Second helpings: Italian chain gangs

Strada

49-55 Bell Street, Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, tel: 01491 571 497

This 50-strong chain was taken over last year by the owner of Café Rouge and Bella Italia. This new outlet serves up the usual range, from pizza to lobster risotto

Pizza Express

6 The Teesside Retail Park, Middlesbrough Road, Stockton-On-Tees, tel: 01642 612 693

Nearly 45 years after Peter Boizot's chain kick-started Britons' love affair with pizza, its 300 outlets, including this snazzy branch, have kept the affair going

Carluccio's

1 Fisher Square, Grand Arcade, Cambridge, tel: 01223 307 046

Seventeen years after Carluccio's made its debut, there are now 37, including this shiny newcomer, combining deli and café