Pizzeria Libretto

Flank Steak Spiedini — flavorful and tender steak; sourdough bread soaked up all the oils and flavors. Warning — pretty burnt.
Pizza was overhyped. They were not served hot enough, borderline cold. Dough is wet so that the toppings slide off when you pick it up with your hands (that’s why eat with fork & knife). I never met a mushroom pizza I didn’t like, but this one lacked mushroom flavor (and mushrooms were on the dry side) and was overpowered by the gorgonzola. I preferred the Housemade Sausage — the caramelized onions gave it a nice sweet flavor, but again it was not hot enough.
Tiramisu — cream was tasty but overall too soaked and strong in alcohol

First off, it’s most likely a bad idea trying to come here without a reservation. And if reserving, note that you typically have to do it a week in advance. The restaurant itself is quite spacious and in the summers there is a large patio. Décor is pleasant and quite trendy and hip, very similar to some other modern pizza places I’ve been to.
On to the food. The menu offers a small selection of salads, a fair number of appetizers/​sides, then the pizzas, either white or red, and finally some dessert. I do find the number of pizza offerings slightly limited; I feel like they could benefit from having another 1 or 2 offerings under each category. There is also a prix fixe offering that comes with a salad, basic pizza (pay an extra $ 5 to upgrade to any other pizza), and dessert.
I had a chance to sample my friend’s arugula salad, and that was quite good. As for the pizza itself, I can say that for the most part it feels pretty consistent compared to other Neopolitan-​style pizzas I’ve had. The crust is about right, along with how it is topped. I suspect that some of the other reviewers who complain about the pizzas have no idea that the soft, floppy thin crust is exactly how the pizza was meant to be.
Having said that, my defense of this place ends there. I found the pizzas to be lacking in flavour compared to other similar pizzas I’ve had. It just felt like it was missing something, although I can’t quite pinpoint it. It just wasn’t as satisfying or delicious — quite underwhelming. I was disappointed really.
Our server was very friendly but her job was marred by what seems to be a terrible kitchen crew. We were here on a weekday with a noon reservation. I understand that this is prime busy time but we arrived a touch earlier and I believe we managed to beat most of the rush by getting our orders in first. It still took 40 minutes for the pizzas to arrive. This is unacceptable for an establishment located in the financial district. There were some other tables that were waiting an hour for their pizza and it looked like it still hadn’t arrived! One table sat down shortly after us and ordered some time later (they made the mistake of dragging their feet with ordering), and by the time I was leaving, their orders were delayed TWICE and they had only just started to get half of their pizzas for the table. A table next to us sat down for an hour and couldn’t wait any longer. It was as they were getting up that they were finally given their pizzas in takeout boxes! I don’t know what is going on here, maybe it was just an off day, but if not there are some serious problems.
Overall this place is mediocre. I was fortunate enough to get my pizza within a livable amount of time, but if I was one of those other customers who waited for over an hour, I’d be livid. But I’ll give them the benefit of doubt and come back another time and try one of their white pizzas. We’ll see how that turns out.

My party of 7 must have gone on an off day because on the hottest day of the year so far, the ac was out and our main dishes (pizzas and salads) took 40 mins… AFTER the appetizers… To arrive.
On the other hand, our server was very attentive and apologetic throughout. Everything we ordered was very delicious. Even the bread! One of my favourite would be the fried gnocchis but we also had the spiedinis, calamari as well as a few pizzas. I was looking forward to the Rocco Salad… But unfortunately we found they out of eggs (?!) so I guess I’ll have to try again.
We went for our friend birthday and they were able to make it special by serving her gelato (it’s all she wanted) a nice bday message. The downsize was that that took about 30 mins. I was warned 3 times when making the reservation that we’d only get 2.5 hours for our meal but that’s moot after all the delays.
Again, I’m going to assume it’s an off day for the kitchen but if I go again, I’ll make sure I’m not too hungry just in case.

I am surprised that this location does not have as high reviews as its two counterparts in ossington and greektown. Personally I felt the ambiance of this location to be more upscale and less crowded.
I got the nduja sausage pizza for lunch, and was not disappointed. What I really enjoyed (and quite possibly would go back for) was the chocolate affogato — chocolate ice cream with hot espresso poured on top. The blend of a caffeine and sugar high was just what I needed after indulging in an entire pizza!

Good service.
Everything else (Aka the food) was bad. I have pretty low standards when it comes to pizza as I really love pizza. But this pizza is just NOT GOOD. It was soggy and disgusting. When you picked it up liquid (not delicious cheese oil) would drip onto your plate. I could make a better pizza in my mini toaster oven on pita bread at home, in fact I’d pick the much cheaper Pizza Pizza pizza over this.

