The Great Pizza Debate
My goal is to create a poll of best pizza in Toronto. There are two kinds of pizza styles to be polled, traditional thin crust italian wood oven or similiar style, and the thick crust american/canadian style. Please post only your choice for each, without comments, and I will keep adjusting this posting to show the total counts. Ideally you put the address for any of the non-chain places so others can find.
Thanks!
THE TOTAL VOTES
Thin Crust-
02- Terroni
Thick Crust-
01- King Slice
01- Massimo's
TdotFoodKing
Oct 10, 2007 08:17AM
Thin - Terroni (Queen West location)
Thick - King Slice - 1598 Bloor Street West,
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Thin Terroni
Thick Massimo's
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i don't believe you can update the original post......
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Yes you can and already have. I will adjust the votes once you add yours. Thx.
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we will see....only time will tell.
Chow!
HL.
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I think we've only got 2 hours to do this debate then edit is gone.
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/44524...
So quickly...
Thin Terroni
Thick Danforth Pizza House
920 Danforth Ave, Toronto, ON, Canada
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thin - caffe doria
thick - danforth pizza house
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thin - Roma Ristorante (Bloor & Gladstone)
don't like thick crust..
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Thin - Terroni
Thick - Olympic 76
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Passed Olympic 76 after my dance class yesterday...can you please describe it, fickle?
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Hi Food Tourist, it's an old school pizza joint where they make your pizza to order. The crust is chewy, slightly doughy and toppings are generous. The cheese is on top (as opposed to under the toppings) so it gets baked nice and brown (my preference). They serve it piping hot from the oven on one of those raised pizza plates (sorry, don't know what they're called). They do have a takeout counter on the other side of the dining room. I've never ordered it to go since I prefer the dining room. It's definitely not gourmet, just yummy comfort food.
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That sounds great, Fickle. Do they have a beer & wine license?
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..just in case anyone other than me was wondering where to find Olympic 76...
8A Gloucester Street Toronto ON
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Yes, they have beer and wine.
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Thin - Terroni
Thick - Columbos - Danforth/Coxwell
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Thin - Dino's Woodburning Oven Pizza (Queensway west of Royal York across from Burger King)
Thick - meh, no likey so much.
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Tried Dino's last night, and thought it was great. Im definitely going back. Thx!
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And yes I stand corrected....you cannot edit your original post. I'll place the totals as we go then.
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THE TOTAL VOTES (so far)
Thin Crust-
5- Terroni
1- Cafe Doria
1- Roma Ristorante
1- Dino's Woodburning Oven Pizza
Thick Crust-
2- Danforth Pizza House
1- King Slice
1- Massimo's
1- Olympic 76
1- Columbos
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Ooops, that should read 2 for Danforth Pizza House :)
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done, thx
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Thin Crust - Terroni
Thick Crust - La Lucciola (on Eglinton Ave W bt Bathurst and the Allen)
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THE TOTAL VOTES (so far)
Thin Crust-
6- Terroni
1- Cafe Doria
1- Roma Ristorante
1- Dino's Woodburning Oven Pizza
Thick Crust-
2- Danforth Pizza House
1- King Slice
1- Massimo's
1- Olympic 76
1- Columbos
1- La Lucciola
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Thin - Terroni
Thick - Danforth Pizza House
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Thin: plain cheese at Mamma's (shoot me now fellow Hounds)
Thick: Margherita at Massimos on one of their occasional good days
I specifically would vote against Terroni, Columbo's, and Danforth
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Well that's just great..... I read this thread and wanted a pizza. Only to find all the debit machines are down..... sigh..... no cash on hand.... lol
You know what?
Mama's is not all that bad really, when I am lazy and want delivery, that's where I go.
However, I had two good experiences with Panago recently.
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Your voting for Mamma's over Terroni? Oh my. Well I will add it to the list despite my strong objections. The pizza vote is a democratic process I suppose.
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Sad, isn't it.
I don't have much experience with the Terroni on Queen W. I find the one on Yonge an over hyped, over priced, attitude laden place serving good ingredients turned into blah pizzas.
Note the "plain cheese" at Mamma's and the "occasional good day" at Massimo's references.
Maybe my pizza palate is stuck in different cities and eras - New Haven and Brooklyn a long time ago.
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Ya maybe give the Queen st. location a try. I find the staff really pleasant and laid back, probably due to the neighborhood. You mention Brooklyn which reminds me of Mario Battali's places. Otto in NYC is by far the best Ive ever had, even better than Italy. Too me Terroni comes close to that. I find Mamma's to be very fake tasting, or sort of processed.
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Interesting how palates perceive things so differently. To me, Mamma's seems to use fresh and high quality ingredients in their pizzas. I admit my standards for evaluating chain food are more relaxed than my standards for evaluating "artisinal with attitude". But, relative to the Yonge Terroni location, Mamma's also tastes better. I keep harping "plain cheese" because the toppings used at Mamma's, though also apparently high quality, are bland and mess up the crust.
My standards were set by Frank Pepe's and Sally's in New Haven and Totonno's in Brooklyn. Whether significant or not, all use coal burning ovens. Totonno's even made their own cheese. I haven't been to any of these places in a long time. They all still exist. I've no idea whether they remain great.
I pass both Columbo's and Danforth at least twice a day. I really wanted to love both. The people at Columbo's are great and Danforth evokes nostalga. Neither serves what I'd call bad pizza, but neither justifies a special journey.
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Yes Totonno's still exists and is still great. Many chowhounders still love it. I always find Mamma's to be soggy or too soft. But at the same time its been a while, so deserves another chance. Try the San Giorgio at Teronni on Q., if you like proscuitto. It tastes like they use Proscuitto di Parma which is very rare, as most places uses cheaper quality proscuitto's. Give King Slice a try, for thick crust, be interesting to know your thoughts. King Slice - 1598 Bloor Street West, between Keele and Dundas on Bloor.
