Too bad most places have some sort of mystery meat instead of authentic pepperoni and a sauce so overpowering it's the only thing you taste. I onnce asked a pie maker at Milano's for real pepperoni not some sort of wierd salami substitute. He thought salami and pepperoni were the same thing. Not too many good pizza places in Ottawa. Nothing like Ritias in Boston or Lombardies in NY, Grimaldies in Brookyln now there is really great pizza.
Split a takeout vegetarian with the misses this evening from the newest location on Merivale. It was consistent with the quality of the other locations in the city. If you've never tried this pizza they're very generous with the cheese (brick/mozz) and the crust is not too thick (but not quite thin). My only gripe is it could be just a little crispier, but that's just my personal preference.
Definitely one of the best places for 'za in the city.
It does, I think, a better job of maintaining its structural integrity than most fat pies like this do. I'm not sure why they're so big on burying most of the toppings, but I don't have many complaints about it.
I cannot for the life of me understand why people love this Pizza so much. For my part, toppings,(especially meat), belong on top of the cheese. I also prefer pizza that maintains its structural integrity. If anyone can recomend another place, I'd be grateful. So far, Johny Farinas, is my go to. Of course, my wife is not a big fan. I guess that's pizza.
I really do enjoy this stuff. There's very little to complain about -- 'more generous toppings' comes to mind, but then, it's one of the only places around that doesn't mess up stuff like 'double mushrooms.' We're usually double-cheese people here, but that turned out to be a mistake at the Colonnade; they put quite enough on in the first place.
It's one of my favourite places to take people -- it's universally appreciated pizza.
Most of the other dishes can be given a pass, though.
It is definitely one of the better all around pizze in Ottawa. It was very good and I'd get it from there again. If I remember correctly, Colonnade is generous on cheese, not too thick or thin, crispy and chewy crust and tasty on toppings. There are better crusts and better cheese out there, but they aren't found on the same pie!
Got another pie last night for supper, and it was superb! Not as greasy as it sometimes is, which suits me just fine because I don't like my pizza too greasy/cheesy. Hmmmm, speaking of which, there are some leftovers in the fridge. Better get to that before the wife remembers :-)
Got another large (15") "combo" : Pepperoni, Green Pepper and Mushroom, and for a buck more added Olives. It was absolutely fantastic!!! Man, these guys make great pie!
The thing nearly weighed 4.5 pounds. A full meal deal for sure.
Delivery to my place, near the Mosque on Scott St., has a mean time of 24.32 minutes with a standard deviation of +/- 2.12 muinutes. In other words , Highy reliable and predictable.
Left overs, (being consumed as I type) are good cold or warmed up.
The pic is a pizza oven, just like Carlo's.
Sorry no Pizza picture.... by the time I remembered to get my camera, There was nothing left but the receipt. It reads, M Special and RC means the 'free' pop is Royal Crown Cola.
We got another one last night - same one as last time the 15" (Large) Combo with olives added. Another great pie. This time not slightly overcooked thank goodness - just right. Still just a bit too much cheese for my liking but I figure most folks probably prefer it that way. Definitely will order here again.
Delivery was fast at about 25 minutes. On first opening the box my thought was "it's slightly overcooked", and it actually was which proved to only negatively affect a few small pieces of the crust so it was no big deal. But any more well done would have been.
It was an excellent pizza. We had their 15" Combo, which comes with Pepperoni, Green Pepper and Mushroom, and for a buck we added green olives. The olives themselves were extremely flavourful and really stood out well.
All-round yummy pie on the slightly greasy side. But not too far on that side because I still really enjoyed it and I don't like greasy pies very much. My standard to judge by recently has unfortunately only been Pizza Pizza. A bit less cheese would probably solve the grease issue - I don't like too much cheese on a pie.
The crust was a thinner one - not "thin crust" but not by a long shot too crusty either, which I really dislike in a pizza. The only thing I'd like to see is a whole wheat crust which would really make this pie!
I stumbled upon this place on my walk home down a deserted street from the Herb&Spice on Wellington. It is a little hole in the wall - no neon lights, no razzle-dazz on the sign - just big black block letters saying "Carlo's Pizza". Since my thinking goes: "If they can survive on this middle-of-nowhere street with no bells and whistles, they MUST be good." I went in and grabbed a take-out menu and ordered from them that night.
I was very pleased with the pizza I recieved. Delivery time was VERY good (of course we live just down the street, so this may have had something to do with it) We ordered the "Canadian" which had bacon, pepperoni and mushrooms. LOTS of cheese (yay!) and though the topings were underneath the cheese (which sometimes leads to soggy crust), thier crust was surprisingly crispy. Sauce had a nice rich flavour. Toppings were ample and of good quality.
This is my new pizzaria of choice. My only gripe is that they don't have a list of overall toppings on thier flyer - you have to figure out what they've got available based on thier specialty pizzas, or by asking them over the phone.
Great pizza -- lots of toppings (especially cheese), and a very satisfying flavour in the sauce. It's a bit heavier, but I prefer it to pizza from Colonnade Pizza.
I have been eating pizza at Bella Vista for about 25 years, maybe more.
Its my favourite pizza in Ottawa. I have had pizza at Colonade, Newport, and Lorenzo's all of which are good but there is something unmistakable and addictive about the cheese Bella Vista uses. The taste of that just keeps me coming back.
If you eat in, and your not driving, order a large draft! They are huge!
I like this place quit a bit. It has excellent pizza with a lot of cheese! The pizza sauce is really tasty with a nice hint of nutmeg in it. The prices are good (about 25$ for large delivery pizza and tip), but I have had a lot of trouble lately with delivery times, it takes a while so order about 1 hour before you want to eat.
