Pizzeria Libretto

If you are looking for warm and friendly this is not the place for you. I’ve never understood eating in a restaurant just simply because it is trendy regardless how bad the food and service. This place is all about production, getting you in and out and service along with customer care is out the window. The foods not that great yet for some reason this place is popular. I can’t figure it out. can you?

One of my fave pizza spots
gets busy-​only once has it been lacklustre-​generally great

The mushroom pizza is life. This place is always buzzing, with great service and excellent food.

Great pizza. Went for lunch with a girlfriend. Shared the arugula salad and meatball pizza (special of the day). Food was amazing. Ambiance was a little loud… hard to hear each other talking. Waiter was super nice. They have Blur Sky cola… never heard of it before but quite good. Not as sweet as regular Coke.

Fantastic food, taking right to a table, short wait for food, although the service was a bit lacking.

We went for a quick lunch between some meetings. It was quite busy but we got a table shortly.
Their pizzas are so unique –The dough adds a unique flavour to the Neapolitan pizzas! We went for the Kale Salad, Arancini (can you ever go wrong with that?) and a Nduja pizza.
Each item was well prepared and I could keep going back just for the Arancini!

Walked in to a restaurant that was half full. The only tables that were left were tables of 4. We were a group of two. The host refused to seat us at a table, and would only sit us at the bar.
I used to love Libretto and have been a ton of times, but this is just money grubbing bad service. Doubt I’ll be coming back.

Their calamari would be considered their signature dish (IMO). However, the pizza are now a disappointment from yesteryear. They were once not as soggy. Their consistency of both quantity and quality has not diminished. I would prefer to see a less soggy pizza on my next visit. Perhaps I’ll request it well done. Hopefully this solves the problem.

Ok, I haven’t really been here enough to have a good handle on the overall quality of the food, but from what I have had here, it’s worthy of three stars.
Friends and I had just gorged ourselves on delicious phở from Phở Tien Thanh down the street, and were heading up to College to catch the street car back home but were still hungry so… we stopped off to try Libretto. We ordered a medium Marguerite and it was tasty, prepared in good time and fresh… but it was just kind of pedestrian. I know people love this place and it’s the church of pizza to them, but it was just okay. It didn’t change my life or make me see God. It was just okay. And listen, I get it. It was one pizza, take-​out, and I had just eaten and wasn’t hungry, and by no means am I saying it wasn’t good, it just wasn’t GREAT.
Staff was very friendly though, great atmosphere and clean bathrooms (gotta’ make sure you have clean hands to eat!), but I wasn’t blown away.
Still, worth trying out, and still worth the trip!

I am already preparing myself to be pelted by tomatoes for this review. I swear, I am by no means a pizza snob, and I can get down with a Domino’s pizza every so often. Maybe I came here with expectations that were too high — after one failed attempt to go to the University location, I’ve had Libretto on my list for the past year. Don’t get me wrong, the pizza was fine, but it wasn’t anything to rave about.
I liked the ambiance of the restaurant, which is hip, cool, casual, trendy, and kind of dimly lit… pretty typical for establishments in this area. My date and I were seated at the bar, which was fine, but meant that I didn’t really get a good view of the back of the restaurant. I ordered a cocktail (Vanilla Fumo — ingredients: jack daniels, vanilla galliano, lemon, smoke, egg white) which was really interesting and had this lovely smoky undertone because they sprinkle some ashes from the oven on top of it. (As a side note, try not to actually ingest the ashes, because they are gritty and feel kind of unpleasant in your mouth.)
Pizzas: We ordered two for two people, no apps, which was a good portion. One was the duck confit pizza, and the other was the prosciutto pizza (without arugula) which we added anchovies to. Of the two, I liked the duck confit pizza better, because I liked the slight sweetness of the pear which I thought meshed well with the saltiness from the duck. The prosciutto pizza actually kind of disappointed me, because it was just average. I’ve had better prosciutto pizza at other places where I honestly just could not stop eating it. Perhaps the anchovies were also a bad call on our part because there ended up being too many salty flavours on our pizza.
Anyway, I left kind of thinking… «oh that was nice» but not like «OMG I’m obsessed with this place and need to come back every single day» kind of thing. That being said, I absolutely would not be opposed to going back to any of their other locations to try other things, I just wasn’t blown away by my first experience here. Despite the bar seating, servers were pretty attentive and nice and we weren’t ignored.

With North of Brooklyn down the street, these guys shouldn’t keep up their snobby demeanor. We’ve ordered take-​out from Libretto at least 30+ times, have dined-​in a handful of times. Has generally been decent.
My last experience was the absolute last time we will be ordering from them. Usually would call ahead for pick up, however this particular day I was walking by and decided to order at the shop and wait for my pizzas to be ready to take home. I ordered 2 pizzas. This was around 5pm on a weekday, so the bar area was still not at capacity. I asked the gentleman who swiped my credit card to PAY for the 2 pizzas that I had ordered if I could sit at the bar and order a beer, you know, while I wait for my order. I was told to stand where I was and I could order a beer and have it while standing «the bar is full service and for paying customers».
I actually found it so unbelievable, I was speechless. Just chuckled and walked out, had a really nice cold beer at the bar next door.
They will always do well, so this is essentially a waste of a review.

