Calabria Bakery on Midland was a destination for a casual business meeting on a Friday afternoon, so my friend could preempt traffic from downtown on his way out to the east end.
At 3:30, the pizza oven was still hot, and the cook was happy to take our custom order. Our pizza was thin crust and chewy, excellent as fresh out of the oven. The store wasn't busy, so we were undisturbed in out discussion. The apple strudel was pleasantly low on sweetness.
The hot table still had some veal cutlets, sausage and veggies, that might have looked better earlier in the day.
In addition to the bread and pastries, the store sells cold cuts and basic Mediterranean ingredients (e.g. extra virgin olive oil). The service was relaxed and friendly.
This location is a short drive to subway stations, so that I could catch the LRT and subway back west and south.
This will be a place that we will keep in mind, as an alternative to the chain restaurant branches that dominate Scarborough.