After a couple of recommendations, we decided to check out the pizza at K S Restaurant (Bank and Albion). We were not disappointed! We enjoyed a medium pizza with ham, bacon, green olives and mushrooms. The pizza was a combination of what I LOVE about Colonnade and Bella Vista pizza; thick airy crunchy crust, loads of cheese and toppings, quality ingredients! OH MY!! Time will tell, but this place may be my new favorite!!
Absolutely true. You can order something besides Pizza at KS, but why would you?
We asked for extra cheese once, and the answer was "No, I use enough"! Hands down best tasting "old school" pizza in town.
No artichokes, or Feta here - piles of Mozza, thick crust, pepperoni, onions, green pepper... mmmm
Pizza Pizza is next door, and you can get three Pizza Pizza pies for the same price, but I can personally vouch that KS's single pizza will leave you fuller and more satisifed than Pizza Pizza's cardboard inspired pies ever could.
Enjoy.
Oh, and they don't deliver, but it's worth the trip.
My favourite pizza in the world is the Gabriel Deluxe: bacon, olives, mounds of cheese - what's not to love?! I always order from the Baseline location - always very quick and polite service. I've also eaten-in at the Bank St. location - they have a good lunch menu with lots of simple fare as an alternative to pizza.
I went through a phase a couple of years ago of getting their small, double-cheese, plain pizzas; I think they may've had a special or something.
It was quite the mess of cheese, but, yum. Browned just so on top. Finishing even a small alone is not easily done.
Ordered dinner the other week, and I remain fairly impressed. The sauce could be more flavourful, but: cheese generous, toppings fresh, crust not terribly thin despite the request for same, but I have to admit a thinner crust wouldn't have gone well with their style of pizza.
It pains me that there is no dough ball in the centre of the pie -- it looks like that sort, if you know what I mean...
The salad wasn't bad. Extremely fresh stuff, not too stingy on the non-lettuce parts, but it lost points for using those dreadful bitter white parts.
The thin crust was reminiscent of Pizza Hut thin crust, or 'Edge' pizza. It has an almost cracker like crust with slightly less sauce than a regular pie. I'd order this again over the regular crust style.
Had some people over for Canada Day celebrations and decided to try out the new Domino's on Merivale. This was my first experience with the chain, save a slice of pepperoni I had once as a child on vacation (my foodie memory bank at work). We ordered 2 pies - one thin crust vegetarian, and one italian sausage/onion on regular crust.
Italian sausage/onion pictured on right - I liked the ample toppings and cornmeal crust. I wasn't fond of the tomato sauce. I know it's chain pizza but man was it ever fake tasting and really sweet.
The reason I like dominoes is the amount and quality of toppings and soft but chewy cornmeal covered crust. Their deluxe pizza is a real winner.
The deluxe comes (in addition to regular combination toppings) with onions and sausage which has lots of fennel so it gives it a really nice flavor. Something I started doing at home when I make pizza.
The pepperoni is also crispy on the edges which is a really nice touch.
I've had the vegetarian pizza and cheese steak pizza there but it was kinda bland. The extravaganza pizza has to many toppings that you can't really taste what's going on. So always stick with Deluxe!
Not sure if this needs to be somewhere else on the site cause it's from the new one on Merivale (in mall with blockbuster and swisschalet). Large walk-in special for the month 8.99 one topping. It is thin like a pizza pizza, but crust tastes much better, I watched him take a risen dough and they form it out on what looks like cornmeal on the counter. I've never had a domino's before and I think we'll get it from here a lot. The sauce is good, the pepperoni is a bit greasy, or it was the cheese, but it all comes together very well. I'm not sure I would order the thin/crispy crust from the menu, because the regular crust is thin enough...even for people like us who like thin crust. It's fast too, I guess cause so thin.
There's something about Domino's Pizza that just strikes me as being delicious. I may even prefer it to Pizza Pizza!
Perhaps it's the crust, which is nice and crisp on the outside but still yielding on the inside; perhaps it's because it's, as What to Eat with What You Drink describes, "sweeter than normal" pizza. Perhaps it's because I got Italian sausage on both pizzas, and they make it heavy on the fennel and oregano.
What I know is that I was mad craving pizza last night, so my fiancée and I picked up two large for $22 (thanks Entertainment Guide coupon), and washed it down with a $7 bottle of Sangiovese. A match made in heaven.
I've always been meaning to try the pizza from here, giving the fact that the place always looks busy...sometimes people even out the door! So our friends tried it one night, us the next. Here's a large mushroom/green olive/pineapple pizza on regular crust (not thin crust which is an option). It is very cheesy and the crust is yellow, which my friend says is because they use eggs in the dough. This was a good pizza in my books, although a little TOO much crust for me but if you like lots of crust....this is for you. I found it a touch undercooked so maybe next time we'll try the thin crust and ask for it to be cooked a bit more. Price came to $23.00 even.
So today was my birthday and we were out about in the market and decided to stop in at the Grand to try it out.
It was about 2pm and there was barely anyone there. Maybe about five other tables. We were seated immediately and our water glasses were filled promptly.
After much though, the four of us split two pizzas.
We went for the Quattro Fromagio otherwise known as Four Cheese and another that I cannot remember the name.
We ordered two bellini's and two Mill St. pints - no complaints.
The pizza came promptly after bread but was uncut! So we had to ask for it to be sliced since we were sharing.
We had fresh pepper and parmesan shredded onto the pizzas. The first bite was delicious, a thin crust pizza but not too crispy. It was not blackened at all like FF's was. (Sorry guys - I didn't take a picture!)
The flavour of the pizza was near perfect - it was definitely one of the best thin crust pizzas I have ever had. I loved it all and I would definitely go back again.
