We arrive at Strada 241 on time, but our table is not ready. Not a good start... This leaves the Italian looking at the open kitchen with a critical eye. He points out to me that the oven is electric, not wood burning... I'm in for an interesting evening.
It is a beautiful spot. I'm not sure what the building was before it was turned into a restaurant, but the ceilings are post and beam, soaring above us. They must be 20 feet high, with huge wooden pillars holding them up. The lighting fixtures fit the industrial feel--they look like 1940's fixtures with Edison bulbs. I wonder if I can get one under my coat and take it home?
The Italian points out the spelling mistakes on the menu. Secondo piatties? Primi? He's annoyed and we haven't even ordered.
Our friend orders the Chianti, which, unlike some other places we have been to, is actually a fair sized portion of wine. He gets his own little decanter. Unfortunately, like most pizza places we have been to, the assumption is that they should serve Italian beer. This is wrong--Italians do many things well, but not beer.
We order three pizzas, the Gianpaolo, the Alessandro and the Pasquale. Mine is supposed to have wild boar on it, but we think it might actually be bacon. The mozzarella is definitely KRAFT for god's sake, and there is no flavor to the sauce. I'm about to commit the cardinal sin of asking for salt.
I really can't say enough BAD things about this place. I was so disgusted by the pizza, I can't even write about Strada 241 anymore. Avoid. Just avoid.
Out of 10? 0.
Tuesday 4 February 2014
Tuesday 26 February 2013
Mangia & Bevi, 260 King Street East
Tucked into a side street (not actually on King St. East), is the lovely Magia e Bevi. The restaurant is a true trattoria, in a loft building, with families, kids on the go. The ceilings are high, exposed duct work, and rotating art work on the walls. I like.
The service was excellent. There were only two servers on the floor, and a bus boy, but they were all really friendly and helpful. Our food was perfectly timed. We had a salad, then an appropriate amount of time for digestion before our pizzas came. It's rare to find that in Toronto. The bread they served was hot and crusty.
We had the mista salad, with the house vinaigrette. There was nothing special about the salad, but then again, it is only mixed greens, so how special can you make that?
The pizza menu is huge, there are over 30 pizzas, and they all sound fantastic. This did make choosing quite hard. The prices range between $10-$17.
The Italian orders Piccante pizza and I have the Trentina, both of which are listed under the "original" title, so we're looking at eating pizzas created by the owners. I like this--it reminds me of Napoli, where each shop had pizzas that were house specials, unique to that shop and only found there.
After the appropriate amount of time (about 10 minutes) after our salad is done, the pizzas arrive. My usual complaint is that no one puts olive oil on top of the pizza. I ask for some, and the Italian asks for some hot olive oil (like the Piccante isn't enough?). What he gets is a sauce called "Bomba Italiana" (which you can purchase there). The ingredients are listed as: pepperoncini, sun dried tomatoes, eggplant, olive oil, sunflower oil, mixed mushrooms, porcini mushrooms, basil and salt and it is excellent. No matter what the cost, do yourself a favor and purchase a bottle (it's about $8).
The Italian boyfriend says his pizza is excellent, the crust is perfect, the sausage is homemade and the sweet, red onions perfectly compliment the spices on the pizza. I find that for me, the speck taste is too strong, but I'm still pleased with my pizza. Perhaps I have forgotten how strong speck tastes.
We had dinner, drinks and a salad for under $50.
Highly recommended, 8/10.
The service was excellent. There were only two servers on the floor, and a bus boy, but they were all really friendly and helpful. Our food was perfectly timed. We had a salad, then an appropriate amount of time for digestion before our pizzas came. It's rare to find that in Toronto. The bread they served was hot and crusty.
We had the mista salad, with the house vinaigrette. There was nothing special about the salad, but then again, it is only mixed greens, so how special can you make that?
The pizza menu is huge, there are over 30 pizzas, and they all sound fantastic. This did make choosing quite hard. The prices range between $10-$17.
The Italian orders Piccante pizza and I have the Trentina, both of which are listed under the "original" title, so we're looking at eating pizzas created by the owners. I like this--it reminds me of Napoli, where each shop had pizzas that were house specials, unique to that shop and only found there.
