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| - Famoso's pizza oven looks like a helmet for the Boston Red Sox. That might have been intentional. It also dramatically illustrates the chain roots behind the veneer of a classic pizzeria. This is not a criticism, more of a disclaimer. From the inset, Famoso resembles similar places like Boston Pizza or Mr. Mikes. Its menu appears pulled from some template all of them seemingly pull from. However, look past this into the exposed kitchen, and one finds the chefs stretching dough, layering ingredients, and blasting the results in an oven replicating the surface of Venus. So despite all the hallmarks of pre-processing, cookie-cutting, and factor shipping, Famoso rises above to be actually decent. Hell, it's borderline acceptable. One must admit the dough is probably brought in--that a warehouse somewhere in Calgary packages the sauces, cheeses, and meats, then coats them in stabilizers and squeezes them into vacuum-packages and frozen until needed. That's just common sense. But everything else looks legit. Even the décor throws a curve ball once in a while, sporting an actual wine rack.
To start our experience, we opened with the prosciutto-wrapped mozza balls-Fior-di-latte wrapped with prosciutto, baked in Campania tomato sauce with fresh basil and Grana Padano. Served with flatbread. Their words, and I love the fact they all use "Grana Padano" rather than just ordinary parmesan, like they are too good for it. "No, no, we don't denigrate our pizzas with that Reggiano crap." Maybe they think we all associate parmesan with that refuse shaken from that green container. Like hatchbacks, duplex homes, and web television--certain names have been stigmatized, forcing a slight variation and justifying a newer, fancier name. It's better because it's a crossover SUV, a "paired" home, and a VLOG. And this is Grana Padano, not parmesan. The tomato sauce was unspectacular, and resembled that of Boston Pizza. Thankfully the following pizzas delivered and justified one's reason for visiting in the first place. You don't go to a place with a dominating and signature pizza oven and then order a pasta. It's like going to a Formula 1 race with earmuffs on. It's like going to a fight club and not fighting--it's the FINAL rule!
So yeah, we had pizzas, two in fact. Mine wasn't as good, the Capriccioso-Italian ham, roasted mushrooms, artichoke hearts, Kalamata olives, and extra virgin olive oil, while my friend had the Abruzzo-oven-roasted Italian sausage, slivered red onions, roasted mushrooms, fennel seeds, and smoked mozzarella. His was good. My issue was just the combination wasn't to my liking; it had nothing to do with the quality of ingredients. The pizza crust was astounding. I want to return and sample a few more varieties, something I NEVER utter concerning Boston Pizza. Famoso is remarkably good, with pleasant staff that immediately jumped to attention when they discovered my pizza was uncut. I thought they were being traditional. In Italy, you gotta tear that pizza with your hands--cutters are for wimps without any strength. I mean...I heard.
I remember that despicable advertisement Boston Pizza ran a few years back when they insinuated "foodie" was an F-word. Famoso is a giant middle-finger to that campaign, that a chain can offer westernized food in a non-westernized environment, or at the very least offer an olive branch to traditional Italian pizzerias. I mean, it'll never be Il Pizzaiolo del Presidente (yes, I looked it up), but nothing truly will be. I remember a quote from my best friend when he compared his microbus to a friend's Lada, admitting that the VW wasn't that much better, but it still was. Famoso isn't that much better than Boston Pizza, Freshslice, Panago, or Pizza Pizza, but it is.
Food: 4/5
Service: 3.5/5
Presentation: 4/5
Value: 4/5
Recommendation: 4/5
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