They give out black licorice candies with the bill so watch out if you don't enjoy them :) I've had a bad sambuca experience in the past and try to avoid them - but sometimes you just dont know until you have already popped the candy in your mouth!
I approached the Grand Pizzeria's pizza with very high expectations. It is very, very good, and in my experience the best pizza in Ottawa. But... I believe the pizza I enjoyed at Pomodoro's in Montreal was superior by a small margin (thicker chunks of buffalo mozzarella, more basil, and a crust that was less soggy in the center). I will have to try Pomodoro's again to be certain.
That said, the Margherita pizza was awesome indeed. A delicate thin crust, nicely blackened on the edges, the faint taste of woodsmoke, a tasty tomato sauce, and a smattering of basil leaves. Mine was a little more blackened than those I saw at other tables. With many of the restaurant's 400 seats occupied there was a 45 minute wait time for pizze and I assume that means they were cramming as many pies into the oven as possible. This could explain the uneven cooking results. Anyway, I like to think that if my pizza happened to be the one snuggled up to the burning logs then perhaps I also benefited by having a more pronounced woodsmoke flavour.
Highly recommended! Having tried the classic, I now look forward to trying some of their more interesting toppings.
It is good pizza as far as flavour goes, but really too cheesy/greasy for me. I guess I'm spoiled by so much home made pizza. The poutine pizza is kind of nifty - tastes pretty much like poutine, and yes it does have french fries on it!
I also enjoy this pie. I like that you can order either thick or thin crust as I sometimes find thier thick crust a tad TOO thick, and it is one of the few places that has spinach as a topping. Flavourful sauce, slightly unusual flavour to it I find, which is kind of refreshing.
It's not my FAVOURITE pizza (not gooey enough for my taste), but I would still recommend it, and eat it happily if it was in front of me.
As mentioned by others, the pizza has an extremely thin (maybe 2 or 3 millimeter) crust. I opted for the "Funghi" pizza. Topped with mushrooms, delightful pancetta, mozzarella and parmesan cheeses, it was truly tasty. Our server had recommended this particular pizza and accurately suggested that a drizzle of chili oil would make it awesome.
The pizze at Pub Italia are 10 inches in diameter and they offer whole or half sized ones. The crust is so thin though that it eats like a cracker, meaning you will go hungry if you get a half pizza.
Anyways, maybe not the best pizza in the world but great with beer! :-)
A friend and I split a pesto-mushroom pizza here once and it was tasty - although I probably would have thought *anything* tasted great after all the beers we had sampled.
We ordered 2 of the thin crust pizzas last Friday and were generally pleased with both of them - 4 out of 5 on both counts. In fact the thin crust pizza has been something I've always enjoyed very much here, and I believe it's as good as ever. We were there on a busy Friday and the pizza was still hot. I believe Food Is Hot's comment on "too salty" is because of the proscuitto - I've had a lot of that stuff from various places that is REALLY salty. Our pizzas certainly were not salty.
I found thier pizza WAY too salty. Virtualy inedibly so. The one I tried was the one with procuitto on it - can't remember the exact topping. Perhaps something without a cured meat would be less salty and more appealing.
The standard margherita came with a lot of freshly chopped tomatoes. Pro: fresh. Con: supermarket cardboard variety, not nice plum ones.
The crust is bizarre. It's quite thin, crisp, and crackerlike. It seems to be something ready-made; it had a very 'processed' aspect to it. The edges were very dry, to the point of being more cracker than crust.
But, cheap for a half-pizza; quite good with beer.
Just to second snoopy loopy - and I love pizza to the max. The many pizza joints "Lorenzos" "Gabriel" "Willeys" are all owned by Lebanese familys. No big deal . In High school I worked for Lorenzo's (Mr Sam) on Cobden road in the West End - his first store and the pizza was great. Instead of making an issue of the mid-east pizza style, Lets appreciate the style and enjoy the other styles offered in Ottawa. We are so lucky that we have a choice. Can anyone tell me that there is a bad pizza style that a cold beer can not help !!! Prescott pizza and the so called mid-eastern pizzas are all GREAT !!!
Just going to chime in here :) The reason a lot of people refer to a certain style of pizza as Mid-East pizza or Lebanese pizza etc is because most of the pizza joints (not chain) are off branches of Colonnade Pizza which was started by Lebanese. Their recipe has been circulated and passed around Ottawa as their original workers went and started their own pizzerias, and thus most of the pizza in this town is of the thick crust, tons of cheese with toppings underneath variety.
Perhaps I'm being too politically correct, but references to "Ottawa Mid East style pizza" really bother me. Not all pizzerias in Ottawa are only by people from the Middle East, and not also persons who are from the Middle East make the same style of pizza. It's a generalization that really doesn't seem warranted to me.
Dewie with extra cheese pizza. Fresh toppings. Real cheese. This is not Ottawa Mid East style pizza. Toppings are actually on top of the pizza not buried underneath the cheese. Sauce is tomato with not much else in it. Blue collar working class atmosphere.
The Pizza at The Prescott, cannot truly be compared to other Pizzas in Ottawa. For the offering at The Prescott is based on traditional Italian Pizza... and pays homage to Little Italy where The Prescott is located.
Although there are lots of great things to choose from on the Menu at The Prescott these days, whenever I visit, I order the Square Pizza.
A favourite is the "Dewie" which comes topped with Pepperoni, Green Peppers, Mushrooms, Olives, Bacon & Onions. The fact that the pizza is square makes me smile, as it reminds me of the traditional Italian sheet pizzas I used to eat in Montreal as a kid (back then they were sauce only). I find the Dewie is tasty, and a good value.
Square Pizza at The Prescott comes in a variety of sizes... Mini, Small, Medium, Large, and a Party Platter.