After the appropriate amount of time (about 10 minutes) after our salad is done, the pizzas arrive. My usual complaint is that no one puts olive oil on top of the pizza. I ask for some, and the Italian asks for some hot olive oil (like the Piccante isn't enough?). What he gets is a sauce called "Bomba Italiana" (which you can purchase there). The ingredients are listed as: pepperoncini, sun dried tomatoes, eggplant, olive oil, sunflower oil, mixed mushrooms, porcini mushrooms, basil and salt and it is excellent. No matter what the cost, do yourself a favor and purchase a bottle (it's about $8).
The Italian boyfriend says his pizza is excellent, the crust is perfect, the sausage is homemade and the sweet, red onions perfectly compliment the spices on the pizza. I find that for me, the speck taste is too strong, but I'm still pleased with my pizza. Perhaps I have forgotten how strong speck tastes.
We had dinner, drinks and a salad for under $50.
Highly recommended, 8/10.
Thursday 3 January 2013
Fabbrica--49 Karl Fraser Rd
I received a gift certificate from my boss to go to Mark McEwan's Fabbrica. Interesting--a Scot with an Italian restaurant.
In case you don't know who Mark McEwan is--he's a George Brown trained celebrity chef, and hosts "the Heat", and is a judge on Top Chef Canada. I have expectations....
Fabbrica is located in The Shops at Don Mills, which is an outdoor shopping plaza that reminds me of shopping in the Mugello, about an hour and a half, north of Florence. The shops all have separate entrances, nothing is connected by a "mall", so its much like shopping in a small community.
Fabbrica is beautiful inside, I have to admit. The ceilings are high, the place has excellent decoration, there is a wall of booze behind the bar that would make any Maritimer weep with joy (this includes me!); however, it does feel like a chain. I kept expecting an Earl's style waitress to approach the table, stoop down & ask me "how can I help you?" (you can help me by standing up....).
The Italian and I were first shown to a table that was crammed in between two others, thus preventing any arm movement (we like to eat--sawing pizza requires lots of elbow room). I asked to be moved, and was given a table that was in the path of the bathroom, so we spent the rest of the night being jostled by people traipsing to and fro from the loo.
The Italian boyfriend immediately noticed spelling mistakes on the menu. This does not bode well for our time here. I have to agree with the Italian's pickiness. If you're going to open up an ITALIAN restaurant, the least you can do is hire an Italian to check the spelling on the menu! Crema spelled incorrectly? Provolone spelled "provlone"? A simple Google check could correct this.
We are brought home baked bread (we can see the baker taking it out of the pizza oven). It's wonderful! Still warm and soft, but it kept coming..... The Italian cannot resist bread. I hope we have room for dinner.
The starter salad is beet but the beets have no flavour at all. For a winter veg this strikes me as odd. The pistachios that are in the salad are an excellent touch, adding the missing taste.
Our pizzas arrive. I opt for the Margherita (no surprise there) and the Italian tried the prosciutto e arugula. He liked his, as the prosciutto was excellent. I found that my sauce was bland and had to be salted. The crust was excellent, but the mozzarella was dry. Maybe they drained it? The idea that they used Canadian "Kraft" mozzarella disgusts me. I hope not.
Total cost for dinner was $70, so a bit overpriced for what we had. Out of 10? Maybe a 6.
In case you don't know who Mark McEwan is--he's a George Brown trained celebrity chef, and hosts "the Heat", and is a judge on Top Chef Canada. I have expectations....
Fabbrica is located in The Shops at Don Mills, which is an outdoor shopping plaza that reminds me of shopping in the Mugello, about an hour and a half, north of Florence. The shops all have separate entrances, nothing is connected by a "mall", so its much like shopping in a small community.
Fabbrica is beautiful inside, I have to admit. The ceilings are high, the place has excellent decoration, there is a wall of booze behind the bar that would make any Maritimer weep with joy (this includes me!); however, it does feel like a chain. I kept expecting an Earl's style waitress to approach the table, stoop down & ask me "how can I help you?" (you can help me by standing up....).
The Italian and I were first shown to a table that was crammed in between two others, thus preventing any arm movement (we like to eat--sawing pizza requires lots of elbow room). I asked to be moved, and was given a table that was in the path of the bathroom, so we spent the rest of the night being jostled by people traipsing to and fro from the loo.
