Civerino's delight pizza fans with plans to expand into Portobello and Corstorphine

The popular pizza chain announced on Twitter last weekend that it would be expanding on its current range of restaurants, building a further two sites in addition to those located on Forrest Road and Hunters Square. The plans for two new ‘Slice’ restaurants will establish the pizza chain’s reach beyond Edinburgh city centre, as it widens its horizons to Portobello and Corstorphine. Since opening its first site on Hunter’s Square in 2015, Civerino’s has cemented itself in Edinburgh’s sprawling pizza scene. The success of its Slice outlet at the top of Forrest Road has propelled it to new heights and now it hopes to replicate its appeal in a new Slice location on St John’s Street, Corstorphine as ‘Civerino’s Slice West’. In a tweet posted on Sunday, Civerino’s said: “We’re opening Slice’s in Portobello & Corstorphine.... we’re going to try and create up to 30 jobs per unit and using local trades & merchants where we can.” These plans follow similarly exciting moves from Civerino’s throughout the pandemic, as it has gone from strength to strength with recent developments and collaborations. Back in May, the pizza brand started selling ‘dough it yourself’ kits to let customers recreate its enormous wood-fired pizzas at home in lockdown. More recently, it teamed up with Mothership HQ to make DIY cocktail kits available with Civerino’s deliveries. Alongside its latest plans to erect two new locations in Portobello and Corstorphine, Civerino’s have also teamed up with boutique Cowgate hotel, House of Gods to offer a true luxury night in. Civerino’s Pizza is up for grabs as a key component in House of God’s ‘in-room silver service dining experience’, presenting an extra treat for those in search of a luxury city break in the capital. Owner of Civerino’s, Michele Civiera said that these collaborations and expansions are all part of Civerino’s attempt to adapt to an unpredictable and precarious backdrop for food and drink businesses in Edinburgh. “We don’t know when we’re going to be shoulder-to-shoulder with bars and restaurants again,” he said “so we’re just looking at fun ways to get things out there and create fun collaborations to keep the wheels moving.” He added that while he could not confirm the exact location for the planned Civerino’s Slice coming to Portobello, it will indeed be located “by the sea” to bring some “Venice Beach vibes” to Edinburgh’s shore. While the opening date for Civerino’s West Slice opening in Corstorphine, serving the same selection of 20 inch pizza pies, slices and sides to take away, remains unknown, it will be located at the site formerly housing Pizza Hut at 187 St John’s Road, Corstorphine, EH12 7SL. A message from the Editor: Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by Coronavirus impacts our advertisers. If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.