This place is my religion.
Like the Phoenix, a bite of their delicious pizza will have you rising from the proverbial ashes. One bite! and you’ll have the goddamn spiritual/​emotional awakening you’ve wasted decades watching Oprah for.
I’ve tried every pizza on their menu, from the ever-​classic Margherita to the red-​hot Nduja Sausage. I’m equally well-​versed in their Appetizers & Desserts. So, coming from a true believer, I’ll give it to you straight.
CIBUM:
The House-​Made Sausage pizza was arguably constructed by The Big Man himself. It’s the unique combination of gooey mozza cheese, caramelized onions, sausage and chilli oil– all melting angelically on top of Libretto’s died-​and-​gone-​to-​Heaven crust.
My recommendation: preface with the Rocco’s Salad or Beef Carpaccio and finish things off with the tiramisu.
POPULO:
The staff know the true meaning of hospitality. They are the warmest people you’ll find in this industry. The best part for me is seeing and tasting the passion they have for their menu, it’s baked right into every bite, present from the moment you walk in the door.
AERIS:
The atmosphere is usually quite loud. Don’t plan on a quiet or romantic evening when you come here. You’ll be seated with elbows nearly touching the man or woman to your left.
CONCLUSIO:
If you are looking for divine intervention, look no further. The menu is decadent, even sinful, but without the side dish of Catholic Guilt you might have elsewhere.
This is the way food ought to be made. Amen.

Libretto is my go-​to, come-​as-​you-​are dining option that I keep coming back for. It’s not fancy – so I have no problem dashing out in a sweatshirt – but it isn’t devoid of charm either. It strikes a fine balance, makes a solid pie that carries out quickly and easily and offers up some nice salads and appetizers to tempt your tummy beyond the slice.
A standard greasy slice it is not, but a very strong contender for TO’s best pizza with high quality ingredients and toppings. I usually always get the special of the day, which I feel usually justifies its’ nearly $ 20 price tag. Coming here for a Napolitano/​plain cheese is bound to be a let down. Why pay these kinds of prices for a cheese pizza? Let the kitchen show you what they can do, dribble a little bit of that silky chilli-​infused olive oil on your crust, and enjoy.

Pizza Libretto!!! If you want some quality pizza this is the place to go! I had went to the Pizza Libretto on 155 University tonight. It was good; however, I would still prefer the Ossington location. I have to say this place is just a little shy of the «Wow Factor!» I had gotten the Duck Confit, which was very delicious and enjoyable! Will definitely come here when I am craving pizza! Highly recommended!

I went to Libretto with a couple of friends as a recommendation for wood-​fired pizza, which is not easy to find in Toronto. There was a 35−40min wait time but they text you 5min before your table is ready so in the meantime you can walk around Trinity Bellwoods which is a really nice area.
The service is really good, made us feel like we had a dedicated waiter just for our table. Everytime we ordered something it came within a couple of minutes, including the food! Ok the food maybe 5 minutes.
The pizzas are delicious! «Verace Pizza Napoletana» We had the cremini mushrooms and the special of the day, nduja sausage. The dough is very soft, with the right amount of charred from the fire, you could taste the freshness in the sauce, the cheese and the mushrooms. The sausage had the perfect amount of heat.
We ordered tiramisu and chocolate pudding as desserts, they come in a cute little mason jar and they were amazing! Ended the evening with perfection.
Nothing bad to say about Libretto, outstanding ambiance, flavours, textures and temperatures, will definitely be coming back.

I’m sure to came back again here.
Delicious pizza, nice atmosphere, we were satisfied with all.
For appetizer, I recommend beef carpaccio‼

We were referred here via a Unilocal event promising a $ 3 special of their wild blueberry pizza. When we arrived, apparently we were misinformed as this location was not part of the promo (although the event said it was for all 3 locations). We weren’t happy since we came all the way from Burlington so we settled with a Napolitano pizza. It was alright, nothing special. The pizza was quite soggy which didn’t work out well with the thin crust.
We were planning on leaving after just sharing the pizza (still hungry!) to go find another place to eat as we were not impressed. Another server came by our table after hearing our unfortunate plan of events and told us to sit tight as they wanted to do something for us. Turns out that although we weren’t able to get just a slice of the wild blueberry pizza, Pizza Libretto offered us the wild blueberry pizza on the house. Thanks very much to Brooke for taking ownership of the confusion and offering an alternative. We did not expect this kind of hospitality at Pizza Libretto and will more likely give this pizza joint another try. Very happy with the service and the innovative pizza creations!