The Italian boyfriend immediately noticed spelling mistakes on the menu. This does not bode well for our time here. I have to agree with the Italian's pickiness. If you're going to open up an ITALIAN restaurant, the least you can do is hire an Italian to check the spelling on the menu! Crema spelled incorrectly? Provolone spelled "provlone"? A simple Google check could correct this.
We are brought home baked bread (we can see the baker taking it out of the pizza oven). It's wonderful! Still warm and soft, but it kept coming..... The Italian cannot resist bread. I hope we have room for dinner.
The starter salad is beet but the beets have no flavour at all. For a winter veg this strikes me as odd. The pistachios that are in the salad are an excellent touch, adding the missing taste.
Our pizzas arrive. I opt for the Margherita (no surprise there) and the Italian tried the prosciutto e arugula. He liked his, as the prosciutto was excellent. I found that my sauce was bland and had to be salted. The crust was excellent, but the mozzarella was dry. Maybe they drained it? The idea that they used Canadian "Kraft" mozzarella disgusts me. I hope not.
Total cost for dinner was $70, so a bit overpriced for what we had. Out of 10? Maybe a 6.
Friday 26 October 2012
Via Mercanti, 188 Augusta Ave.
Ahhhh, finally, a pizzeria owned and run by Neapolitans. I'm excited. And even better, our server is from the same quarter where I lived in Naples--Vomero. It should be a good night for pizza.
The space for the restaurant is really nice--open concept. The music has been kept to a low level, as the noise in the space from everyone talking is really loud and bounces every where. I actually couldn't hear my dining companions.
My companions had the house greens salad, which consisted of radicchio, tomatoes, oranges and lettuce. It was lightly dressed with olive oil and vinegar, and quite refreshing.
The bread was wonderful--warm, covered in rosemary and flavourful. So far, so good!
The pizza arrived, and sadly was auctioned off at the table. I opted for the classic Margarita pizza. And was disappointed. The crust was so soggy from the mozzarella, (not Bufala, but fiore di latte, which tends to be wetter), and what was sopping wet was hard (the actual crust of the pizza was like lead). I couldn't roll the slice into a funnel to eat it in the traditional style.
No oil had been poured onto the pizza.
But worse, oh much worse, was the fact that the sauce had no flavour. Zilch. It was like having cheese and bread for supper. Some salt might have fixed this situation, but I was too scared to offend anyone by asking.
I hate to say it, but I give this place a 4/10.
The space for the restaurant is really nice--open concept. The music has been kept to a low level, as the noise in the space from everyone talking is really loud and bounces every where. I actually couldn't hear my dining companions.
My companions had the house greens salad, which consisted of radicchio, tomatoes, oranges and lettuce. It was lightly dressed with olive oil and vinegar, and quite refreshing.
The bread was wonderful--warm, covered in rosemary and flavourful. So far, so good!
The pizza arrived, and sadly was auctioned off at the table. I opted for the classic Margarita pizza. And was disappointed. The crust was so soggy from the mozzarella, (not Bufala, but fiore di latte, which tends to be wetter), and what was sopping wet was hard (the actual crust of the pizza was like lead). I couldn't roll the slice into a funnel to eat it in the traditional style.
No oil had been poured onto the pizza.
But worse, oh much worse, was the fact that the sauce had no flavour. Zilch. It was like having cheese and bread for supper. Some salt might have fixed this situation, but I was too scared to offend anyone by asking.
I hate to say it, but I give this place a 4/10.
Monday 1 October 2012
Queen Margherita Pizza, 1402 Queen St. East
This shop is in my 'hood, and we've been several times, but not since I started to write this blog. At first, I was hesitant to go, the pizza had slipped in quality, and there was never enough sauce on the 'za. What's the point in paying over $12 for bread and cheese? I thought.
Of all the pizzerias I've been to, I have to say that the interior of Queen M is the nicest. The bar is down stairs, the upstairs is the main seating area, which has beautiful windows and an industrial feel. It's just damn cold in there, but the building is old, so that can be excused.
