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- Hours:
Mon-Wed, Sun 11:30 am - 9 pm
Thu-Sat 11:30 am - 10 pm
- Attire:
- Casual
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- Yes
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
11 reviews for Pizzeria Prima Strada
All Reviews
I must start out by saying I'm not even a huge fan of pizza. But oh my god.
Deliciously fresh. The pizza dough is unlike anything I've had before. The The Panna e Pancetta (with cream, fresh gigantic dollops of ricotta, and thinly sliced-before-your-eyes pancetta) was amazing. Loved the atmosphere and the giant wood stove. Super friendly service.
Also liked the cute little details that made this place special, like their mini clip-board bill holders and to-go pizza boxes, complete with instructions on how to reheat your leftover pizza to perfection in your oven at home. If I lived in Victoria, I would be here often.
If Tom Douglas' Serious Pie in Seattle is the sexual napalm of pizza (is it ever!) then Prima Strada is perhaps the Jennifer Aniston of John Mayer's past. You think you've hit the jackpot but it's not sexual napalm.
The fennel sausage pizza special had very nice combination of sausage, leeks and red onions that gave it a very nice sweetness to it while my girlfriend's proscuitto crudo was nicely layered although a bit heavy on the arugula. The thin crust and hot oven combined to blend the flavours really well although the crust gets mushy fairly quickly (tsk, tsk).
The pizza is pretty big but not quite big enough for 2 - a salad and a pizza would be enough for 2 average eaters. It is also a bit pricey for a pie but good pie is hard to find and good pie requires expensive ingredients which is what they use and it requires care and attention which is what they apply - you get what you pay for.
If you've never had sexual napalm then this is going to be one of the best pizzas you've ever had but once you've had sexual napalm you'll merely enjoy what is a very, very, very good pizza.
Cool little pizza place located in the heart of Cook Street Village. Trendy inside, with very cool light fixtures, and all the pizza is cooked in a wood fire oven!
The Good: Really quality, fresh ingredients. I've spoken to the owner before, and he really seems to have his heart into it, traveling around to find the best ways to make the pizza. Not your typical ingredients, and if you like thin crust, deffo the place to go. The Funghi pizza is really really delish. The appys are really good too... super good salad and antipasto plates.
The Bad: Like previous reviews have said, if you take too long with eating your pizza, it tends to get soggy and floppy. I prefer to be able to pick up a slice, not worrying about dropping half the ingredients on my lap. The prices have gone up as of recent, and I realize that they do seem to use quality ingredients, I'm not positive you get your moneys worth. Each pizza ranges from $15-$17 and (in my opinion) aren't large enough to share. It can turn into an pretty expensive meal, so I suppose you are paying for atmosphere too.
The Ugly: These are the main reasons for the 3 stars. Wait/reservation time. I realize that only so much can be made at a time, but I think they take on too much a lot of the time. If you have a reservation, it tends to range from 30 minutes to 45 minutes after your reserved time to get in. I've had really amazing service, but on the other end of the spectrum, I've had amazingly bad service. Like really really bad.
Overall.. good every once in awhile, but there's a lot of other restaurants I prefer to go to. Il Posto is just around the corner, and for a couple of dollars more, you can get a pizza with just as good (and unique) ingredients that's about triple the size. Whatever floats your boat!
It took about a year, but I have finally indulged in the greatness that is Pizzeria Prima Strada. This may be a good thing, as the staff appears to have ironed out all of the kinks mentioned in the previous reviews.
We arrived around 7PM on a Friday night, a party of two, without a reservation. The hostess seated us roughly 5 minutes after arrival at a communal table, very nicely reminding me of the finer establishments San Francisco Bay Area, where I once lived.
As the temperature was near freezing, we opted entirely for hot food, but I made sure to take advantage of the Driftwood Ale on tap (delicious move!).
We started off with the special Gnocchi in Brown butter and sage, which I found to be perfectly textured, nice and crispy on the outside, but tender on the inside. The brown butter was flavorful, but not too salty.
Our Funghi pizza (porcini cream sauce, roasted mushrooms, roasted onions, thyme, mozzarella, and pecorino - no tomatoes) arrived shortly after. We chose to savor, rather than devour the pizza, with subtle, yet complex flavors.
The crust is perfect. I do not know how well it holds up more than 15 minutes after leaving Prima Strada's brick oven. The crust, and the pizza in general is neopolitan in origin - thicker than the New York stuff, but thinner than everything else that seems to pass for pizza in these parts.
Our neighbors at the communal table had ordered truffle oil to place on their pizza and very kindly shared with us. I would recommend this addition.
All in all, this was a fantastic pizza experience with a sophisticated, but not pretentious atmosphere. Considering the quality of the ingredients and the finished product, the prices are good. Provided you order an appetizer, one pizza is good for two people.
It's clear that Prima Strada's owners are passionate about their work. I'm happy to say that we have a pizza place in Victoria which rivals the pizzas at the much-too-pretentious Pizzeria Mozza in Los Angeles (which also serves a great neopolitan pie).
Easily the best pizza in Victoria. I didn't realize how atrocious the city's offerings were until I ate at Prima Strada. Incredible thin crust pizza with insanely fresh ingredients, cooked in a brick oven.