This is very good pizza. The crust is whole wheat with a cornmeal spread on the bottom. It's crunchy without being like a cracker and not overly doughy. The cheese tastes like good cheese rather than the tasteless glop you get at fast food places. The toppings are all fresh and flavourful.
The best pizzas I've ever have was in Italy and the Cote d'Azure, but since I can't go there everyday this is the next best thing.
Excellent pizza here -- seems more like home-made than most. Tasty sauce and toppings, with the right amount of both, on top of a moist crust. Vegetarian only: last time I was there, the choices were among olive, mushroom, and vegan pizzas, $2.75 a slice.
I asked for a specially made pizza since the pasta all has egg in it (which I don't eat). They presented me with a yummy veg pizza with a tomato sauce base. It was covered with a moderate amount of veggies including artichoke hearts, asparagus, zucchini, peppers, broccoli and tomato. If anything, it was a little under-salted, but then, I love salt. The garlic with tasty and not overpowering. The thin crust was flaky on the inside and crispy on the outside. I read in the menu that the crust is 100% organic.
I ordered the Quattro Formaggi pizza (mozzarella, bocconcini, fontina, parmesan, fresh basil, tomato sauce). When it arrived, I was surprised to find dried basil and no fresh. I didn't remember if the menu had promised fresh basil so I didn't complain. (I picked up a take-out menu on the way out and found out later that indeed it *did* promise fresh basil.) Maybe there was an honest mistake made, or did they just think, "Oh, this guy won't know the difference." Customers don't like to be treated like idiots!
I quite liked the taste of the pizza, although I could see that the cheese topping might be too heavy for the crust. Thin crust pizza is great, but this was 5 millimetres of cheese and sauce on a 2 millimetre crust (about the thickness of a tortilla wrapper).
A couple next to us shared a pizza as an appetizer, then had a pasta dish each. Smart move -- maybe they'd tried the caesar salad on a previous visit! :-)
La Porto A Casa is a hidden gem in Barrhaven that offers a variety of Italian Dishes and Pizza. Stopped in here for take-out on a day when dinner was to be a hit and run affair. La Porto A Casa offers pizza in two sizes, Small and Medium, and the current menu offers 10 choices. However one can mix and match toppings if that is your desire. I chose a Medium (12 inch, 6 Slice) Combination. So although I chose the Combination (Canada's favourite pizza) on this occasion, I have previously enjoyed their more “gourmet” style pizzas than those otherwise found in Barrhaven (those that list toppings like fresh herbs, portabello mushrooms, eggplant, salmon, goats cheese, artichokes or bocconcini cheese).
The Combination was a thin crust perfectly done and topped with pizza sauce, pepperoni, mushrooms and red & green peppers and melted cheese. Due to the fact that the La Porto A Casa prides themselves on quality ingredients, the pizza continues to exceed expectations. Makes you wonder why the other Pizza Joints in Barrhaven are still in business.
The place does not look like much and you can't eat in, but Tony has been making pizza for over 30 years and has put five other pizzerias that set-up shop right across the street out of business.
Everything is home-made, all vegetables are fresh cut. Everything is 1/2 price for pick-up items Mon-Fri. Tony does all the food prep himself. Friday nights are particularly busy and it is a neighborhood tradition to patiently wait for your pizza that is 20 minutes late, watching a hyper-active Tony scream at his driver and cashier (who are both middle-aged men who have learned to ignore him).
Cash only -- but for regular customers, Tony will let you pay the next time if you are short. Once, I called to let him know that my wife had left the house with my car keys so I could not go pick it up: he mis-understood that she had left with my wallet so I had no cash, yet he had my order delivered with a message that it was OK to pay next week.
I really like Calabria pizza - it's one of my favourites. The sauce is flavourful and the toppings fresh and plentiful - lots of cheese!
One thing that I ADORE about this pie, is that the larger sizes come with a dough ball in the center, instead of those horrid little plastic trays.
They also have a wider variety of toppings then other pizzerias I find - my only complaint is that they use sliced italian sausage instead of crumbled - just a personal preferance of mine.
I personally wouldn't bother with other dishes - I've had some of thier pasta dishes (cannelloni, gnocchi, spaghetti) and been underwhelmed. The sauce was extremely flavourless (surprising since thier pizza sauce is so tasty).
Note: I've only ever had take-out/delivery from this place - the in house dining experience may be different.
I tried their takeout: delicious! This is the "Stefania" pizza with prosciutto, the fresh basil was great. I ordered online, though, and they never got the order, I had to call it in when I didn't receive confirmation.
Their Tandoori Chicken Pizza might be the thing I miss most in the whole world since going vegetarian.
Man, that pizza is something good. I love the taste of downhome, thick crust, tons of mozza, baked fresh pizza from an old school pizzeria. Like how Colonnade used to be...
Sorry to go against the current. It migth be a matter of personnal taste, but I found the pizza there of grocery quality (at best) and overpriced. Certainly not what you would expect from a place that boasts a wood burning oven.
The service was rather friendly, but I am never going back.
My bf and I dined in at Forno Antico tonight. The decor is simple but nice. The service was prompt (water refills when our glasses were empty, greeted as we walked in the door, orders taken within a few minutes of arriving, and food arrived quickly) and friendly. I had the Primavera pizza (I asked for no cheese) and bf had the Mediterranean. Just like foodlover, I didn't get any spinach on my pizza, but it was tasty, so I didn't bother to ask about it or send it back. My bf enjoyed his pizza too. My new favourite pizza joint. I was happy to see that they deliver too.
The name of this restaurant is backwards on this tag...it should be FORNO Antico, the one at 683 Bronson Ave.
