EALING'S very own traditional Neapolitan pizzeria, Santa Maria, is moving to a different location, five minutes down the road from its current one.

Pasquale Chionchio and Angelo Ambrosio have been best friends since they were teenagers and decided to set up their own restaurant in 2010.

They felt like Ealing needed a local, traditional Neapolitan pizzeria, 'somewhere where pizza is treated with the respect it deserves.'

They opened Santa Maria pizzeria on February 14, 2010 on St Mary's Road and the business quickly took off.

Chionchio told Nub News: "Pizza for Neapolitans is like a religion, it's part of our culture and we had a moral responsibility to carry on with our heritage.

"We don't allow our standards to drop, we are so passionate about this, even if a better ingredient is more expensive, we'll buy it."

Nearly 11 years and three expansion restaurants later, the pair are relocating from their original location.

Chionchio said: "When we opened a decade ago we just wanted a local place to show the people of Ealing what traditional, good pizza tastes like.

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"We didn't have a business plan in mind per se, but thinks quickly took off and the space was just too small."

The new location, which is due to open on February 14, 2021 – 11 years to the day since the first restaurant opened – will be located on Bond Street.

The new space will be able to accommodate more than 60 covers and will have 'exactly the same pizza as always', according to Chionchio.

The original on St Mary's Road will not shut down though, but it will change.

Chionchio added: "We will keep our first location, but it'll have a different concept that we're not ready to reveal yet."

The two friends are very excited to be expanding and believe that after all these years, Ealing is their second home.

"We've been here for 10 years, both my kids and Angelo's go to school in the area, we're a part of the community and we're just as excited as we were 10 years ago to be opening a new restaurant in Ealing."