Pizzeria Prima Strada - Victoria

After reading Andrew Morrison on Vancouver's lack of authentic pizza, we put pizza on the list of things to eat in Victoria (also check out Foodosophy's informative review). Who can pass up Prima Strada's Neopolitan pizza and their authentic ingredients (including flour from Naples, local artisanal cheese, and house made charcuterie)?

We arrived during the lunch hour and the place was packed; however, we were lucky enough to get the last booth that was available. The decor of the place is clean, stylish and comfortable. Of course, the star of the space the large brick wood-fired oven in the middle of the restaurant. Apparently the temperature in the oven is about 700 degrees.

To start, we ordered the 'Antipasti Misti' ($13), which consisted of prosciutto, salumi, various cheeses, olives, chickpeas, nuts, and bread. Although we were a little disappointed by its size, the ingredients were stellar. The olives were especially good. Our only complaint was that it only came with three slices of bread. Really? That is not nearly enough bread to eat with the salty ingredients.

Our first pizza of choice was the Margherita ($14.50) which consisted of tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese from Fairburn Farms, basil and sea salt. The pizza was impressive. The dough was crispy yet soft at the same time, and the pizza had great flavour. The tomato sauce tasted very fresh, and the basil was especially good on the pizza.

The second pizza was the Rucola e Crudo ($16), which is tomato, parmigiano and mozzarella pizza topped with fresh prosciutto and arugula. This was great. The saltiness of the prosciutto and parmigiano gave the pizza great flavour, and the freshness and bite of the arugula contrasted nicely with the hot crust.

We thoroughly enjoyed this dining experience, and will definitely be back. You can definitely taste the care in preparation and the quality of the ingredients. Bravo!