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| - 4.5 Stars
VIBE
I went here for a friend's birthday party and I must say, I wish there was a restaurant like it in Toronto (but know I'd probably never get a seat there. Let's liken this to Enoteca Sociale).
Vivek's review is spot on. It's a signage is subtle and I will copy and paste his direction which helped me immensely: It's on the east side of Town Square, closeby Soontorn Bahn Thai and the Green Beanery. Look for the number 7 on the door handles.
The decor in here is gorgeous. Amazing Italian tiling, marble counters with cowhide underneath and a pop of comfortable orange chairs at the bar. I love how you can sit at the other counter in the back and watch the guys make pizza (and a few women were flirting with the Ed Hardy-wielding-pizza-dough-making guy in the back. They were a bit snarky when they saw me taking a photo. Please. It's like they had never seen someone take a photo in a restaurant before like I was an alien. SIT DOWN.)
The staff in here are ahem, easy on the eyes. That said, I felt like they were a bit tad serious but our table was one of thirteen and for a place that is as small and intimate as this not suitable. I'm glad I got to experience but I would never, ever take a group of more than four here unless you are prepared to have a three to four hour meal.
Even so, because of the wait and the fact that we were pretty much taking up one quarter of the restaurant we were ushered over to the bar before our bill came. It was a bit of a mess and although we had no problems and understood the situation, it was a bit awkward purely because of the smallness of the place.
On top of that, their POS doesn't divide bills so it was very disorganized at the end of the night. Unfortunately, my friend got double billed which was disappointing since she left such a big tip for the great job that they did.
That said with the crowds that they were dealing with and our large group, they did a phenomenal job and the food never suffered.
But because of a crowded and busy Saturday night, we didn't get as much attention as we would have liked.
But if you are not patient, do not come here because you will need it!
I ATE
A lot of us got a few of the same items and to spare you this long review, I'll cover what I had and other highlights of tastes.
IN the appetizer category. the octopus was divine. I could have sopped up that sauce all night. Delish! My friend had the shrimp and it was well cooked. They're not huge portions but nice to share with friends.
Rapini was a side and not as spicy as I anticipated. Great compliment to our pizza.
As advised, I ordered the Matteo pizza. I'd hate to say it but this pizza knocks Pizzeria Libretto off the pizza map and purely because of the crust. They have the thin vs crispy and not too floury crust DOWN. It's like a SIT DOWN mention to the pizzerias in Toronto. They know what they're doing. The portion of prosciutto on the 'za was very generous and to add marscapone cheese for a bit of a sweet kick amongst the salty? Please. Bestill my heart. But 0.2 points knocked off to the guy wearing the Ed Hardy T-shirt.
WE DRANK
The Syrah for $10 is labelled light, but it had tons of flavour and was great value. I also had the Montepulciano and it was fantastic but honestly, I think I preferred the Syrah! They don't have a cocktail list yet and they're working on it.
OBLIGATORY CATCHY REMARK
Don't go here with a big group. They don't take reservations either (we were lucky and informed them in advance we would be coming regardless).
Otherwise, a full five stars for a date place or at the pizza counter in the back with a few friends. It is the perfect third date place.
Go early on a weekend. It fills up fast.
And yes, get the Matteo.
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