It's popular and they don't accept reservations for small parties - be prepared to wait if there are a couple of you.
My only gripe is the music. They always seem to blast Chromeo, which feels totally incongruent to the feel of the restaurant. No big deal.
I used to live right around the corner from this place, and it unfortunately(for me) opened right before I moved away!
If you are looking to try a real thin crust italian pizza with very fresh and unusual toppings then this is the place to go. They have a good amount of options on their menu to choose from, my personal favorite being the mushroom pizza. If you are looking to grab a dessert after I believe they give you a few different choices or single or double scooped gelato too.
If you are eating in, the restaurant has a very warm and cozy feel, not to mention you get to watch the staff making the pizza's in the background with their giant stone oven.
It's not really cheap though so it is best to go with a couple of people and share a few dishes. The Pizza's being between $12-15 dollars and their salads are roughly $10.
If you're expecting the usual pepperoni and cheese pie, don't come here. Best word to describe Prima Strada? I'd use sophisticated. Wood fired oven, thin crust, fresh ingredients, homemade dough...perfect. My pick for that craving something different feeling would have to be the Funghi pizza. Mushrooms and onions caramelized to sweet perfection. They have a long list of gelatos for dessert if the special isn't for you. All I can say is, if you're brave enough to go for the pumpkin gelato and the waitress asks, "One scoop, or two?" Get two, I wish I had because I was tempted to lick the bowl after just one. Prima Strada really stands apart from other pizza joints not only for it's trendy sophistication, but for the fine dining ambiance and the outstanding service.
I went for lunch at Prima Strada for the first time last week. I have to say it was a lot quieter than at supper times!
Same menu, great thin crust pizza with really quality ingredients.
They've got a patio on the street, now. It was full, but only seats about 6 or 8 so no big surprise.
The antipasto plate that used to only be a special is now permanently on the menu. I still love it.
1 Previous Review: Show all »
-
3/16/2009
I really like this place. I must've been a dozen times now and it keeps getting better.
It's… Read more »
The negative: 45 minutes after our reservation was made for, we finally got a seat. It took 10 minutes for our drink orders to be taken, another 20 for them to arrive. Ordering another drink later on in the evening is hit or miss, as some of us got ours, while others had to ask a few times and still didn't get anything. Apparently, they can only put 4 pizzas in the oven at one time, so you can imagine how long it takes to actually get your food on a Friday night with the restaurant full of people.
The positive: The thin crust pizza is an interesting change from the usual pizza places around here. Though if you don't eat it as soon as you get it, the crust ends up really soggy. The toppings were all nice and fresh. The atmosphere was pleasant, except that the staff seemed to not be able to agree on what music to play. Every few minutes, someone would go over to the hostess station and change it to another song, whether the current song was finished or not.
I won't be back.
I have been to Prima Strada twice, the first time for takeaway and the second time with a party of four to stay for supper. Both times I was impressed with the staff, they were eager to explain the stories behind there menu selections and provided good service. Ask about the origin of an ingredient and you are likely to get a more detailed provenance than you bargained for. I had the Salsiccia Piccante pizza, the Driftwood Ale ($24 a pitcher!!) and the Tartufo for dessert.
The Salsiccia pizza is spicy from the dried chile seeds sprinkled on top, not too spicy for me but it was for my friend, so if you don't like spicy ask for the chili seeds on the side. It has made-from-scratch fennel sausage (and you can taste the fennel!), bell peppers, mozzarella, and tomato sauce. I've had it twice and enjoyed it both times. The first time was takeaway, and the crust towards the centre of the pizza was too thin to crisp up, a little soggy really. I chalked that up to the fact that that it was in a box until I got home, so I was surprised when the fresh out of the oven pizza I had in the restaurant wasn't much crispier. Maybe the thin crust is a little too thin? Nevertheless this is still a great pizza, and I'll likely have it again.
The Driftwood Ale is pleasantly crisp and hoppy, but not too bitter (your friends who don't like hoppy beer will still be OK with this). The $24 price tag on the pitcher was unexpected but it's the first I've had it so maybe it's an expensive beer.
The dessert menu relies heavily on sorbetto and gelato, which is OK with me. The Tartuffo is chocolate hazelnut gelato with vanilla in the center, I had it with espresso poured over it which I heartily recommend; probably one of the best desserts I have had this year.
The by-the-glass part of the wine list is all Italian, and I didn't know enough about Italian wine to pick one. They name their wine after regions rather than grapes, so unless I know the region it's hard to pick a wine. I'll study up and try some next time.
Overall I had a great experience and I'll definitely go back, the atmosphere is comfortably energetic and the service is friendly and attentive. I can't ask ask for much more.
Reservations for parties of 8 or more, parking on the street and around back.
The atmosphere was cozy and fun at the same time and the service was impeccable. The waitstaff were friendly and attentive and the pizza chefs looked like they were having a blast!
The Funghi was my favorite - mouthwateringly scrumptious with a rich sauce, a flavorful combination of mushrooms and perfectly carmelized onions. YUMMY!! The meatballs appetizer was excellent - the large portion could easily be a meal in itself.
The cosmitalian cocktail was delicious and strong and the wine list had a wonderful selection.
Overall it was a fabulous meal and I will DEFINITELY be back!