The Italian boyfriend and I arrived before 7 PM, so no reservation was needed, but I recommend them. Usually, the line up is out the door (literally), and wait times can be over an hour. It's nice that the staff usually looks after you by offering drinks if you wait too long. Tonight, we found that we waited at our table for a while before the waitress came, but since she was also working the bar, this can be excused.
I ordered the Doppio, which comes standard with Bufala mozzarella, and the Italian had the Extra Margherita, which had fiore di latte and fresh cherry tomatoes.
The usual food auctioning happens when the pizza arrives, but I can only chalk this up to the fact that the food runner was not the bartender who took our order.
My pizza was excellent. The sauce was fresh and tasty, the mozzarella was earthy. The Parmesan cheese added a touch of salt, which made the flavours pop. Finally, there was enough sauce, not just a cheap daub that seems to evaporate once the pizza hits the oven. Italian boyfriend's pizza had the added extra sweetness of the cherry tomatoes and from the left over evidence (that means there wasn't a speck of food on our plate after eating), I have to say, Queen M is back to making excellent pies. I just wish they would put a swirl of olive oil on the pizza, like back in ol' Napoli.
Consensus? 10/10!
Of all the pizzerias I've been to, I have to say that the interior of Queen M is the nicest. The bar is down stairs, the upstairs is the main seating area, which has beautiful windows and an industrial feel. It's just damn cold in there, but the building is old, so that can be excused.
The Italian boyfriend and I arrived before 7 PM, so no reservation was needed, but I recommend them. Usually, the line up is out the door (literally), and wait times can be over an hour. It's nice that the staff usually looks after you by offering drinks if you wait too long. Tonight, we found that we waited at our table for a while before the waitress came, but since she was also working the bar, this can be excused.
I ordered the Doppio, which comes standard with Bufala mozzarella, and the Italian had the Extra Margherita, which had fiore di latte and fresh cherry tomatoes.
The usual food auctioning happens when the pizza arrives, but I can only chalk this up to the fact that the food runner was not the bartender who took our order.
My pizza was excellent. The sauce was fresh and tasty, the mozzarella was earthy. The Parmesan cheese added a touch of salt, which made the flavours pop. Finally, there was enough sauce, not just a cheap daub that seems to evaporate once the pizza hits the oven. Italian boyfriend's pizza had the added extra sweetness of the cherry tomatoes and from the left over evidence (that means there wasn't a speck of food on our plate after eating), I have to say, Queen M is back to making excellent pies. I just wish they would put a swirl of olive oil on the pizza, like back in ol' Napoli.
Consensus? 10/10!
Tuesday 21 August 2012
Pizza e Pazzi, 672 St. Clair Ave West
At last! I'm eating at a pizzeria that has been certified Verace Napoletana.
Pizza e Pazzi has two locations, one on St. Clair by Wychwood Ave, and at 1182 St. Claire Ave. West, by the venerable Marcello's.
Pizza e Pazzi was born of a love story--the owners met on a beach and some how decided that they would open a Verace Napoletana. Sounds good to me!
I can't seem to find too much information on who the pizzaoilo is, but our waiter actually is Italian (he said "stop-ed", always a sign that the person is Italian when they are pronouncing the "e" in the past tense. I'm saddened by this. Who is back there, cooking my za? Did they take the course? If it's someone's Nonna, then fine, but if not, I would really appreciate a bit of information on the chef.
The interior of the Wychwood location is a bit bland. There is nothing original or different about it--then again, it's clean and the staff are cheerful and friendly (which in Toronto, is a change!). Unfortunately, we are seated at the tippy table (quickly corrected by the hostess), and the AC is cranked to Arctic. Sadly, there is also bad Italian pop music being played, which means that as our evening goes on, we're forced to raise our voices over the music.
We start off with walnut bread, and some unidentifiable tapenade. I think one of them might have been pumpkin. It's ok, but I'm not going to write about it, because it doesn't deserve to be written about.
Our suppli arrive. At first, we thought they were expensive, but we receive two rice balls, so that was a pleasant surprise. They aren't as lightly fried as Falasca, but they are still excellent.
Our beer choices are Czechvar (which was yummy) and Peroni. We skip on the Peroni, as previously discussed--Italian beer--not so good.
