New York Meets Sicily

The Pitch

While many restaurants are scraping by during the COVID-19 pandemic, a significant number are sadly closing for good.  Others, on the other hand, are going against the grain by branching out and expanding.

Take the two-headed Italian caffè operating under the Gentile Moniker.  After successfully copying their longstanding Ahuntsic concept into Westmount in 2016 (reviewed here), their next step was to open a pizzeria right next door.

In the short months since its opening last fall, Gentile's Pizza Parlour has generated some buzz, not least due to its eye-catching design.  As a Westmount resident myself, I figured I would check it out by getting some takeout for my family on this first Sunday of spring.

tagged:  TAKEOUT

The Food

Gentile's pizza offering revolves around two continental varieties; New York-style slices as well as square Sicilian pies.  Completing the menu are finger-foods for starters, a couple of salads, a handful of Italian comfort classics and soft-serve ice cream.

Our starters, regrettably, fluctuated between awful and average at best.  The arancini lacked any semblance of outside crisp and inside runniness, and were served with a thick, revolting fonduta dip.  At $3.5 a ball, these were an overpriced flop.  Our eggplant fritters fared a little better but again lacked that exterior crunch, while the chicken wings were dry-ish and forgettable.

As for the pizza, I opted for the simple cheese pie; my benchmark when sampling a new pizzeria.  Gentile went with a secret blend of four types of cheese which, combined with the sauce and basil, resulted in a beautifully-seasoned sweet/salty mix.  All of this sat on a spongy crust with a nice chew in the middle, although hard and brittle near the edges.

All in all, this is a solid pizza; but at $27 for a 16-incher with no "premium" toppings, one might consider it expensive.

$14

$14

Cacio e Pepe Arancini

"saffron & parmigiano fonduta, pepper"

$14

$14

Eggplant Fritters

"sweet tomato passata, salted ricotta"

$13

$13

Polenta Crusted Chicken Wings

"cacciatore style, nduja ranch sauce, marinara"

$27

$27

Cheese Pie

"house sauce, parlour's cheese blend, fresh basil"

tagged:  GOOD FOR SHARING OVERPRICED

The Verdict

As with several of my recent reviews, it is a shame to do takeout from this pizza parlour and not enjoy its décor.  Designed by none other than Zébulon Perron, the retro-chic space is truly remarkable.

The look, which is highlighted by diagonal tiling patterns, a golden hue and neon lights, was inspired by 80s New York pizzerias and arcades.  The final product is an exercise in nostalgia mixed with modernity and warmth.

Food-wise, the inconsistency between those mediocre starters and great pizza lands me in a love/hate spot with Pizza Parlour; which is not any different from my relationship with the adjacent caffè.

tagged:  DESERVES A RETRY

Price per person:  $22.67