Came to this location for Mother’s Day! Plenty of seating, and a different atmosphere from the Ossington location (less of an intimate feeling — higher ceilings, etc) but the food was still good!
I still love the duck confit pizza from PL!

I haven’t worked in the Financial District for over three years now and it’s probably a good thing because I’d go broke because of this place.
I can usually spare enough time for lunch to come down every couple of months to catch up with friends who work in the area and this is consistently the place that we meet up.
I usually book a table for four a couple of weeks in advance and see who is available to meet up for lunch. I have to take the first three responses. From the lineups I see on weekday lunches, reservations are a must!
The standard order each time is four pizzas so that each person can try a slice from each.
The crust is cooked at the right texture and there are both the right amount and combination of toppings to make the pizzas top notch. There are never any leftovers. I haven’t tried any of the other locations for comparison but this one is the most convenient for me and I am completely fine with that.
It’s a bit pricier than the standard food court fare but it is what you’d expect if you’re going to a «sit down» restaurant for lunch. The quality is definitely worth the extra expenditure… so much that it becomes a value purchase? Definitely worth a try… at any time of day!

PL was recommended to my girlfriend and I by a friend, so we decided to check it out for lunch on a Saturday. Initially, we had a bad feeling there would be a wait because 1) it was a weekend and 2) the ratings are above average. We were pleased, however, when we got in and were seated immediately.
The inside had a very laid-​back layout, with a friendly, family feel. Seating is primarily bench-​style, but they have some high tables with stools and also a bar.
The service was great right from the start. We were immediately served water, after choosing still water when asked, «still or sparkling?». We were given ample time to decide what we wanted, and our server was very patient and helpful when it came to deciding our order. She gave her personal recommendations, asked us about our ingredient preferences, and double checked for allergies before noting down our order. We went with the Cremini Mushroom for our pizza, and Flank Steak Speidini as an appetizer.
The pizza arrived before the starter (we told her she could bring the food in any order), and I hear it’s ready in about 90 seconds, given the thin crust and nature of the dough. I half wish we’d been told the pizza we went for wasn’t Marinara based, but it was pretty delicious nonetheless. We did, however, ask for a side of marinara sauce, which was worth the $ 1 extra.
Our steak appetizer arrived shortly after, and consisted of three skewers of steak and sourdough. The steak was rare, very slightly on the chewy side, but I wouldn’t say that was an issue — it was still tasty, and went well with the pizza.
We were able to take our time eating and finishing up as there wasn’t much rush, and were overall very satisfied. I will be coming back to try tomato/​marinara sauce based pizza sometime soon, though!
The bill came to just about $ 30 for the Cremini Mushroom pizza and the Flank Stake Speidini appetizer. Not bad!

I came in not knowing anything about this place, the prices, menu, restaurant name, etc. I didn’t even know it was a hyped up place.
We ordered a variety of pizzas.
The Duck confit pizza (recommended by a friend) was superb.
I enjoyed the calamari the most.
The dessert and icecream were okay.
It was a good experience, I would have expected more for the price we paid.

Alright, because of this «healthy eating» thing, I’ve had to cut out pizza from the majority of my life. But once in a blue moon, I still indulge and this time, it was at Pizzeria Libretto. All the pizzas are thin-​crust and I LOVE thin-​crust. The general rating for this place is exactly what I think it should be: 3.5. I bumped mine up to a 4 because no half points and service was pretty good.
My friend and I arrived at 5:30 p.m. on a Wednesday. Already, the tables were not available (half of which were empty but reserved). We ended up sitting at the bar. I actually enjoyed that because we got a lot of attention from the servers. The bread they served was warm and delicious, with balsamic and oil.
I ordered the Rocco’s Salad ($ 12) and Duck Confit Pizza ($ 17). I ate the salad at the restaurant and took home the pizza to share. The salad was very refreshing and had a good mix of arugula, beets, squash, proscuitto, and topped with a crispy egg. The dressing was a bit light though and at times, I wished there was a bit more proscuitto or something because some bites were kind of bland. The egg could’ve also had more salt or flavouring. However, it was an overall solid salad.
The Duck Confit pizza was definitely a very interesting combination. It had shredded duck pieces, pear slices, and rosemary. We reheated it for a couple minutes in a pan (as suggested by the pizza box). I loved the pieces of duck confit! It was seasoned so well and I would have a pizza topped to the brim with just this. I’m not sure if I enjoyed the texture of the pear as much but overall, the flavour was pleasant.
My friend got the Nduja Sausage pizza. Though I didn’t get to try, I was assured that it was delicious. The waitress also said it’s one of the most popular orders there.
For dessert, my friend and I shared a banana sfingi, which are a collection of small doughnuts made of banana bread-​like material and covered in sugar and sauce. It was pretty pricey at $ 9 but a nice and easy dessert to share.
Pizzeria Libretto on University is a pretty solid pizza place. I think it’s very representative of its location in the Financial District: spending more money for a little more quality to appease all the white collar folks. I don’t mind though and I would probably come again, definitely with a reservation next time.
(16÷100)