Our pizzas arrive promptly. They are the perfect size, slightly smaller than the plate, charred on the edges, and what pleases me most is the olive oil, poured on top. I've had to ask at other pizzaerias, so not to be forced to ask here makes me happy. It's the little things in life, isn't it? Pizza e Pazzi also offers bufala mozzarella standard on their Margherita, instead of charging extra for it.
The sauce is sweet and tasty, and I love the fact that I can roll the pizza up into a funnel .
We were interested in dessert, but were too full to sample.
Out of 10? I give Pizza e Pazzi a 9.5.
Pizza e Pazzi has two locations, one on St. Clair by Wychwood Ave, and at 1182 St. Claire Ave. West, by the venerable Marcello's.
Pizza e Pazzi was born of a love story--the owners met on a beach and some how decided that they would open a Verace Napoletana. Sounds good to me!
I can't seem to find too much information on who the pizzaoilo is, but our waiter actually is Italian (he said "stop-ed", always a sign that the person is Italian when they are pronouncing the "e" in the past tense. I'm saddened by this. Who is back there, cooking my za? Did they take the course? If it's someone's Nonna, then fine, but if not, I would really appreciate a bit of information on the chef.
The interior of the Wychwood location is a bit bland. There is nothing original or different about it--then again, it's clean and the staff are cheerful and friendly (which in Toronto, is a change!). Unfortunately, we are seated at the tippy table (quickly corrected by the hostess), and the AC is cranked to Arctic. Sadly, there is also bad Italian pop music being played, which means that as our evening goes on, we're forced to raise our voices over the music.
We start off with walnut bread, and some unidentifiable tapenade. I think one of them might have been pumpkin. It's ok, but I'm not going to write about it, because it doesn't deserve to be written about.
Our suppli arrive. At first, we thought they were expensive, but we receive two rice balls, so that was a pleasant surprise. They aren't as lightly fried as Falasca, but they are still excellent.
Our beer choices are Czechvar (which was yummy) and Peroni. We skip on the Peroni, as previously discussed--Italian beer--not so good.
Our pizzas arrive promptly. They are the perfect size, slightly smaller than the plate, charred on the edges, and what pleases me most is the olive oil, poured on top. I've had to ask at other pizzaerias, so not to be forced to ask here makes me happy. It's the little things in life, isn't it? Pizza e Pazzi also offers bufala mozzarella standard on their Margherita, instead of charging extra for it.
The sauce is sweet and tasty, and I love the fact that I can roll the pizza up into a funnel .
We were interested in dessert, but were too full to sample.
Out of 10? I give Pizza e Pazzi a 9.5.
Thursday 16 August 2012
What's the Diff?
I had an interesting comment the other day about this blog:
"What's the difference between a Verace Napolitana and a Canadian pizza?"
OK, I have obviously neglected my duties in explaining what you should be looking for when you're dining out. One thing you should know is that Pizza Pizza is NOT a pizza. I think it might be cardboard.
A Vera Napolitana pizza is strictly controlled by the Verace Pizza Napolitana, which is an association devoted to pizza and how it should be made. According to the association, it should be made from: 'wheat flour type "00" with the addition of flour type "0" yeast, natural water, peeled tomatoes and/or fresh cherry tomatoes, marine salt, and extra virgin olive oil. Other added ingredients can include, garlic and oregano for "Pizza Napoletana Marinara", buffalo milk mozzarella, fresh basil and fresh tomatoes for "Pizza Napoletana Margherita Extra" and mozzarella STG or Fior di Latte Appennino and fresh basil for "Pizza Napoletana Margherita".'
The dough should be prepared thus: Blend flour, water, salt and yeast. Pour a liter of water into a mixer, dissolve between the 50 and the 55g of salt, add 10% of the total amount of flour, and then add 3g of hydrated yeast. Start the mixer, and then gradually add 1800 g of flour until you achievement of the desired dough consistency. Combining the ingredients should take 10 minutes.
Next, mix the dough at low speed for 20 minutes, until the dough forms a single ball. To obtain the optimal dough consistency, it is very important to control the quantity of water, such that the flour is able to absorb it all. The mixture should be sticky, soft and elastic to the touch. The dough should be the consistency "to the point of pasta". This can vary from one pizza maker to another.
The dough should be then left to rise under a damp cloth for approx. two hours. The dough is cut and shaped by hand, but for a pizza Napolitana, it must weigh between 180-250 grams. After that, the balls are left to rise again for approximately 6 hours.
