The Katanga Canyon KFC/Pizza Hut Express takeaway has long been a feature of the African-themed area at Alton Towers. However, it came to light towards the end of the 2008 season, that the parks relationship with KFC and Pizza Hut was coming to an end.

Whilst the future of the Meltdown unit in X-Sector remains unclear, the Katanga Canyon outlet, which Towers Times believes has been stripped inside, is to be rebranded to a Pizza & Pasta buffet, likely to be named “Explorers”.

This new outlet will feature a Colonial African theme, with an Open kitchen where fresh pizza and pasta will be prepared. The restaurant will have seating for over 300 guests and is likely to be priced around the £7 per adult mark, making it competitive with the other Alton Towers operated restaurants around the park.

It is hoped that the opening of this outlet will further improve the quality and diversity of catering outlets at the park, which has seen a massive overhaul since the early part of the decade.