Last week I dined at Trattoria Mercatto at the Toronto Eaton Centre. It wasn’t my first trip to the new restaurant, but my third.  However, it was the first time I had a full pizza there.  There are several on the menu to choose from, about seven in total.  The one I had this time was the Cava Nero.   Like all their pizzas, the Cavolo Nero is about 12 inches in diameter (i.e. small enough for one person to have as as main course) and made with a thin crust – something I prefer as it feels lighter, like I’m not packing in the carbs.  Toppings are kale, mozzarella, pecorino (a kind of cheese), garlic as well as spicy spropressata – a spicy Italian salami.

The sporpressata definitely gave the a bit of a kick, at least for me – I’m someone who normally can’t handle spicy that well.  However, it wasn’t hot to the point that I was unable to handle the food and I knew that it was spicy when I placed the order.  In fact, I liked the pizza. I actually was debating between that and the Quattro Stagioni (translates to “four seasons”), a pizza with artichoke, olives, proscuitto, tomato and mushrooms.  I hadn’t had pizza with kale on it before, which was what influenced my final decision.  I had actually hoped that the pizza would have a bit MORE kale on it.  Anyway, I’m always looking for toppings that are more on the “interesting” or on the not-so-North American side.  In other words, I’m not looking for pepperoni.

Would I recommend Cavolo Nero to others?  Definitely.  Would I have it again?  Yes – even with the spiciness!  All I needed was more water and a good dessert to tame my tongue (I recommend the affagato – espresso poured over ice cream).  Next time, however, I’d come with a larger party so we could order several different pizzas and appetizers to share.