This is the Primavera (I wanted to take a pic with it still in the box b/c it's square but we already put it on our plates...)
On the menu it says: Mushrooms, green peppers, black olives, roasted red peppers, and spinach. BUT, there was red peppers (not roasted), no spinach, and fresh basil? I hate it when resto's don't follow what their menu says!! Grrr..
With that being said, the sauce wasn't really flavorful and a little skimpish on the mozza cheese. I had asked what kind of cheese, if any, was on the Primavera when I called, since it didn't have it listed with the toppings like the other pizzas do.
Not too memorable...I think he's selling the fact that it's wood burning....
Antico has some great pizza, and its rectangular too. For those of you that enjoy a traditional style the margarita (sp) is a great choice. Its just a simple tomato base with boccocini and basil. I usually have to pick up as their delivery driver takes off early.
The crust is excellent, but the toppings are scant and the flavours don't always mesh. The best way to order is to choose your own toppings rather than ordering a specialty pizza, and eat it right away! It is delicious when it is fresh, but does not sustain well afterwards.
Tried Topper's (Orleans location) recently and I have to agree that the crust is really really good. I liked the cheese also. I however was not crazy about the toppings. We ordered a chicken bruschetta pizza and it was just chicken, tomatoes and loads of onions. I did not compare whatsoever to pizza pizza's version. If only I could take the toppings from pizza pizza and put them on topper's crust, it would be a near perfect pizza in my opinion. I also was pretty sick that night and I have a feeling it may have been from their dipping sauce which is the only thing I ate that my husband did not. It looked a little congealed and I had wondered if it wasn't refrigerated but shamefully I ate it anyway because it was tasty and I love a good dipping sauce. I might try the other location sometime and go for different toppings. They have buffallo wing pizza which sounds really good!
They brag about their "Italian bread" crust and they deserve to. This pizza has great flavour and texture as long as it's fresh. Some pizzas are better cold from the fridge the next morning but not this one. Buy it for the crust and eat it fresh!
Excellent pizza from a "chain" restaurant. In the past we've enjoyed the Deluxe. So we decided to give another flavour a try...
The Rustic Italian (Sauce, Mozzarella, Cheddar, Spicy Italian Sausage, Red Onion, Green Peppers and topped with a sprinkling of Diced Tomatoes, Grated Parmesan Cheese and Fresh Herbs)... was very tasty and they were liberal with the toppings.
A Medium sized pizza provides plenty for the two of us, with enough leftovers for lunch the next day.
The pizza has greatly improved at this Canadian Franchise Chain since they first arrived in Ottawa back in the 1990s (when it tasted like a frozen pizza and its texture was cardboardy).
We ordered a Deluxe Small Pizza (sizes offered are Individual, Small, Medium and Large)… I’m glad we went with a small because the pizzas here are bigger than normal. A Small here is a 10 inch, and has 8 slices. The Deluxe featured signature pizza sauce, Mozzarella Cheese, Pepperoni, Smoked Ham, Green Pepper and Mushrooms.
The pizza was tasty, not as good perhaps as those I would order from the local Ottawa independent pizza place, nor as outstanding as the gourmet version I can eat at my favourite local Italian eatery, but far better than many of the BIG CHAIN competition.
love the picture....brings back many memories of nights on Elgin street. It is an old buddy that invented the pizza on gravy thing....it is officially called the "Bob Special".......may go for one right now.................
FYI: Given that the average slice of pizza from Pizza Pizza is around 350 calories and that a half cup of gravy is 206 calories, you're *only* looking at 550 calories for the whole deal.
Not that I'm condoning it. I'm just clarifying.
[Editor's note: 206 calories per half cup would have to be southern style sausage gravy! Canned meat gravy is around 50 calories per half cup. Plenty of sodium though.]
gravy pizza @ house of georgie's. uniquely interesting pizza in ottawa that tastes so good for psychological health, yet so evil on your body. an alternative to hangover poutine. my definitely recommended dose is ONCE A YEAR (for me). any of their pizza's can have the added pizzazz via drenching with their gravy which looks to be either chicken or turkey gravy with (among many other ingredients) lots of black pepper. my guesstimate for one slice alone of this bad boy is 750 calories or more or also 1 hour on an elliptical cross-trainer @ high resistance.
My husband and I are long time patrons of Georgie's -- we'll even drive the 20min from Barrhaven to pick-up a pie every once in a while. We're always greeted warmly and every once in a while we're given a special deal as long time customers.
I too was EXTREMELY skeptical of the gravy but alas one time I tried it and have never looked back. We always get our gravy on the side (unless we are just getting a slice in which case - go ahead and throw it on top) and delight in dipping our pizza into the gravy. You don't even have to necessarily have had a few to enjoy. Definitely not the healthiest thing to do - but sooooo delicious.
Great dough, even better sauce and delicious toppings.
We even witnessed them cooking their Thanksgiving turkey using the dough to cover the bird in the oven !
Recently I have tried two pizzas from here. The first was called Johnny's Special (as far as I remember) and consisted of fresh garlic, green peppers, roast chicken and tons of CHEESE! The pizza was delicious - we watched them carve part of an actual roasted chicken (rather than a fake roasted chicken, ha ha) to put onto our pizza. The fresh garlic taste also came through nicely and if you like cheese, you will definitely like this pizza.
As for the sauce, it was fresh and nicely spiced and a little sweet (which I like). The crust wasn't too doughy but was not what I would classify as a "thin crust pizza" either.
The second pizza was the steak pizza. It sounds so unlikely and I was terribly skeptical (can you tell it was not my turn to choose the toppings?). However, it was DELICIOUS. The steak was cooked until tender but not in the least tough or chewy and there were copious amounts of steak. In addition, the fried onions were very good and lots of mushrooms and fresh garlic. Equally cheesy as pizza #1.
