I remember when I first started University Da Capo was one of the first "new" restaurants that I went to with my friends. Heck, maybe it actually sparked the beginnings to this blog. Anyway, once Da Capo closed a while back, I wondered what would be replacing it.. luckily, it's replacement Rosso serves up pretty similar fare.

Rosso Pizzeria - 8738 109 Street - Edmonton AB

Walking into Rosso Pizzeria, you're greeted with a darker environment - the red walls and warm wooden tables make the restaurant feel more intimate than before. The U-shaped counter still exists in the middle of the restaurant, dividing one side from the other. And to be honest, it's a little high compared to the rest of the tables, as it blocks everyone's view from seeing the newly installed wood-fired pizza oven. Wasn't that oven supposed to be one of the highlights of Da Capo's reinvention?

Nonetheless, what is impressive is their array of beer and wine available. A vast display decorates the top of the bar, and there is so much variety to choose from. Pizza and beer... a perfect combination in the eyes of many, right? But if you're not in the mood for drinks, Rosso does have the Q water system installed, and serves the water free of charge.

If the drink list isn't overwhelming for you, the number of food choices available is comparable to the drink list! Our table spent a good amount of time looking through the choices on the menu, and it was tough to narrow it down because a lot of the food sounded great. I will have to mention that you do have to have a fairly good grasp on your Italian food words, as a majority of the menu uses Italian to describe the ingredients.

We started out the meal with the Antipasto Misto ($15): cured meats, assorted cheese, olives, artichoke hearts & roasted peppers. On our board we had prosciutto, and two types of salami. The selection and proportion of charcuterie meats to bread was perfect, and combined with the fresh, mild cheese, this was a nice dish to start off the meal before diving into the pizzas.

My personal choice for the meal was the Margherita Pizza ($13): san marzano tomato, fior di latte, fresh basil, because I feel that a good Margherita pizza can tell you a lot about the restaurant. It's a simple pizza that you really shouldn't be able to mess up. The red sauce was thin, which helped ensure the pizza wasn't too soggy in the middle. With little bits of cheese here and there and a sprinkle of basil, this was a simple, tasty pizza.

Next up was the Prosciutto Cotto Pizza ($15): san marzano tomato, fior di latte, cotto, mushrooms. The ingredients were heavier on this than the margherita, and the mushrooms added extra moisture, making this pizza soggier in the middle. However, I did like the combination of ingredients, as the prosciutto wasn't overly salty. For all the red sauce pizzas, you can upgrade the mozzarella for buffalo mozzarella for an additional $3, which I don't feel is entirely necessary, but to each their own.

Lastly, we finished with a white sauce pizza, the Rappini E Salsiccia ($16): fior di latte, rappini, local fennel sausage, robiola. I typically don't enjoy pizza bianca, but this one wasn't bad. I really enjoyed the stronger flavour of the fennel sausage, and despite having the unique texture of the rappini, it was a little stringy and hard to chew. The pizza dough was cooked nicely though, as it had a soft texture and wasn't overly dry.

For dessert, we took a peak into their case of gelato and were faced with a ton of different options. From mascarpone to mayan chocolate, I settled for something really different - halva. Halva is actually a dense, sweet dessert typically found in the middle east, but in the gelato form at Rosso, it was a sesame seed gelato. The smooth, creamy dessert was studded with sesame seeds and had a light sweetness to it. It was the perfect sweet finish to the meal.

But if gelato isn't your thing, Rosso offers up choices like custard and tiramisu for your sweet tooth. Being close to the university campus, Rosso is a great spot for a quick dinner with friends after class. The pizzas here at Rosso remind me of those from Famoso. Thin crust in the middle with puffy, crisp dough on the outer edges. The pizzas cool quickly and have the tendency to become soggy fairly quickly, so I would recommend trying to stagger your orders for pizzas, or request to have them come out at different times. Try it out and let me know what you think!