Arriving at Forbici, sodden by bank holiday rain, we felt as though we’d stepped into a pocket of Naples on Cross Street, greeted by smiling staff and the smell of fresh pizza. With Manchester hosting an abundance of Neapolitan style pizzas, it may seem difficult for competitors of Rudy’s, Double Zero or Nell’s (to name a few) to make their mark in the city. However, with bold flavours, and the fluffiest of crusts, Forbici is giving it their all.

Having been seated, Forbici’s unique methods were explained to us, as the secrets of expert dough making were spilled. Their pizza dough is made with slightly acidic water (5pH, for the stem students), proven for 12 hours, at 24 degrees Celsius, to create an expertly aerated base, on which quality ingredients sit. While emphasising the precision that goes into creating these pizzas, our waiter went on…

“Forbici means scissors, in Italian, so all of our pizzas are cut with scissors”

Explaining further, we were taught about how when a pizza wheel is used to cut slices, this often squashes out delicate air bubbles, ruining the hard work gone into making fluffy dough. So, for all the naysayers, you’ve heard it here first; scissors belong on the table of all pizzerias!

Moving on to the menu, we whetted our appetites with a couple of starters, opting for classically Mediterranean Padron peppers, and the more innovative Frittatina Bolognese. The peppers arrived, laced in salt and with a lemon to squeeze, delivering a bittersweet flavour. The saltier the pepper the better, in my opinion, so a pinch more on the plate would have perfected this dish, however when dressed with lemon juice, they hit the spot.

The Frittatina Bolognese too was a delight, but I must warn you, you only get one, and you will be compelled to scoff it! The combination of tender rigatoni, filled with hearty ragu, combined with creamy bechamel does mean you wouldn’t actually want to eat too many of these before the main course, but that didn’t stop me from wanting more. Crispy on the outside, and oozingly soft inside, this was a real success.

Sipping on Aperol Spritzes, we anticipated the arrival of our pizzas, having gone for the nduja fuelled Calabrese, and the more rogue Lancashire Hot Pot. Featuring as a special, the hot pot based pizza is topped with lamb ragu, upon fior de latte, garnished with black pepper, and freshly made potato crisps.

This was certainly a unique offering, but a lovely nod to the North’s hearty homebred flavours, bringing warmth and comfort food to the ever-versatile pizza. While a novelty pizza does occasionally ‘piss-a’ me off (excuse the ironically novel pun), this was triumphant. The pizza was notably savoury, with the subtlety of fior de latte balancing this, but not drawing attention to itself, and thus opted for a more texturally diverse experience.

Tender ragu and, fluffy dough, and crunchy potato married well on the whole, but beware the slow eaters, as if the crisps sit on the ragu for too long, they did appear prone to sogginess.

On the flip side, the Calabrese boasts classic flavours of Southern Italy, as stracciatella cooled fiery nduja that melted in the mouth. I’m always a fan of fresh basil on a pizza, as an indicator of quality, and here it made for a summery feeling pizza, that contrasted the drizzle outside.

Both pizzas really delivered on excellent dough, with no fear of a cardboardy base, or overly chewy crust. Dipped into flavoursome garlic aioli, there was no crust left behind!

In true Italian fashion, we could not let our meal end there, and decided that our dessert stomachs could handle a third course. So, an affogato, paired with a deliciously juicy red wine, and Forbici’s own Pistamisu arrived at our table.

Recommended by our delightfully friendly waiter, the Sicilian wine brought out the delicate sweetness in the affogato’s vanilla ice cream. Meanwhile, the Pistamisu consisted of thick, pistachio mascarpone on a crumbled biscuit base. While not necessarily resembling its namesake, the dessert was mousse like, and not too sweet, but a little on the more decadent side.

All in all, Forbici was a great spot for a meal out in town, providing excellent quality in both its food and service. For the average student, it may be either an affordable dinner with friends, or a more indulgent end of year treat, with pizzas ranging from £8 to £14.50.

Forbici is open 12-10pm every day.