I also recommend trying the garlic sauce. It's made in-house and rivals the garlic sauce of any Shawarma Joint/Shack/Stop/House that I can think of.
Not sure about the gravy pizza - am a little nervous about trying it but I am sure I will overcome that in time. :)
This was the first time I had ever heard of Georgie's gravy pizza and then a friend recommended it the very same night.
Is it weird? Yes.
Is it healthy in any way? No.
Does it taste great? Yes it does.
They have a small counter area where you can eat, no tables. The pizza itself is of the thick and chewy variety. A puffy dough, and plenty of gooey cheese.
An Ottawa institution who specializes in Gravy Pizza. Legend has it a regular drunk patron used to come into Georgie's to order a slice of pizza, fries, and a side of gravy. Aghast onlookers watched as he sloppily dunked his slice into the gravy. Soon enough a trend was born and the rest is history...
I've been meaning to comment on their pizza for a while now (I've been an infrequent regular for years now, if that makes any sense?)... this pizza is waaay different than anything else in Ottawa. First, the crust: not super doughy, not super thin. Second, the sauce: kind of savoury, like most lebanese pizza joints in Ottawa. Third, the cheese: it's cheap, standard mozza, but the special twist is that they put this herbed oil or butter on top of the cheese which gives it a really unique flavour. Fourth, toppings: standard toppings, nothing fancy or high quality here, this is The C. Overall, a great pizza to soak up the suds! Oh, and it's pretty affordable too, like most things off the menu here.
Pretty fantastic pizza, if you like a thick, cheesy crust and a LOT of toppings. Do not, I repeat, do NOT order double cheese; even at a single topping amount, it strings a good foot and a half, and we have been known to lose entire slice toppings due to the heft of anything more than 3 toppings max. The cheese is a pretty neutral topping in terms of flavour, but there is a LOT of it.
Interesting topping combinations and options, like corn and artichoke hearts. If you order their sausage, it's more like REAL pepperoni, instead of the giant disks you would get normally. The sauce is nothing special; where this pizza truly shines is in it's crust and it's toppings.
My husband and I ordered a pie tonight; pretty standard in terms of the menu options aside from pizza, so we stuck with a wings/pizza combo and it took about 30-40 minutes to arrive (but it was still warm).
The chicken wings are a decent size, but the sauce is a little weird...it's definitely a BBQ sauce mixed with hot sauce, so when you order a "medium", you aren't just getting Frank's on it. The wings also come with carrot sticks and a sour cream, which is completely useless but very cute.
Definitely my favourite pizza joint in the west end.
Mountain Station Pizza has a long-held reputation for making good pizzas. It also has a rep for expensive pizza, but really good ingredients aren't cheap and their pizzas have really good ingredients with a really good thin-ish crust with a thick edge, lots of cheese, and tasty veggies. Take the Combo we ordered tonight, sans olives (had I been doing the ordering there would have been olives on it too, although I really wanted my dw to get a cheese and mushroom only). The combo has good pepperoni, red and green sweet pepper slices, nice big tasty shrooms, and large dice onions, and a more-than-healthy dose of cheese (a mix of brick and mozzarella). A medium at $19.00 has 6 slices and we have 2 leftover for lunch tomorrow.
They have some triple cheese specials that include one with 8 kinds of meat (my son's fave) and what looks to be all the veggies in the house (XL - $56.50!). There are also some unique offerings including one with herring and anchovies, one with Hungarian hot salami, pickles, Polish sausage and Havarti, and one with roast lamb with shrooms, onions, mint sauce and stilton (they're all $40 for XL). The (third) cheeses offered are feta, Parmesan, Brie or blue.
In the fall you can pick up a pizza, continue down Clark Road to Mountain Orchard and pick up a jug of fresh cold cider and some hot apple doughnuts and have yourselves quite the Mountain-style picnic.
I'm so glad to see that Jojo's still uses the little ball of dough, instead of the little plastic table, to keep the pizza uncrushed during delivery. I went to school in Stittsville back in the day, and there was always a big fight over who'd get the dough ball.
We ordered this into my workplace during an after hours "crunch" the other day. The photo is terrible (sorry) but the flavour was quite awesome! If you like the Ottawa-style ooey gooey pizza with lots of toppings, then you will love this one. A lot like Gabriel's, but different enough to be worth ordering once in a while.
This was the Jojo's special: pepperoni, bacon (crunchy strips on top), onions, peppers, olives, fresh tomatoes and something else that I can't remember. Great combination!
This is the super thick ooey-gooey kind of pizza, which may or may not be to your liking. A slice of it is 2 to 3 times more filling than a correspondingly sized slice of, say, Pizza Pizza pizza. The $21 + tax price tag seems high but the density of the pizza makes for a lot of eating! This pizza would be hard to eat without a knife and fork.
Cheese and toppings are generous and the sauce is tasty. The crust is thinnish in the middle but nice and thick on the edges. Cheese is strategically sprinkled on the outer crust to achieve that nice toasted cheese flavour.
One caveat: if you are picking this pizza up yourself please ensure that the box remains perfectly flat in your vehicle and you resist any urge to drive in a spirited manner. I got home to find a good third of the ooey-gooey toppings had oozed over the rim of the crust and filled one corner of the square box. Some careful rearrangement with a spatula corrected this to a reasonable extent, but please don't let this happen to you!
My very picky four-year-olds absolutely loved this pizza! They kept saying that we have to get this one again and they were still talking about it as they went to bed.
Since I used to live about a block away from Willy's, I have eaten countless pizzas from Willy's and I have always been happy with the service and food.
