If you like the real pizza (ie thin crust, real tomato sauce, not that much cheese) then you’re going to like Famoso. This franchise pizzeria has opened its first location in Calgary on 4th street, just across the street from Mercato. The menu boasts the real-deal ingredients brought all the way from southern Italy, including the bell-shaped ovens which (according to the menu) bake your pizza in 90 seconds at 900 F.
We first went to Famoso for dinner. The place was a bit too dark for my taste (I’d like to see some candles on the tables), but the pizza saved the night. We wanted to try the prawns pomodoro ($10) but they turned out to be disappointing. It looks like they pre-cook the shrimps, and then add the sauce. You can feel that the shrimps have not been sauteed together with the pomodoro sauce, which is a pitty. We then ordered a Cappricciosa ($14.50) and we were really happy that our decision to share it (at 11”, it’s the perfect size for sharing). My party paired it with a glass of Malbec (5 oz at $6.75) and I went for a tea ($2). The bill came to #34.91 (GST included, but before tip).
Since we liked the pizza, we decided to go to Famoso again, this time for lunch. We tried the Ham and Pineapple pizza ($13.5) and the Primavera ($14.5). While I liked them both, I think the Cappricciosa remains my favorite because of its tomato sauce. Personally, I like my Ham & Pineapple pizza to have big chunks of pineapple and not crushed pineapple like the one in Famoso. As for the Primavera, it has the same ingredients as a Cappricciosa, but the base is cheese instead of tomato sauce.
All in all, I think I’ll become a kind of a regular there. I like the place, with a clean and modern design. I like the lights hanging from the round ceiling. And I like the pizza. But above all, I loved the Tiramisu ($6). Now, I’m very picky about my Tiramisu, but this one met all my requirements…
