#FoodPornFriday Went downtown for a personal favourite: Terra Cotta

Up late for a Twitter Party and just realized that it's turned into #FoodPornFriday!

This past week my wife and I headed downtown to one of our favourite places to eat: Terra Cotta Pizza.  It had been far too long since we've been there. I think it was a bit over a year ago. Which is a shame.

While I was slightly disappointed that they no longer server Okanagan Spring beer on tap (for some reason it went with their pizza so well) the food was as amazing as ever.

If you dig fresh hot wood oven pizza you have got to check this place out. Call for reservations and head down there on a Tuesday and you can even get 2 for 1.

My meatza from Terra Cotta for this weeks #FoodPornFriday

This weeks amazing looking #FoodPornFriday picture comes from Terra Cotta Gourmet Pizzeria in downtown Windsor. Since our first couple of trips to Terra Cotta they have become a staple dining experience for the family. You just can't beat gourmet wood fired pizza, especially on Tuesday when it's two for one.

This beauty here is an example of me trying to find the perfect make your own topping combo. I went with pepperoni, sausage, prosciutto and provolone. 

---

Care to join me for Food Porn Friday?
Toss up a pic on your blog, use the #FoodPornFriday hastag and link it up with Linky below:

Went back to Terra Cotta tonight and it changed

As a special treat for getting past a milestone at work, my wife arranged for another night out without the kids (I know we are getting spoiled). Being the smart girl she is, she remembered that it was two for one night at Terra Cotta. So we headed there after dropping off the kids.

I'm sure you are currently thinking: "What another review of Terra Cotta? You just did one." Yes, yes I did, it's right here in case you missed it: Why did it take me so long to try Terra Cotta? See the thing is, things changed in the few short weeks since we had been there.

My Wife's LaBlonda Pizza

First off you will note they got a new better looking logo, even if it is just a shot of the sign outside. That wasn't enough for me to be writing you now though. The menu changed. Not a lot but enough to make it worth mentioning. The biggest and most disappointing change was that they removed the Crostino. That's the cheese and topping covered fresh made crouton thing that the menu said had been a staple there for years and that I suggested you all try. I thought this was one of the big draws of Terra Cotta over other local Stone Oven Pizza places in the city.

Immediately upon seeing this I asked our waitress about it and she did in fact confirm that it is off the menu.  She went on to explain that the problem was that people were ordering it as an appetizer instead of a meal (it was in the appetizer section) and that it takes longer to cook than an actual pizza and that people who ordered it as an app were getting frustrated by how long their meals were taking. Now the one cool thing is that she offered to get us any Crostino we wanted right then and there, which is awesome but not good for anyone who doesn't know about the secret not on the menu items.

My Sausage, Pep, Cheddar and Prosciutto Pizza

Oh well, I guess things change and there isn't much we can do about it. Or maybe we can, maybe you can all go in and ask where the Crostino is and maybe they will put it back on the menu, and maybe they will put it in some place other than with the appetizers. I'm sure that would be a bit much though.

All that said, our meal was great, our food was awesome and we will be going back. I'm not sure if I mentioned it in the past post but Tuesdays are two for one pizza. Wednesdays are also two for one if you are a student with a valid student card. You can't beat that. Our entire meal that included a pitcher of beer and two 7" gourmet pizzas was only $33 before tip.

Why did it take me so long to try Terra Cotta?

This weekend my wife and I had a rare treat. Four hours without the kids to do anything we wanted. After a bit of discussion we decided we wanted a nice meal and then to head to a favorite downtown spot, The Coffee Exchange, for some desert and coffee and a few rounds of Race for the Galaxy. This post isn't about the coffee and card games though, it's about where we ended up for dinner: Terra Cotta Pizza.

Terra Cotta has been around for a long time. As long as I can remember at least. I'm sad to say up until last Saturday night we have never tried it. I know they are known for stone oven pizza but that was about it. I also knew they had a two for one Tuesday deal but we never managed to make it out for it. I've even been told by friends to try it. For whatever reason I always thought of Terra Cotta as high end. A classy, don't bring the kids, wear a collared shirt, cloth napkin, kind of place. I'm my head it was La Guardia with a guy cooking pizza up front. Man was I wrong. 

Check out the awesome glass pitcher.

The first thing you will notice walking up to Terra Cotta will most likely be someone cooking pizza, right there in the front window. Anyone can stand there and watch traditional, dough tossed in the air, pizza making, right there from the street. How cool is that? Going inside I was amazed to see not only how small but also how comfortable the place was. This place is really small. There's the pizza prep area up front, a long bar in the middle, some two seater tables across from that and maybe 8 more tables in the back for larger groups. Okay I guess it's probably a bit bigger than say Sam's Pizza but smaller than it looks from the outside. The place is also very casual. I have no idea where my idea that this was a fancy shmancy place came from, but I was wrong. Not to say the place is a dump or anything like that, it's very casual and homey with no pretensions. They also had high chairs and there was a family in there with kids, so I guess it's a good family place as well. It's nice to be proven wrong sometimes.

Our Crustino

I was pleased to see a good beer menu that included a ton of Sleeman Products including draft. Was was even happier when they noted they had Okanagan Spring on draft and ordered a pitcher for the two of us to split. Check the pictures on this page to see the awesome solid glass pitcher this came in.

Looking at the menu, we found a full page spread about some stuff they call Crostino. This is home made, double toasted croutons topped with Pizza ingredients, baked in the wood fire Pizza oven. At about $8 and with enough food to share we decided we had to try it. We grabbed the Crostino Alla Bolognese which had mozzarella, ham and Swiss. It was very good. A really unique taste with the crunchy croutons, zesty sauce and lots of herbs and spices. I think I would try a different set of toppings next time but I do suggest you try one of these unique offerings.

For main courses my wife and I both ordered Pizzas. The menu has a wide variety of pre-made options that range in price from $8 to $14. Toppings range from the traditional bacon, pepperoni and green peppers to eggplant, turkey and calamari. They also offer white or whole wheat crust, gluten free options and even non-dairy cheese. The menu didn't stop at pizza either; there was a selection of appetizers, salads, Italian wraps and sandwiches, salads and calzones. I went with a make your own pizza, with sausage, pepperoni and my favorite pizza topping: prosciutto. My wife grabbed one of the pre-set pizzas, the Prosciutto e Funghi and ordered it with non-dairy cheese. 

Looks awesome doesn't it?

Okay look at that picture right there. Just look at it. Doesn't that alone make you want to go to Terra Cotta? I know it makes me want to go back. Not only did the food look good, it tasted amazing. By far some of the best wood fire flat crust pizza I have ever had. Why the heck did I just try this place this weekend?  It's been here for years, I could have been eating this like once a month, maybe once a week, maybe twice a week!

The food was great. The atmosphere wasn't at all what I expected but that was a good thing and it meant that this should be a great place to bring the kids. It also seems like the kind of joint my parents would both dig. What this means over all, is that I will be going back to Terra Cotta, probably multiple times and bringing along the entire family. I'm still a bit frustrated that it took us so long to try somewhere so good, but I'm very happy that we finally did and have found a new regular stop for great pizza in Windsor.