At the Maclaren Ave. location near Lincoln Fields they have a walk-in special deal for a large three-topping pizza that is great. They will let you call ahead to order it and then come pick it up and it is only $16 with tax.
These pizzas have an incredible sauce and always come with plenty of toppings and cheese.
For those cheese lovers out there, Willy's is the place to be. Lots of cheese, good selection of toppings. Their price is decent but delivery can be slow, ie cold pizza :(
I made the mistake of ordering pizza from here last night and it is probably the worst pizza in Ottawa which doesn't say much since there are not many good places to get a pie here. Not sure what type of cheese was on it but I don't think it was real. The sauce was overpowering,olives had no taste,peppeeroni resembled some mystery meat. I'm waiting for The Grand to settle before I go. Summer trip to Chigago to Lou Malnati's will spoil me even more on bad pizza in Ottawa.
If you can arrive around 11 to 11:30-ish. The vegetarian pizza slices they package up, will still be warm. They don't have a pizza warmer and I don't think they offer a re-heat, so timing is critical.
See my general comment under the restaurant - excellent pizza made daily and sold by the slice. Sold at half price at the end of the day if there is any left.
Holy cow, I totally agree! I used to live out on Brittany Drive and this was my place of choice - since I moved to the West End I miss it SO MUCH. The pizza always tasted so fresh. My favourite was Italian Sausage (they have crumbled not sliced, just the way I like it), tomato and mushroom on thin crust YUMMY!!!! It's still my favorite pizza in Ottawa - even though I haven't had it in a couple of years. Sigh.
Over the years I've eaten quite a bit of pappa sams pizza for work lunches. I find them really good, probably the best in Kanata North. These pizzas are the heavily loaded ones - so if you are looking for thin crust, wood fired - these are not your thing.
The craving for pizza came over us yesterday, so we decided to use our Entertainment Coupon for Pavarazzi's. Had delivered a "Family-size" (i.e. 18", 12-slice) herbed crust, spicy sauce pizza with black olives, italian sausage, and feta.
Really good, but SO EXPENSIVE. $35 for a three-topping pizza ($28 after the coupon) is insane. When you build your own pizza, the good toppings are $5 each.
If we were to get pizza from them again, we'd stick to set pieces. Or (more likely) the panzerotti.
I do like that they offer Brio/Limonata/Aranciata as beverage choices. And I'm hoping that that "six packs" in the beverage choice at the bottom of their menu refers to beer.
Great food but one look into at the filthy kitchen (and cook) will have you buying pizza dough and toppings from the grocery store. Typical dirty hippie joint. No thanks.
If you haven't tried it yet, you are doing a grave injustice to your taste buds. King eryngi, blue oyster and a ton of other tasty local mushrooms with crispy pancetta and a drizzle of truffle oil. If there was going to be a pizza joint in heaven, this would be it.
Their Caesar salads are also quite awesome, with loads of big croutons, fresh Parmesan cheese and more of that fabulous pancetta.
MelodySoul, you hit all 5 points that make Pizza Pizza one of my favourites:
* Excellent choice of toppings
* Online ordering
* Garlic dipping sauce
* Bruschetta topping (instead of tomato sauce)
* It isn't sloppy and gooey
I agree with the nay-sayers that there are tastier cheeses and better breads available out there if you know where to look. But Pizza Pizza is very decent for such a ubiquitous chain.
The crust isn't great (hence the garlic dipping sauce), but I think it's way better than any frozen pizza.
I know most pizza connoisseurs regard Pizza Pizza as the worst out there but I like it. I'm not into the greasy, sloppy, really cheesy pizza that most small shops deliver. I like the huge list of toppings and options available, I love the online ordering and let's not forget the garlic dipping sauce...gotta have it! My favorite is the bruschetta chicken parm, comes on a thin crust and it's garlicky and delish!
The appeal of the place, for me, is its simplicity. They make a servicable pizza.
If I wanted a pizza that was six kinds of awesome (roasted asparagus, proscuitto and marinated mushrooms or the like), I'd make it myself. But every few months or so I get the craving for the fast food equivalent (i.e. the classic super) and it just works.
I've had a run of consistently good pizzas from the Rideau Street location after falling in love with their online ordering system. The level of detail, as FF points out, is tremendous.
I actually think the crust is a selling point because it's so unlike the thick, doughy crust that is prevalent in Ottawa. The sauce has a nice, basic tomato taste which can be augmented by the variety of free options available.
I've found that ordering extra cheese is key to getting the same amount that most places dole out by default. My current favourite is the classic Canadian: pepperoni, mushrooms, extra cheese.
I actually like their pizza. Others seem to complain about not enough cheese but actually I really hate how greasy pizza gets with too much which is a key reason why I like this one. The Classic Super with Pepperoni, Green Pepper and Mushroom is yummy and dependable. It's not as flavourful as some but it's pretty non-offensive at the same time. The whole wheat crust option is actually really nice.
The pizza from Pizza Pizza is passable. The crust is vegan (yay!), and they have no problems leaving the cheese off. I agree that the white crust isn't great, so I've taken to ordering the whole wheat. I like that their toppings are very fresh. My one complaint is that the cost really adds up even for just four toppings.
Two pies: a thin-crust with the 'four-cheese blend,' onions, mushrooms, and green peppers, and a regular crust (note somewhat trivial difference) with Mr Kmennie's strange but usual topping pick: double cheese, green olives, and pineapples.
I am far from the first one to note that Pizza Pizza pizzas' goodness does depend a fair bit on knowing what to order.
Mine is a thin-crust vegetarian, with onions (not included in their vegetarian), no olives, and extra cheese, usually by way of their 'five cheese blend' (or is it four?). Solid comfort food.
Q: out of town recently, I noticed pasta listed on a PP sign. Eh? No pasta was listed on the menu.
