pizza or pasta on the £4.95 lunch deal for me. I had a pizza with lots of veggies/herbs on and they were fine about putting soya chesses on top. Was really nice

I popped into pizza hut before to ask about the bases now labeled vegan on their website but the chef said they still had whey poweder in - they did offer if i take my own base and soya cheese to make a pizza up so i headed to frankie and bennys instead.

[Stu]

So do Frankie and Benny's have soya cheese then?

[alisont]

No i took some with me, wouldnt it be great if these places stocked soya cheese?

Ive only found one Italian place not too far away that atcually keeps it in stock

[alisont]

Just found this old thread out as I asked in Pizza Hut today if they had any vegan food as might be taking students there Thurs.

After many staff being asked the manager showed me the pizza base packet and it seems to me the whey powder part is not there anymore - the ingredients all seemed vegan.

Id need to email head office as it did say emulsifiers and did not say which - but the manager said she thought they had removed dairy from the bases to suit those with dairy allergies.

They offered to make up pizzas without cheese or said i can take soya cheese in.

I when time must investigate this more, id not make a habit of going there myself but if out with work it might be useful.

Anyone else heard anything about pizzahut?

The staff were very helpful but 1 asked me do you eat meat then

[Mahk]

http://www.pizzahut.com/Files/PDF/PI...NTS%202008.pdf

Lots of sketchy things to be wary of, even sugar if you are sensitive to the possibility of bone char filtration (I'm not).

[Gorilla]

that could well be different in the UK, though.

[alisont]

Ive just looked at their website and they have re done the allergy list June 08.

According to this the following are suitable for vegans:

Breaded mushrooms
Chilli onion rings
Potato wedges
Nachos with salsa
BBQ and chilli dips

Bases - pan pizza, Italian

Breadsticks

Says the dressings are all non vegan as is the tomato pasta salad.

Personally Id worry about cross contamination there as they do put veggie/meat ones in same oven areas, the salad bar scares me there as people drop bits from one container to another but thats the same in all buffets ive ever been to

So I wont be going out of my way to go there but if I go with work it appears that there are more options than before and if they have got rid of that whey powder they use to add to the bases thats good.

I shall still email head office when i get time, see what they say.

[Mahk]

True

UK site

other non pizza food for UK here

[Dylan Mulenburg]

Pizza hut THIN crust and sauce is vegan, other than the sugar. I am not sure if the sugar they use is refined using bone char. Other than that, the sauce, and THIN crust only is vegan.

Edit: This applies to the US, not sure about everywhere else.

[Mahk]

With pizza, in addition to the actual ingredients of the sauce and the dough, one has to worry about what they grease the pans with. Could be butter or some other animal fat. I wouldn't think who ever makes up the "dough ingredients list" for the web site would even think of this. Hard to blame them for that since they probably work behind a desk and have never even been in one of their company's kitchens to see how it all works.

[Cumin]

Pizza hut THIN crust and sauce is vegan, other than the sugar. I am not sure if the sugar they use is refined using bone char. Other than that, the sauce, and THIN crust only is vegan.

Please can you clarify if your statement applies to US outlets ? I see you are in the US, but others might miss that when reading your post.

[Dylan Mulenburg]

Sorry, I meant in the US, but it is probably all the same. Can't garantee though. I will edit the post.

[Mr Flibble]

Personally Id worry about cross contamination there

Quite. I can't quite bring myself to risk a pizza hut or dominos pizza.

[Mahk]

Do you two who fear the cross contamination feel this way about all omni restaurants in general or is pizza in some way different?

[Dylan Mulenburg]

Many vegan foods at grocery store is also processed on shared equipment. It is washed, but if that's good enough the employees could be asked to wash the pan and pizza cutter.

[Mr Flibble]

Do you two who fear the cross contamination feel this way about all omni restaurants in general

Pretty much. We very rarely eat at restaurants that aren't either vegetarian or specialise in vegan food (they in themselves are rare, but there are some omni places with a good vegan selection). If we do it's places where we trust the staff and talk to the chef if possible (usually in advance over the phone) to ensure that they really do understand - i.e. not places like pizza hut where half the staff have been there less than a month.

[Mahk]

Wow, Mr. F that seems so unnecessarily restrictive from my perspective but I guess you feel its important for you. Do you also reject foods that have ingredient lists from omni food companies? For instance you may have found a vegan bread but the company that makes it may also use the same oven, racks, mixers, cookware, slicers etc to make a different bread that contains honey etc. Since honey is not a major allergen there'd be no legal requirement to include a "shared equipment/facility" disclaimer on the package of course.

[Marrers]

Sorry, I meant in the US, but it is probably all the same.

We don't have non-vegan sugar issues here in the UK (thankfully).

[Mr Flibble]

Wow, Mr. F that seems so unnecessarily restrictive from my perspective

Each to their own

Do you also reject foods that have ingredient lists from omni food companies?

We've had this conversation about traces of animal based things in otherwise vegan products before no?