I’d give Pizzeria Libretto 3 stars because it is exactly A-​OK.
The service is just fantastic — we were in the restaurant till late and they didn’t rush us out and on the contrary made us feel welcome. They gave us wonderful recommendations and what was great were their plethora of vegetarian options.
The arancini were nice but the insides were slightly cold and it was quite garlicky. I also had the margherita pizza which was good but not memorable. I ended the meal with a cappuccino which was probably the highlight of the evening for me!
I think Pizzeria Libretto is the perfect place if you’re going with a group or taking someone out you don’t know well. The menu is easy and there is definitely something everyone would like and you know that the service will keep everyone in a good mood!

Came in on a weekday for their prix fixe lunch, which includes a salad, basic pizza and dessert.
We got one prix fixe lunch (Caprese salad, margherita pizza, chocolate gelato) and one duck confit pizza, with a side of calamari.
The calamari was amazing. Very generous and beautifully arranged on the place. Every piece was nicely fried and the romesco sauce paired well. Would go back just to order this!
Their pizzas were underwhelming. The crust was chewy but in a soggy way and not an outside crispy kind of way. This was disappointing since you can see them fire them up in an oven in the open kitchen… maybe the temperature wasn’t hot enough. The duct confit with pear wasn’t a tasty combination and there was so little duck that it became a pear pizza. Another thing we disliked about it was that whole sprigs of rosemary were placed on the pizza, which is very difficult to eat and the rosemary taste is too dominating.
Gelato was good, but gelato’s gelato.
Conclusion: would only recommend the calamari here, it’s the real winner.

I come here often for weekday lunches and I am a very big fan.
The pizza is consistently good and well priced.
They offer a prix fixed lunch menu where you can get a salad, a margarita pizza, and dessert for $ 15. You can substitute the pizza for any other pizza from their menu for an additional $ 5.
Their salads are good, their pizzas are good, their desserts, service, drinks and atmosphere are all good too.
I would highly recommend Libretto and I would also recommend making reservations as they will have longline ups.

I tried this place for the first time with a girl friend on a friday. Arrived at around 630pm and got seated right away. We ordered kale salad, crispy calamari, daily special pizza with spicy salami, and finished with espresso gelato and ttiramisu for dessert.
I would give 3.5 stars for its food and 2.5 for its service. Appetizers were great, not a big fan of their pizza. The crust reminds me of naan or pita bread, i personally prefer crispy dough. When we inquired about whether it is supposed to be soft dough, our waitress said we could order well done next time since its how they normally make their pizza. Tiramisu was yummy, so so for the espresso gelato.
I found the service quite unsatisfactory. The waitress had no smile to begin with, and after she dropped off the dessert, she asked us if we want the bill right away. The moment we finished dessert and started sipping coffee, she asked if we needed the machine. Feel like we were rushed to leave. We enjoyed the evening, but would rather try a different place next time and wont come back.

After hearing about this place from several friends, I decided to give it a try on a Friday night after work with a friend. I made the reservation a week in advance and when I checked the day of, bookings were completely full.
The restaurant was a lot bigger than it looked from the outside, we were seated near the back where it was quieter and allowed us to chit chat and catch up.
My friend ordered the duck confit pizza and I ordered the house-​made sausage pizza. Both pizzas were white pizzas which I personally prefer over tomato based pizzas. The pizzas were a good size to share or have as a personal pizza. However, I thought that the pizzas overall were underwhelming and not what I had imagined based on what others have told me. The pizzas were dry (not much sauce) but also oily from the oil that is drizzled on top of the house-​made pizza.
To finish off, my friend and I decided to get dessert. The espresso cinnamon gelato was super strong, even for my friend who absolutely loves strong caffeine.
Overall, it was an enjoyable experience but I don’t think anything will pull me back to try it a second time.

