Mondello's named best pizza restaurant with best chef in England

Mondello’s in Crawshawbooth scooped first place in the new competition thanks to head chef Antonio Vetrano’s pizza parmigiana.

The 42-year-old, from Padiham, faced a live bake-off against 20 other top Italian chefs in Manchester as he cooked up a slice of pizza perfection for the judges.

Antonio was also named best pizza chef at the awards, which judges Italian restaurants from across England.

The entrepreneur, who lives with his wife Andrea and two sons Nico and Luca, said he was overjoyed to win.

He added: "To me winning the award is everything.

"I have worked in the kitchen for 25 years, doing long hours every single day.

"The moment I was told I won was absolutely amazing because I never thought I would win the award.

"I respect the other competitors so much and they are all good chefs.

"Without my wife's help though it would be impossible to do what I do."

His award winning pizza is based around the traditional Sicilian dish 'parmigiana' and is made from a fresh thin base using Caputo flour and a Pomodoro San Marzano tomato sauce.

He then adds aubergines, oregano, fresh basil, ricotta and mozzarella cheese, olive oil, and before cooking in a wood fired pizza oven.

The father-of-two moved from Sicily to Burnley in 1999 after deciding he wanted to go on an adventure and discover a different country.

Since then he has worked in the catering industry in East Lancashire for 25 years and co-owns Mondello's as well as Ballaro in Burnley with fellow Sicilian Francesco Tutrone.

The success doesn’t stop here for the ambitious pair, who are opening their third venture next week, Ciao Takeaway. They then dream of launching a drive-thru pizzeria.

And Antonio could yet be crowned the UK’s top pizza chef. He faces a cook-off against the Scottish number one next month to decide who is the UK's best.