In short: I assess it on a case by case basis.

Generally speaking for finished products that aren't made in bulk (and hence chance of cross contamination magnitudes higher) outside factories by omni companies I'm more cautious. Certainly very cautious when it comes to small shops/delis unless I'm able to talk to the staff and gauge their competence.

[alisont]

Well took the student group to Pizzahut today - the manager I had seen earlier in the week had a print out of their updated allergy/special diets list and pointed out what I could and could not eat, they were really good with the students and did a cheese free pizza for me and another member of staff whos vegan, It was really nice, lots of veggies on.

When possible i eat in veggie/vegan restaurants or vegan aware ones but when out with work I ring places in advance - was impressed that the list had been printed and vegan items highlighted, several staff spoke to me to ask about vegan meals/veganism, small steps but i felt it went well.

Id not eat there by choice as Id rather go to veggie restaurants or the Indian restaurant where ive spoken to the chef and manager and can get vegan meals but with work its fine.

[Mahk]

We've had this conversation about traces of animal based things in otherwise vegan products before no?

Yeah but I'm old; I forget. Ya know they say the one good thing about Alzheimer's is you get to meet new people every day! [Wait, did I tell you that one already?]

In short: I assess it on a case by case basis.

Check. You go by a gut reaction then and have no hard rules, yes?

Generally speaking for finished products that aren't made in bulk (and hence chance of cross contamination magnitudes higher) outside factories by omni companies I'm more cautious. Certainly very cautious when it comes to small shops/delis unless I'm able to talk to the staff and gauge their competence.

I didn't quite get what you are saying here but don't bother trying to clarify for my aged brain. What I am curious about though is what you mean by "the staff", do you mean the wait staff/manager speaking on behalf of the entire establishment or do you need to speak with the kitchen staff directly? What questions might you ask of either group in determining their competence in making truly vegan food for you? What would one of your largest fears be, regarding their (possible) incompetence, for example?

[Sarah_]

Yes, I buy pizza from Domino's frequently. I ask for extra sauce, olives, pineapple, tomato and jalapenos and then when it gets here I add avocado, pepperoncinis and whatever else I happen to have. It's wonderful.

[Bza]

My girlfriend recently wrote to Dominos and they said they use Whey in all the Pizza bases.

[Mr Flibble]

If an email can you paste it?

[harpy]

Here's an ingredients list for the UK Domino's:

http://www.dominos.uk.com/pdf/FoodGu...ndToppings.pdf

The US one looks completely different though:

http://www.dominos.com/home/menu/ingredients.jsp

[Mr Flibble]

It certainly does look like they have whey in their bases, glad I've never eaten anything from there

[Mahk]

Wow, American thin crust looks safe. No whey!

[Cumin]

It certainly does look like they have whey in their bases, glad I've never eaten anything from there

Oh *&^&% . Now I'm really annoyed. I've had a couple of pizzas from them on the grounds that they had no animal products in the bases last time I asked.
Grrrr....

I'm glad that I've switched to take-out from Pizza Express anyway. Much nicer.

A$&e Ho**s

[alisont]

I like the take out ones from pizza express - had one Dominoes since going vegan didnt think much to it as dry and not much topping on, compared to pizza express. Bad news if they have whey in. Not good

Ive seen the atcual box with ingredients on in Pizzahut it did not have whey powder in - they said its due to lots of emails from customers and people with dairy allergies.

Still think Pizza express the safest!

[Gorilla]

Oh *&^&% . Now I'm really annoyed. I've had a couple of pizzas from them on the grounds that they had no animal products in the bases last time I asked.
Grrrr....

me too.

[Gorilla]

i emailed Domino's and this is the reply, which makes it sound as though they've never been vegan at all

"Thank you for contacting Domino's Pizza with your comments, they are very much appreciated.

My apologies for the slight delay in getting back you, I had to pass this on to the technical food manager here at head office.

They have confirmed that there has been no recent change to the dough recipes.

Whey is part of the dough conditioner that helps the yeast to work to its best; it is present in only tiny amounts.

They have also confirmed that they will ask our training department to train store operatives to inform customers ordering cheese free pizzas that there is a small amount of whey present in the base.

My sincere apologies for any inconvenience this has caused and all of your comments have been taken on board."

[Cumin]

I've just read back through this thread, and you posted some years ago that you were told they were vegan (I'm not blaming you BTW). So at some point they changed it, but we've obviously only just found out. How annoying is that !

*&$*$&

:-(

[BlackCats]

I e-mailed Domino's last year and they said the bases were vegan including the new Italian one. I have eaten tons of them since then *sigh*

[Gorilla]

grr. who knows when they changed the recipe. i was definitely told they contained no dairy the last time i asked. very disappointing.

[harpy]

I don't understand why they need whey to help the yeast to work to its best when other companies don't use it, including their own US operation. Perhaps they should investigate using different yeast!

[Rakey]

I went online and looked at their allergy list and saw no whey in their bases...