Given that my go-to pizzeria joint has closed, I’m on the hunt for a new favourite… This is what brought me to try Artisti Pizzeria for date night. Being newly opened beside other local favourites, such as the Local Omnivore, it seems to be a good location for a new restaurant. So, here goes my first impression review.
To start, Artisti Pizzeri’s menu is extensive in well… pizzas. There is a lot of options, like over 5 pages of just pizza options!
While the extensive menu looks promising… I left feeling a bit underwhelmed by my experience here and ultimately, am still on the hunt for a new pizzeria place to call my favorite. Let me break down the pizza options for you, there were:
- Traditional pizzas
- Calzones/Rolls
- Kids pizzas
- Red sauce pizzas
- and… White sauce pizzas
If you’re like me and you’re also wondering what makes a pizza “traditional”… our server explained that the traditional options had more “basic” ingredients – so, like ham and cheese? I guess in this sense, the red and white sauce pizzas are meant to be a bit more elevated. Weirdly enough though, I feel that a lot of the pizza options were very similar to each other. A few were just different by an ingredient or two.
We started our meal with the Tagliere Artisti board ($19). This seemed to be the only appetizer option that offered both cheese and meat. It was fairly simple but came with a good variety of meats and cheeses, and was accompanied by eggplant in oil and bread. I enjoyed the cheese selection – montasio, asiago, and parmesan – as it complemented the salami and bread well! However, at $19, I felt that this was a bit pricey for something I could’ve easily put together at home.
After combing through the menu and looking at the countless options for pizza, we decided on the Legare pizza ($18). A white mushroom sauce pizza that was topped with mozzarella, mushrooms, Italian sausage, brie cheese, cherry tomatoes, and parmesan.
The pizza wasn’t bad but it wasn’t extraordinary either. Good crust, plenty of toppings, but unfortunately, it didn’t give me that “wow!” factor. In fact, I wish it was a bit more savory.
Given that they brand themselves as a pizzeria, I was hoping that the pizza would be the star dish of our meal. However, our favourite dishes of the night were actually the desserts.
I ordered the Profitterol ($8), cream puffs filled with custard cream, topped with a whole lot of chocolate mousse. My bf, on the other hand, ordered the Tiramisu ($7).
The cream puffs were a bit heavy, but it was decadent, creamy, and a sweet treat to end dinner with. The tiramisu? Maybe one of the best ones I’ve had in a while! After our underwhelming dinner, I’m glad the dessert was a hit.
On top of our meal, the service was a little spotty and questionable…but hey, newly opened and busy on a weekend night? Understandable, I suppose. If my opinion was to be based on this first impression alone, though, I am not sure if I’d return anytime soon. Maybe I’ll visit later down the road when it’s a little more established. Nonetheless, I hope business runs smoothly for them! It’s a nice space with lots of pizza options. If you happen to pop in, let me know you what you think!
Aritsti Pizzeria
11998 109a Ave, Edmonton
Eat with Sharon 
I found it refreshing to dine in an authentic Italian pizzeria. I also absolutely love their rolls. Their pizzas are what you’d find at a bistro in Italy. The lattes are delicious, and priced well below Edmonton’s coffee shops. I also tried the special, a chicken zucchini lasagna with bechamel sauce. It was excellent! Their tiramisu… yum!
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