So many people were hyping up this place for me but unfortunately it fell flat.
The bread they give you to start was great — I could probably eat it forever if I wanted to. Ordered the calamari because everyone seemed to have ordered it — was pretty good! The sauce was great. Things were starting off really well.
Then the pizza came, we ordered the prosciutto and arugula pizza and the homemade sausage pizza. There was something missing in the taste of the prosciutto and arugula pizza, and the tomato sauce was a little too strong. The homemade sausage was a bit better (more cheese?) but mad oily. Needless to say the pizzas were quite disappointing and not something I’d come back for.

Great ambiance, vast selection of wines and beers and of course, Neapolitan pizza! Started off with the kale salad and it was literally the best I ever had. The salad is massaged in a creamy lemon chili vinagrette and topped with crispy chickpeas.
Had the salami pizza and was pretty disappointed. The salami was deep fried and tasted like burnt bacon. And the pizza wasn’t as flavorful as I hoped.

Despite the long line, I was genuinely excited to try out Pizzeria Libretto, the one restaurant in my neighborhood I always meant to dine at, but never got the chance to.
After a thirty minute wait, my brother and I were seated outdoors. The view is lovely, with a backdrop of University Avenue, and some business buildings on the other side. Unfortunately, the temperature became a bit nippy and I asked to be swapped indoors. The servers were kind enough to find us a spot indoors in under 10 minutes.
Here is where the unfortunate part of this experience kicked in. The first thing I noticed upon sitting down was a dead fly on my napkin (see photo). I know this is only a $$ restaurant, but having heard so many positive reviews from my friends, I really expected better. If they cannot even keep their storefront clean, under the bright light, who knows what is going on behind the scenes. I don’t know, maybe I just got a little paranoid.
We ordered the Duck Confit and Marinara.
The Marinara was a bit of a small disaster served on a platter. I don’t know about you, but my standard for a good Marinara would be one where the green of the oregano and the white of the garlic is nicely amalgamated. Unfortunately, there was none of that. The sauce was bland and kind of stale in my opinion. To make matters worse, the crust was overcooked, and charred so much that it honestly looked like moles on a scarred face.
I’ll still give Pizzeria Libretto two stars, as the Duck Confit was somewhat of its saving grace.
I really enjoyed the pear on the Duck Confit. It was a good intermix of sweetness offset by the texture of the cheese. Furthermore, it is part of the Mealshare program, where with each purchase from a patron, the restaurant donates a meal to someone in need.
I applaud the effort, but probably not coming back to this restaurant unless someone can convince me that my experience was an isolated incident.

Came here a little while ago for a Unilocal UYE, on the recommendation of a fellow Unilocaler and Neapolitan pizza connoisseur. While I myself am not even a huge fan of this style of pizza (to the disgust of certain pizza snobs I know), I was quite impressed and satisfied with both the food and the experience at Libretto.
SERVICE:
Service was stellar. They were willing to accommodate two large tables of approximately 10 per person, and food came out fairly quickly, especially for a place as busy as this was on a Friday night. The server was informative, taking the time to answer questions, and even educating some of us on their offerings and history.
While I’m philosophically and adamantly opposed to the «auto-​gratuity policy,» which this place had at 18% for large groups, I appreciated that the server waived it when she heard some of us chatting about it — I ended up giving her this % tip anyway, but because the server EARNED it, rather than as a pre-​established requirement.
FOOD:
I ordered the «Cacciatore Salami» Neapolitan, which had Tomato, Basil, Mozzarella in addition to said Salami. The crust was thin and a bit charred, as is the style, and different than some other similar places, actually gave a decent amount of salami — Simon needs his MEAT dammit! It was baked and seasoned well with herbs, and had enough cheese.
As I said, I’m not a huge Neapolitan pizza guy, but for those that care about this sort of thing, this place has all the certifications (Vera Pizza Napoletana) to authenticate the quality of its ingredients and preparation etc. This place also has a nice dessert selection, which I definitely partook in.
VERDICT:
Will be back if I’m in the area.

We came here on a mission. To find the perfect pizza. Yes it’s the infamous Quest for perfect pizza UYE. Turnout was great.
This place serves Neapolitan pizza. Its not your basic pizza. You won’t find your basic toppings like pepperoni or chicken BBQ or meat lover… etc.
They take authenticity very seriously. If I had to describe this chain in one word it would be «strict». Pizza comes in one size and one size only, 12 inch. Apparently it’s «illegal» to serve any other size. They got plenty of strict rules regarding their toppings too. Crust is very thin, resembles naan. Toppings are fresh. Overall tasty pizza, slightly pricy for 12 inch.
Such cultured, much authentic, very enriched, wow! Surely worth trying out.