We order from here about once or twice a month, on Sundays, when we get together with friends for football and card playing.
The portions are a good size, the pizza is well cheesed, and the toppings are fresh. Never have I seen such good pepperoni, quality bacon, and fresh veggies on a chain store pizza. My only complaint is that the sauce could have more kick to it. But then again, you are catering to the lowest common denominator.
I ordered Pizza here last week and it was great. Hot and ready in 20mins. Really, nice crust not too thick.
Lots of toppings and tasty sauce.
They have other items such as subs etc on the menu.
I made the mistake of ordering a shrimp basket as well. Horrible little frozen breaded shrimp and frozen fries which ended up getting thrown out. Pizza Pizza actually has good breaded shrimp-surprise.
Two of us had pizze and we were very pleased. Nicely browned crust and generous toppings. Not loads of cheese but that's just fine for some (plus it means you can eat more).
I picked up one of their store brand pizzas this evening. For 6 bucks it was a great value - piled high with toppings. Really yummy too - the kids cleaned off their plates. And considerably less packaging than one of the name-brand pizzas.
Great thin crust pizza with a process unlike any other pizza joint in town - they used a grilling/oven machine like Quiznos. The end product is a thin crispy crust that remains somewhat pliable. The square slices have a tasty sauce (crucial to a good pie) and a wide array of offbeat toppings (grilled zucchini, figs, pear, prosciutto, pancetta). A nice change from typical "Ottawa style" pizza.
"Gourmet thin crust pizza" this isn't -- it's moist puffy crust with sufficiently tasty sauce and cheese (even the Greek pizza has mozzarella on it, in addition to the feta), and no shortage of toppings. It's exactly what I'd expect and want from a buy-by-the-slice place. Nothing particularly original or spectacular here, just standard, consistent pizza.
"The Man" was out doing errands, and was getting hungry when he saw an ad for Little Caesars newest menu item their $ 5 HOT-N-READY Large Pizza. He popped in, and discovered that for that price there were only two choices: Cheese, or Pepperoni. The meat-eater that he is decided he was more in mood for an Ultimate Supreme. A large Supreme (10 slices) is dressed with - Pepperoni, Italian Sausage, Mushrooms, Green Peppers, Onions and Cheese & Tomatoe Sauce. Of course there was an addtional charge (pizza came in around $ 8), but he left sure that he had a bargain!
IMO he should have kept his money in his wallet!
I haven't ate multi-national "chain" pizza in years, and what I remember about Little Caesars was just average. Boy have they changed...
First off in order to advertise HOT-N-READY they pre-make pizzas and stick them under heat lamps during rush hour periods. The toppings were awful... nothing had any freshness left in it, and was super spicy (sausage?). But lastly the crust was horrendous... it was hard to tell whether I was eating the pizza crust or the cardboard box it came in!
Sometimes a bargain, is not a bargain... you just get what you pay for (the worst pizza I ever remember). It ended up in the trash.
We decided to give the Merivale location another go tonight, but after 2 hours and no pizza (not embellishing) I called to inquire. I explained my situation and was placed on hold. After 15 minutes had passed on the line (again, not embellishing!) I hung up and tried again. Sure enough, the same employee answered so I repeated the story..."may I place you on hold again?"...I happily obliged, but was promptly disconnected!
Fearing they had overlooked the order completely, I just called back and asked to cancel. An hour later I received a call from the manager asking if we'd still like our pizza (?!)
Sadly, this isn't the first time this specific location has let us down in terms of service and pizza product.
Fresh Foodie I know your mandate of this site is "places to find good food, not bad food" - but the Merivale location doesn't measure up to franchise standards. Enough, I say!
Pizza Mia things aside, has Pizza Hut changed their "regular" (pan?) pizza recipe in the last few years? I had it for the first time in ages and it was nothing like I remember it - specifically the crust and dough which lacked the crisp, fluffy, and greasy characteristics I was used to. Is this just the Merivale location?
Wow ... I too don't remember FF ever dissing anything, anyone, anytime.
Looks like even the ultimate diplomat has his breaking point.
I think Pizza Hut came out with Pizza Mia in direct response to Domino's 5 5 5 or 6 6 6 buck pizza deal. Three medium 1 topping pizza's for 5 or 6 bucks (depending on the local market) each.
I guess ya get what ya pay for.
I wonder if it is worth the bother to get the deal and add a few more ingredients including some cheese, then finish them off in your own oven ?
haha... yeah I stalked over to the computer while still chewing the stuff to post that comment! And wifey is still glaring at me for deciding to try this deal out.
Warning to all: avoid the current "Pizza Mia" deal.
3 medium 1-topping pizze for $6 a piece sounds like a good deal. But this was possibly the worst pizza we've ever had. Worse than East Side Mario's kids' meal pizza. Worse than any frozen pizza I can remember having. The crust was dry, way too sweet, and tasted like it was made from a mix. The single toppings were scant and dried out. Tomato sauce and cheese were almost non-existent.
If you're tempted to try this deal please get yourself 3 frozen pizze instead, then take the money you save and split it between yourself and your favourite charity. You'll eat better, feel better, and still save a few bucks. :-)
I won't stop having the good old Pizza Hut deep dish pan pizza but my Pizza Mia experience has made me a little wary of trying anything new from the hut.
Do _any_ Cdn Pizza Huts carry the "Big New Yorker" pizza? That was cheap and greasy and great when I was in the States -- or at least when in California, where "pizza" gets pretty bizarre.
If no: where to go for similar pie?
ETA: Had Pizza Hut pizza the other night. On the bland side. Generous toppings on "The Edge" pizza, but stingy cheese, and an overly processed feel to the crust.
Ken V
gold