One of the main reasons I adore the Italian culture is for their wonderful, diverse cuisine. The pizzas, the pastas, the meatballs; I’ve fallen in love with it all. Some may say that you haven’t really lived until you’ve had an authentic nonna, that’s grandmother in Italian, cook you an authentic meal; because that’s what the nonna does, she cooks, and she cooks well.
Montreal has become a haven for Italian restaurants, some good, some not so good. Bevo Bar and Pizzeria has done something that many other restaurants have failed to do— bring authentic Italian food into a 21st century setting.
Bevo Bar and Pizzeria isn’t easily describable. It’s a mix of two distinctly different decors: an Italian trattoria worthy of a Sicilian village and a supper club in the heart of an urban city. They come together, however, to create something quite special. This is the core of Bevo.
We see it in the decor and most importantly, we see it in their cuisine. Bevo has become the modern day nonna, who could give any master chef a run for their money.
Now as you sit in this chic setting you see beautiful dark oak floors and an amazing glass bar, serving up some innovative martinis. The tables are dressed with classic red and white tartan cloth napkins, and what looks like century old lanterns are creating a dim lighting worthy of a scene in The Godfather. All in all, an amazing atmosphere.
Now, I’ve been into the deepest confines of Naples and entered the smallest looking trattorias on my quest to finding the best pizza ever made in the town where pizza was invented. I managed to succeed when I entered a small alley and sat at a tiny trattoria, run by a joyous looking old Italian man, who served me a pizza that changed my life. I had given up hope of ever tasting pizza that good again.
I’ll say one thing about the menu. If you don’t order a pizza your first time at Bevo, then you should kindly step out. An enormous wood oven run by Chef Giovanni Vella is creating pizzas worthy of the trattorias in the confines of Naples. For the first time since that day in Naples, I was brought back to that small trattoria. This was a pizza. Add bocconcinis, Italian sausage, fresh parsley, Italian cold-cuts and you have a masterpiece. Ranging from $13 to $21, there is a pizza to satisfy anyone’s taste. From the vegetarian Giardino to the Bosco in Bianco topped with roasted mushrooms and black truffle.
Needless to say, the menu was filled with a variety of Italian hors d’oeuvres and main dishes that will make your mouth water. Juicy, massive, Italian meatballs dressed with a fresh tomato sauce definitely makes the honour roll. Perfectly cooked veal scallopini with homemade potatoes definitely makes the cut. An aromatic pesto sauce with fresh clams makes the list as well. All in all, a simply amazing menu.
From Thursday to Saturday, Bevo has a DJ spinning hits into the wee hours of the morning. It isn’t easy finding a restaurant like this in Montreal, where you can appreciate both the food and the nightlife experience a great city like Montreal has to offer.
Bevo Pizzeria is located at 410 Saint-Vincent St.
