EATING out at Italian restaurants can lead to a little bit of deja vu, with diners confronted with a similar choice of pizza and pasta no matter where they go.

But, rather than being a problem, it can be the whole point of going to them - and as my friends, Thea and Rob, and I made our way to Pizza on the Green, I thought I knew exactly what to expect and was very much looking forward to it.

We were seated towards the back of the restaurant and our waiter served us promptly, even if he was a little surly.

There was a good range of specials that injected a little more variety to what I was expecting, but I knew I was after a pizza. There was a good range of these, for vegetarians as well as meat-eaters, and I decided on a Rucola. It cost £7.90 and was topped with rocket and parma ham.

Thea chose the Pizza on the Green, which had courgette, asparagus, cherry tomato, olives and garlic for the same price, while Rob's, an Anatra for £8.30, had leeks, brie and smoked duck.

They all had a tomato and mozzarella base, which is the first thing that differed from the usual Italian chain restaurant experience.

The flavours of the cheese and tomato really came through well, so much so I would have been happy eating a margherita by itself. I'm glad I didn't though, because the two large slices of parma ham were tasty and went very well with the freshness of the rocket.

Thea enjoyed hers, but was a little disappointed there wasn't more of her toppings (it only had four olives). And Rob was equally put out that he only had three slices of duck on his, but other than that, he described it as excellent, with lots of flavour.

All felt the pizzas looked a little small at first, another difference to the chains I'm used to visiting, but after finishing them we found they were just enough to satisfy our appetites without leaving us with the feeling we had eaten too much.

More importantly, it left room for dessert. There was a good selection, priced between £4 and £5. Rob was a little disappointed with his creme brulee (£4), pointing out it tasted somewhat burnt and the menu description was misleading (he felt the promise it came with fruit of the forest implied more than one strawberry).

But Thea and I were very happy with ours.

Mine, a creamy strawberry cheesecake (£4.50), was complemented perfectly by the fruitiness of the sorbet, while Thea described her sticky toffee pudding (£4) as everything a good dessert should be.

The atmosphere at the back of the restaurant was a little odd, open and light. Despite the murals of Italian street scenes on the walls, it was not particularly cosy.

But the plastic vine leaves and fairy lights at the front looked as if they created a more pleasant and intimate ambiance.

Including four glasses of wine and a coke, our bill came to £61.30, a fair price, I felt.

Overall Pizza on the Green certainly has the edge over most Italian chains and I'll definitely be back to try more of their wide range of dishes.