The balls are then shaped into round, flat pizzas, using only the hands (no rolling pins here!), from the centre to the outside. The final pizza round should only be 0.3 cms thick. Once the crust is ready, the sauce is spooned on in a spiral, starting from the centre. Use only 60-80 grams of sauce, made from pressed, peeled San Marzano tomatoes (hopefully from the hills around Naples). Add your oregano, salt and garlic. Add slices of bufalo mozzarella. Lay on the fresh basil, and top with extra virgin olive oil, poured, again in a spiral motion.
Now comes the cooking. The pizza must be baked in a wood fired, ceramic oven, which has been heated to 485C, and baked no longer than 60-90 seconds (oh how my heart would bleed when I lived in Italy and the nights were still over 40 degrees C and the poor pizza maker would be working hard in front of his oven....). The edges should be slightly burned, and the mozzarella melted, basil crispy. When you cut the pizza (it should not be cut by the restaurant) into triangles, the centre should be soft enough to allow a person to roll the pizza into a funnel shape. A qui, mangio cosi!
Now, can any one tell me if a Canadian pizza is made to such exacting standards, with government control and designation? If so, please direct me to the right place. I would love to read about it.
"What's the difference between a Verace Napolitana and a Canadian pizza?"
OK, I have obviously neglected my duties in explaining what you should be looking for when you're dining out. One thing you should know is that Pizza Pizza is NOT a pizza. I think it might be cardboard.
A Vera Napolitana pizza is strictly controlled by the Verace Pizza Napolitana, which is an association devoted to pizza and how it should be made. According to the association, it should be made from: 'wheat flour type "00" with the addition of flour type "0" yeast, natural water, peeled tomatoes and/or fresh cherry tomatoes, marine salt, and extra virgin olive oil. Other added ingredients can include, garlic and oregano for "Pizza Napoletana Marinara", buffalo milk mozzarella, fresh basil and fresh tomatoes for "Pizza Napoletana Margherita Extra" and mozzarella STG or Fior di Latte Appennino and fresh basil for "Pizza Napoletana Margherita".'
The dough should be prepared thus: Blend flour, water, salt and yeast. Pour a liter of water into a mixer, dissolve between the 50 and the 55g of salt, add 10% of the total amount of flour, and then add 3g of hydrated yeast. Start the mixer, and then gradually add 1800 g of flour until you achievement of the desired dough consistency. Combining the ingredients should take 10 minutes.
Next, mix the dough at low speed for 20 minutes, until the dough forms a single ball. To obtain the optimal dough consistency, it is very important to control the quantity of water, such that the flour is able to absorb it all. The mixture should be sticky, soft and elastic to the touch. The dough should be the consistency "to the point of pasta". This can vary from one pizza maker to another.
The dough should be then left to rise under a damp cloth for approx. two hours. The dough is cut and shaped by hand, but for a pizza Napolitana, it must weigh between 180-250 grams. After that, the balls are left to rise again for approximately 6 hours.
The balls are then shaped into round, flat pizzas, using only the hands (no rolling pins here!), from the centre to the outside. The final pizza round should only be 0.3 cms thick. Once the crust is ready, the sauce is spooned on in a spiral, starting from the centre. Use only 60-80 grams of sauce, made from pressed, peeled San Marzano tomatoes (hopefully from the hills around Naples). Add your oregano, salt and garlic. Add slices of bufalo mozzarella. Lay on the fresh basil, and top with extra virgin olive oil, poured, again in a spiral motion.
Now comes the cooking. The pizza must be baked in a wood fired, ceramic oven, which has been heated to 485C, and baked no longer than 60-90 seconds (oh how my heart would bleed when I lived in Italy and the nights were still over 40 degrees C and the poor pizza maker would be working hard in front of his oven....). The edges should be slightly burned, and the mozzarella melted, basil crispy. When you cut the pizza (it should not be cut by the restaurant) into triangles, the centre should be soft enough to allow a person to roll the pizza into a funnel shape. A qui, mangio cosi!
Now, can any one tell me if a Canadian pizza is made to such exacting standards, with government control and designation? If so, please direct me to the right place. I would love to read about it.
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