Got an hour for lunch? Well lucky you! You’ll be hard pushed to find a better spot to head this summer than Pizza Express.

Offering a new ‘Express Menu’ in Falmouth and Truro, you can find all your favourites, just a little lighter, a little cheaper and a little faster. What’s not to love?

However, we’re all used to gimmicks and new and improved products - so we went to put the new menu through its paces to see if it is as good as it sounds.

Situated in an enviable |position at the edge of Events Square with harbour views and raised outdoor terrace, the venue itself already has a lot to boast about. The decor is airy and stylish and art lovers can feed their souls, as well as their stomachs, with the changing exhibitions held in the lower level.

Currently on show is a stunning collection of drawings entitled Cornish Lines by Patrick Biddulth. Beautiful and simplistic renderings of the Cornish coast, worth popping into have a look regardless of whether you stay for food. I digress...

With a goal of squeezing in a gossipy lunch between deadlines, myself and News Editor, Emma, had exactly an hour to test the new menu.

With luck obviously on our side, we found a parking space immediately and headed on into the restaurant. Despite already bustling with diners we bagged a table by the window and perused the new dishes, and old favourites on the Express menu.

Having shown us to our seats, our waitress wasted no time in asking for our drink choices, and recommending a few items that were already proving|popular.

One of these items were the Piadinas - bread pockets that are made using dough, baked with Gran Moravia and filled with tasty, fresh ingredients which come in a variety of |fillings including the P.L.T, Caesar, Caprese, Chicken Avocado and Italian Meat.

Despite their tempting|descriptions we opted for the Pollo salad and |Pollo ad Astra pizza and |a side of Polenta chips for good measure.

Now, being notoriously fussy, I asked that my pizza came without the peppadew |peppers topping - this was no problem as the pizzas are made to order and I was offered an additional topping of choice. Extra chicken added the |chatting commenced...

Less than ten minutes of chitchat had passed before our order arrived complete with additional oils for drizzling and our drinks.

The Pollo salad (£5.25) contained chicken, goat's cheese, seasonal mixed leaves, pepper, olives, croutons and tomato with house dressing and warm mini dough sticks.

Emma said that the dressing was a perfect complement working well to tie all the flavours together.

The addition of the dough sticks also meant that you felt that you had had something |substanial with your meal. That being said she did 'test' a slice of my pizza as well!

Sharing the Polenta chips (£2.35) was a good idea as |neither of us needed a large portion with our light lunch. They were crisp and golden on the outside with the polenta light, fluffy and delicious inside.

My Pollo ad Astra (£5.95) |featured chicken, red onion, mozzarella, tomato, Cajun spices and garlic oil and came minus the sweet Peppadew |peppers.

It was delightful - just the right size for lunch. I must |confess that I would have liked my pizza to have been a little crisper, but the topping was tasty and flavoursome.

At no time during our visit did we feel hurried or rushed, taking the time to enjoy our meals. Despite being attentive the waitresses don’t crowd you while making sure that meals come swiftly and that you |really can fit a leisurely lunch in an hour.

Back at the office, bang on the hour, our mission was complete - it’s fair to say we were impressed. We’d definitely do it again and soon.

Pizza Express has billed the new menu as being “designed to give busy people an excuse to escape for a quick and |inexpensive lunch,” and they have done exactly what they set out to do.

Another fantastic element to the Express offering is that all items are available to take away from Monday to Friday - so when the sun is shining you can grab your meals and head to the beach.

With dishes starting at £3.45 for soup with rolls to £5.95 for pizza they really are affordable - especially given the rising price of pasties!

For more information on the new menu, to order a takeaway or book a table see www.pizzaexpress.com