That’s amore Pizza lovers will rejoice at new addition in Little Italy serving up superb pies By: Alison Gillmor Posted: 7:00 PM CDT Wednesday, Mar. 11, 2020

Opinion

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This article was published 10/03/2020 (1752 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Tommy’s Pizzeria opened in January, but Winnipeg pizza-lovers might already be familiar with the pies. Owner and chef Thomas Schneider previously ran Timmy Tom’s Pizza, which operated under the auspices of the Trans Canada Brewing Co. on Kenaston Boulevard.

Schneider has now opened his own standalone resto on the Corydon strip. (TCB continues serving pizza, with plans to expand its food menu.)

Tommy’s Pizzeria is all about pizza, and pizza succeeds or fails on its crusts. Tommy’s medium-thin crusts are puffed up at the edges and tender-chewy-crisp throughout. Toppings include some intriguing combos, with good quality ingredients and nicely balanced flavours.

The Gemignani is meaty, with hot Calabrese sausage and nduja, that intensely savoury salami paste that makes anything better.

At the lighter end, the Johnny Hanson combines prosciutto with thin slices of pear, pine nuts and a nice nudge of gorgonzola.

The Willy Chapman serves up little rosettes of delicate whipped ricotta and squiggles of herby pesto — and just the right amount, because it’s easy to over-pesto — on top of a garlic base that brings it all together.

The standout among the Italian-style pies might be the Tommy’s Special, which starts with a spicy honey base that imparts a subtle sweetness with an edge of chili heat, and then adds prosciutto, arugula, a creamy buratta and a light — very light — touch of lemon zest.

This was an award-winner at the Campionato Mondiale Della Pizza (the World Pizza Championships) last year in Parma, Italy, coming in as best in Canada in the Classica division, and it’s easy to see why.

Along with these thinner-crust Italian-style marvels, Tommy’s also offers a new front in the pizza wars. There have long been hard-fought battles between New York and Chicago, Naples and Sicily, and

Tommy’s enters the fray by offering three options for Detroit-style pizza. (These pies are made in a limited number, so they could be sold out later in the night.)

This is a rectangular deep-dish ‘za with a very thick crust, not soft and bready but crisped up with oil. Detroit-style also reverses the standard ordering of sauce and cheese, starting with the cheese on the bottom, so it fuses onto the crust, and then finishing off with big spoonfuls of marinara-style sauce on top.

The Troiano Berghela, a Detroit-style “red top” with spicy pepperoni, is definitely worth a try if you like a hearty, substantial pie.

Salads are generous: the Italian goes for lots of fresh snap with a zippy vinaigrette, mixed greens and big spears of cucumber.

Apps are mixed. With the bruschetta, the expected tomato topping is good, but the wild mushroom with goat cheese is even better.

Calamari are a little soft, but the truffle fries are excellent. A dusting of Parm and some aromatic truffle oil are nice extras, but what really makes this dish are the immaculately prepared and very crisp potatoes. (“Proper chips,” as my British-born friend said.)

Desserts come in from The Frenchway café across the street.

The space is pleasant, including a main room with a view of the pizza-making process, as well a side room and a small second level. The music playlist, not overly loud, skews to old standards, with lots of Frank Sinatra on one night.

Service is friendly but can be frustratingly slow. On one visit, we had a 45-minute wait between apps and pizza. It was a very busy Friday night, with lots of people coming in for takeout, but pizza shouldn’t take this long, especially in a restaurant that specializes in pizza.

alison.gillmor@freepress.mb.ca

Alison Gillmor
Writer

Studying at the University of Winnipeg and later Toronto’s York University, Alison Gillmor planned to become an art historian. She ended up catching the journalism bug when she started as visual arts reviewer at the Winnipeg Free Press in 1992.

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