In a town that loves pizza and has a major pizza chain for every day of the week, Pizzeria Libretto carries the mantle as the belle of the ball when it comes to pizza.
The pizza here is delicious, yet the options are not limitless. Libretto works to serve only pizza that meets the highest standards for real pizza. everything from cooking temperature to the type of organic tomatoes are carefully regulated. While there is uniqueness here, you won’t find lots of odd-​ball toppings or variety in thickness/​texture.
The best way to do this is to arrive early (even before five if you can). It does get very crowded here at peak evening and weekend times.
If you do find yourself waiting a while, there are some good neighbourhood bars nearby, and the staff will call you when your table is ready.
Finally, service here exceeds expectations. Many places in town that have a good product don’t seem to have or care about good service. That is not the case here. Even though the waiters won’t have long to chat, they are on the ball with explanations, refills, and general politeness.
In a town that prizes the latest and greatest of everything, Libretto is becoming that classic, established Toronto Pizza place that is the go-​to place for great pizza.

It’s a good thing I don’t live on Ossington, cus if I did, Libretto and I would be seeing each other weekly.
Duck confit pizza is amazing — crispy but still soft inside, with just the right amount of toppings. even better is their signature chili oil that you drizzle all over your pizza (I could drink this stuff). We also ordered a tower of their buttermilk calamari which was devoured in minutes. Well breaded and fried crispy, without cheaping out on the meat inside.
Paired with a few beers, this will be one of the best pizza parties you will ever have !
Would I return? — Yes, definitely!
Parking? — Street parking on Ossington
Value for $? — Good
Space? — Medium sized/​limited waiting area (they will take your number and text you when the table is ready so you can walk the strip while waiting or grab a beer at one of the many other bars nearby)
Ventilation? — So so (aka you will smell a bit like food after)
Service? — Great

We had supper at Pizzeria Libretto Friday night. We’ve heard excellent things about it and have been wanting to go … hard to believe it’s been five years since they been in our ‘hood and we’ve never been!
It was busy when we got there and stayed that way all night. There was a good vibe.
Pizzas bake in less than 90 seconds in a 900 degree wood burning oven, hand built by a third generation pizza oven maker in Naples
Shannon, our server, started us off with some bread and oil and it was delicious.
We shared a bottle of bubbly … Sussura (VQA) by Hinterland, Prince Edward County, which is bottled exclusively for Pizzeria Libretto.
Our friend, Steve, is a chef and took care of ordering appetizers … plus he and Simone had been there before.
We also shared a bottle of red wine … Nero D’avola 2012 IGT, Matto, Sicilia
We all ordered pizza. I ordered a Nduja Sausage pizza with tomato, garlic, oregano, basil, mozzarella and stracciatell. It was delicious and had a bit of a kick. So much food and I took half my pizza home
Simone and Steve split an Ontario Prosciutto & Arugula pizza with garlic, tomato, oregano and shaved Grana Padano.
Gord had the feature pizza with mozzarella, truffle paste, mushrooms and berkshire ham. He said it was fabulous.
We got dessert. None of us had room for it but we managed to eat it all! Yum! The ice cream is made in-​house and was so good! The donuts were warm.
Shannon, our server, took excellent care of us. Pizzeria Libretto is a great spot and I’m glad we finally got there … and we’ll be back!

Après une longue route Montréal-​Toronto nous avions juste le goût d’aller crasher dans notre chambre d’hôtel! Mais la journaliste que j’adore, Marie-​Claude Lortie, avais dit que ce que Montréal est à la française, Toronto est a l’italienne!!! Alors on a repris l’auto à la pluie et arrivée la, au moins 30 min d’attente a 21h!!! Rendu la on le fait… Et j’y pense encore ce matin. J’adore pizzeria Bottega et Napeletana mais j’ose dire que c’est la meilleure pizza fine que j’ai mangé… Je né sais pas comment décrire la pâte et les ingrédients sont de choix… Le tout accompagné d’un pinot noir Ontarien que j’ai trouvé excellent au point de faire le saut lorsque j’ai su qu’il venait d’ici!

La pizza traditionelle par excellence dans le quartier d’Ossington. Le restaurant est victime de son succès il faudra donc patienter 1 à 2h avant d’avoir sa table.
L’attente en vaut la peine, toutes les pizzas sont cuites au four traditionnel et le cadre est à la fois moderne et retro à la fois. Idéal pour diner entre amis ou en amoureux.
The best traditionnal pizza place in Ossignton. The restaurant is so good you will have to wait between one and two hours befor getting a table.
The waiting is worth though: all the pizzas are baked in traditionnal ovens and the place itself has a mix of modern and traditionnal at the same time.
Good place to go to diner with friends or bring your date ^^