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What’s on the menu at Pizzeria No. 900, Toronto’s first location of the Montreal-based chain

Including a pizza topped with smoked meat, naturally

By Liza Agrba| Photography by Jelena Subotic

| October 8, 2024

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A spread of pizza, Italian small plates and wine

Name: Pizzeria No. 900 Contact: 1987 Queen St. E., no900.com, @no900pizza.on
Neighbourhood: The Beaches
Owners: Luke and Rya Sauvé Chefs: Fiodar Huminski and Mirko D’Agata Accessibility: Not fully accessible, six steps up to main level and washrooms

On a weekend trip to Montreal in 2022, Luke and Rya Sauvé visited Pizzeria No. 900, a chain with a couple dozen locations in Quebec and one in Lyon, France. “We loved everything about it, start to finish,” said Luke. “The food was phenomenal, the decor was beautiful. They really just ticked all the boxes.”

A woman and a man sit at a table set with pizza and Italian snacks and drinks — Franchise owners Rya and Luke Sauvé

At the time, Luke was working front-of-house at King West’s now-closed Lov, which happened to be co-owned by Alexandre Brunet, Pizzeria No. 900’s founder. Soon after their first meal at the pizza chain, the couple started fantasizing about opening their own No. 900 franchise. So, when Brunet offered Luke the chance to be the first person to open a Toronto location, he couldn’t say yes fast enough.

While chains may have a reputation for cutting corners, this is a certified quality-obsessed operation. It’s one of only four Toronto pizzerias to get the coveted thumbs up from the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (AVPN), a Naples-based organization whose mission is to promote and protect “true Neapolitan pizza.” Meanwhile, the executive chefs behind No. 900 make a habit of winning culinary competitions—and take regular pilgrimages to the Amalfi coast to hand-select tomatoes for their restaurants.

A man in a kitchen tosses pizza dough in the air

A person adds dollops of fresh cheese to an uncooked pepperoni pizza

The Food

Being a certified AVPN pizzeria means this spot follows stringent requirements about everything from ingredient quality (top-shelf) to oven temperature (900 degrees Fahrenheit, hence the name) and cooking time (90 seconds). All that diligence leads to Neapolitan pizza’s hallmark light, thin crust and bright tomato sauce. The best way to appreciate that attention to detail is with a traditional margherita, but there’s also a selection of quirkier pies, including one with Montreal smoked meat and espresso aïoli. There’s also a solid appetizer menu, a couple of salads and dessert—chocolate hazelnut pizza, anyone?

An antipasta plate — This is the antipasti plate, complete with stracciatella di burrata (burrata’s creamy interior); a meaty quartet of speck, prosciutto, ventricina (Italian salami) and ’nduja; fruity leccino olives; and gorgonzola cream topped with crisp taralli. $26

A bowl of gorgonzola cream served with taralli — Punchy gorgonzola cream is crowned with Vesuvius apricot jam (a sweet contrast to the blue cheese’s token funk) and toasted pistachios and almonds. It’s ringed by three flavours of crunchy taralli: olive oil, rosemary and cacio e pepe. $9

Burrata cheese — Perfect, never-frozen burrata flown in from Italy is enough to write home about here, but underneath is a wildly delicious sleeper hit: a pool of Sicilian pesto, which eschews basil for sun-dried tomatoes, almonds and olives. It’s accented with a few cherry tomatoes, fresh basil, toasted breadcrumbs and a drizzle of very good olive oil. $26

A person takes a slice of pepperoni pizza — This take on a classic pepperoni pie features traditionally spiced salami from a meat producer in Charlevoix, Quebec. Dollops of fior de latte cheese accent its balance of pork, fennel and black pepper. $17

A margherita pizza — The classic margherita (also available in a premium antica version featuring heirloom tomato sauce) is just sauce, fior di latte, grana padano, and a touch of basil and olive oil. $16 ($20 for the antica)

A person drizzles chili oil over a mushroom pizza — The five-mushroom pizza features roasted button, oyster, shiitake and porcini mushrooms as well as black truffle salt, caramelized onion and a cheese duo of fior di latte and stretchy fontina ($24). Here, someone is making the smart move of drizzling the brand’s signature spicy oil overtop

A pizza topped with Montreal-smoked meat and caramelized onions — This being a Montreal-based chain, smoked meat seemed like a foregone conclusion. It’s accompanied by caramelized onion, fontina and fior di latte, espresso aïoli (exactly what it sounds like—and somehow perfect with smoked meat), and a parsley emulsion. $20

Tiramisu — Here we have your typical tiramisu building blocks (ladyfingers, mascarpone, espresso) with the not-so-traditional addition of crunchy coffee streusel made using broken cannoli shells. $10

Two cannoli — A couple of freshly piped cannoli, one filled with lemon curd and pistachio, and the other with Vesuvius apricot jam and ricotta. The nice thing about Neapolitan pizza is that it’s light enough not to preclude dessert. $9

The Drinks

There’s a proprietary wine list of bottles you won’t find at the LCBO—mainly Italian labels, with a couple of local options from Niagara and Prince Edward County. Cocktails are refreshing spritzes or Italian-inspired twists on the classics, like a verdant basil sour or the Italian mule, which uses amaretto in place of the usual vodka. A tight beer selection includes some Italian favourites, like Peroni.

An Italian-inspired sour cocktail — This refreshing Italian-inspired sour pairs house-made basil syrup with gin and apple juice. $13

An espresso martini — A classic espresso martini with vodka, coffee liqueur and espresso. $14

A zero-proof Italian cocktail — The zero-proof Garibaldi is a respectable take on the boozy original, featuring grapefruit, lemon and NOA’s non-alcoholic bitters. $8

A bartender pours a cocktail from a shaker into a glass

The Space

The room stays on-brand with No. 900’s Quebec locations—plus a little touch of Beaches charm. It looks cozy from the front, but the space is deceptively large, with three distinct dining areas: a front bar and dining room, a main dining room in the middle, and a tucked-away nook in the back. Curious about what exactly constitutes a “Neopolitan slap”? You can see it in action in the open kitchen.

A small, street-side patio in front of a restaurant with sliding doors

A few two-top tables in the front dining space at No. 900 Pizzeria

Bar seating at No. 900, the Toronto location of a Montreal-based pizzeria

Looking from the bar at No. 900 Pizzeria to the middle dining room and open kitchen

Looking from the dining room into the open kitchen of No. 900 Pizzeria

The main dining room at a pizzeria in Toronto

The walls of the back dining room at No. 900 Pizzeria are decorated with vintage plates and serving trays

Shelves lined with Italian-imported sauces, olives and pasta — Among the products for sale are the brand’s signature spicy oil, Sicilian oregano, and bottles of a very good zero-proof negroni.

A sign on a bathroom wall says you can't make everyone happy you're not pizza

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