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Slightly OT - I actually wasn't impressed by Otto's pizza. So I guess I won't like Terroni that much, either.
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Care to vote? So far Terroni is leading by a big margin, so you may want to give it a try.
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Sad to say, I haven't tried ANY pizza in Toronto since I moved here last month. Right now, I don't know enough to vote in any "best of" category - but no worries, I'll share my opinions once they're informed.
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Well if you decide to give Terroni a try, I think most agree the Queen West location is the better one. If you go after 7:30 its usually a bit of a wait. I like to sit at the bar anyway, as it feels like a real Roman trat. or like some of the great places in NYC you may be used to.
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Oh, I'll try it for sure. I have to make my own mind up about it.
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THE TOTAL VOTES (so far)
Thin Crust-
7- Terroni
1- Cafe Doria
1- Roma Ristorante
1- Dino's Woodburning Oven Pizza
1- Mamma's
Thick Crust-
3- Danforth Pizza House
2- Massimo's
1- King Slice
1- Olympic 76
1- Columbos
1- La Lucciola
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Thin: Terroni's
Thick: Danforth Pizza House.
Lucky me: I work by the first and a live by the second!
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Thin: Chico's Pizza at Eglinton/Mount Pleasant
Thick: Pizza Memo's
Those are my choices for delivery, but for eating at a restaurant, it's definitely Terroni on Queen.
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Thick: Regina's on College
Thin: not a fan of the "cracker crust", so no vote here
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THE TOTAL VOTES (so far)
Thin Crust-
9- Terroni
1- Cafe Doria
1- Roma Ristorante
1- Dino's Woodburning Oven Pizza
1- Chico's Pizza
1- Mamma's
Thick Crust-
4- Danforth Pizza House
2- Massimo's
1- King Slice
1- Olympic 76
1- Columbos
1- La Lucciola
1- Pizza Memo's
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Thin Crust
Marcellos on St Clair W http://www.marcellospizzeria.com/
Honourable mentions to Terroni and Desserts Plus
Thick Crust
Camarra's http://www.camarra.com/
Corporate Pizza
Mamma's slice is pretty good folded in half.
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Marcellos is my second favorite. Its very good too. Im surprised not to see more votes for it.
And Mamma's again? Im so confused lol
PS to all, I'll only count your first 2 choices, 1 thin, 1 thick. thx
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I was going to ask about Marcellos. Haven't been there in years, but it used to be a regular fave.
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I want to place my vote.
Thin crust - Mama's Thick crust - Danforth Pizza House
Thank you
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THE TOTAL VOTES (so far)
Thin Crust-
9- Terroni
2- Mamma's
1- Cafe Doria
1- Roma Ristorante
1- Dino's Woodburning Oven Pizza
1- Chico's Pizza
1- Marcello's
Thick Crust-
5- Danforth Pizza House
2- Massimo's
1- King Slice
1- Olympic 76
1- Columbos
1- La Lucciola
1- Pizza Memo's
1- Camarra's
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I decline to vote for thin.
Thick: I would have voted for Danforth, but since no one's mentioned Gerrard Spaghetti & Pizza, I'll vote for them, even though I've only had their pie once. (It was excellent.)
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I loved this place years ago but then, to my taste, something went wrong and stayed that way.
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Thick Crust - Venice Pizza. 2636 St Clair Av E, East York (416) 751-6666
Thin Crust - Piccolo in Cabbagetown
My $0.02 - The quality of pizza has gone downhill in this city ever since the introduction of Pizza Pizza. It has to be be cheap enough, fast enough, and trendy enough to compete. Pizza was much better 30 years ago when it was made by mainly family run operations or the solo, genuinely Italian, artist.
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I'm adding another vote for Venice Pizza's thick crust.
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I was trying so hard to stay out of this but I can't resist supporting one of my favourite restaurants. Put me down for
Thin crust - Roma Ristorante
I decline on the thick crust.
1090 Bloor St West, Toronto, ON, Canada
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I tried Roma the other night based on a recommendation from someone in this posting. I was surprised, thought it was pretty good. I'll have it for take out again.
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THE TOTAL VOTES (so far)
Thin Crust-
9- Terroni
2- Roma Ristorante
2- Mamma's
1- Cafe Doria
1- Dino's Woodburning Oven Pizza
1- Chico's Pizza
1- Marcello's
1- Piccolo
Thick Crust-
5- Danforth Pizza House
2- Massimo's
2- Venice Pizza
1- King Slice
1- Olympic 76
1- Columbos
1- La Lucciola
1- Pizza Memo's
1- Camarra's
1- Gerrard Spaghetti & Pizza
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thin-john's pizza on college
thick-danforth pizza house
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My vote for thin crust is John's Pizza on Baldwin
Thick crust-Bellissimo on Esplanade
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THE TOTAL VOTES (so far)
Thin Crust-
9- Terroni
2- Roma Ristorante
2- John's Pizza
2- Mamma's
1- Cafe Doria
1- Dino's Woodburning Oven Pizza
1- Chico's Pizza
1- Marcello's
1- Piccolo
Thick Crust-
6- Danforth Pizza House
2- Massimo's
2- Venice Pizza
1- King Slice
1- Olympic 76
1- Columbos
1- La Lucciola
1- Pizza Memo's
1- Camarra's
1- Gerrard Spaghetti & Pizza
1- Bellissimo
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For thin crust, my vote is Pizza Banfi.
For thick crust, I second the vote for Regina above (you missed it in the total).
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Yes your right. I'll add it.