GOODS: Acclaimed “Nicli Antica Pizzeria” Elevates Pizzaiolo David Tozer To Chef Role
March 11, 2013
Nicli Antica Pizzeria is located at 62 East Cordova in Vancouver, BC | 604-669-6985 | www.nicli-antica-pizzeria.ca
The GOODS from Nicli Antica Pizzeria
Vancouver, BC | Bill McCaig, owner of Nicli Antica Pizzeria, is pleased to announce the appointment of David Tozer to the position of Chef. Chef Tozer has been with the restaurant as Lead Pizzaiolo since February 2011. A graduate of the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts, where he was a recipient of its ‘Finishing Touch’ Award, Chef Tozer spent his early career honing his skills in a number of Vancouver restaurant kitchens before joining Rocky Mountain Flatbread Company in 2009. “It was my experience with Rocky Mountain that taught me about the importance of working with local, seasonal and artisan-produced ingredients. I caught the ‘pizza bug’ there. When the opportunity came to join Nicli and take my skills to the next level, I jumped at the chance. I believe Neapolitan-style pizza to be the highest expression of the Pizzaiolo’s craft and Nicli Antica Pizzeria is the best there is.” Read more
DINER: Inside “Vicino” – The New Gastown Joint From The “Nicli Antica Pizzeria” Folks
March 23, 2012
by Andrew Morrison | I took a look inside the upcoming Vicino Pastaria & Deli next to Nicli Antica Pizzeria the other day. We published the press release detailing its coming back in January…
Vancouver’s first and foremost Vera Pizza Napolentana Nicli Antica is about to expand. Owners Bill and Alison McCaig are working tirelessly to bring the same level of quality and passion for Italian food to the logical next step, literally next door!
The new restaurant, named with the help of Vancouver-based Industrial Brand, will be called Vicino Pastaria & Deli. “’Vicino’ means “neighbour” in Italian, which seems fitting considering its location next door to Nicli, yet is also meant to express their commitment to the Gastown neighbourhood.” says Ben Garfinkel, Creative Director.
“Fresh filled and extruded dried pasta will be made on site using the best ingredients,” promises McCaig, “with cured meats, imported, local and some made in house available to enjoy on premises or for your table at home.” The plan is to not only curate a terrific retail selection of ingredients, but apply the same approach to quality and authenticity used next door at Nicli to create a suite of signature sauces and which customers can take home and finish themselves, or sit down at the long share table and enjoy with other likeminded food fanatics from the neighbourhood.
It’s come a long way since, as you can see from the shots below. In fact, it’s now only about eight weeks away from completion, which is pretty impressive considering how there was no existing kitchen to work with when they started construction. I’ll be writing about it and four other upcoming restaurants in my Westender column next week, so stay tuned for all the details as to what we can expect.
ALL ANTICIPATED OPENINGS
GOODS: Nicli Antica Pizzeria Set To Expand With “Vicino Pastaria & Deli” In Spring 2012
January 19, 2012
Nicli Antica Pizzeria is located at 62 East Cordova in Vancouver, BC | 604-669-6985 | www.nicli-antica-pizzeria.ca
The GOODS from Nicli Antica Pizzeria
Vancouver, BC | Vancouver’s first and foremost Vera Pizza Napolentana Nicli Antica is about to expand. Owners Bill and Alison McCaig are working tirelessly to bring the same level of quality and passion for Italian food to the logical next step, literally next door!
The new restaurant, named with the help of Vancouver-based Industrial Brand, will be called Vicino Pastaria & Deli. “’Vicino’ means “neighbour” in Italian, which seems fitting considering its location next door to Nicli, yet is also meant to express their commitment to the Gastown neighbourhood.” says Ben Garfinkel, Creative Director.
“Fresh filled and extruded dried pasta will be made on site using the best ingredients,” promises McCaig, “with cured meats, imported, local and some made in house available to enjoy on premises or for your table at home.” The plan is to not only curate a terrific retail selection of ingredients, but apply the same approach to quality and authenticity used next door at Nicli to create a suite of signature sauces and which customers can take home and finish themselves, or sit down at the long share table and enjoy with other likeminded food fanatics from the neighbourhood. Learn more after the jump… Read more
GOODS: Gastown’s “Nicli Antica Pizzeria” Has Joined The Growing Scout Community
June 22, 2011
We’ve invited the new Nicli Antica Pizzeria on East Cordova to join our GOODS section as a recommended local restaurant that is well worth checking out. They’re now proud members of Scout, and as such we’ll be publishing their news front and center and hosting a page for them on our list of independent goodnesses. We’d like to take this opportunity to thank them for their support of Scout, and hope you’ll take this chance to get to know them a little better…
CHECK ALL THE GOODS
The First Nibbles Of Neapolitan Pizza At “Nicli Antica Pizzeria”
February 2, 2011
Walking through Gastown yesterday, I took another look inside the Nicli Antica Pizzeria construction site and found it effectively complete. The staff were training on the POS and they’d lit a fire in the oven. All seemed set, even the tables (complete with silverware, candles and linen napkins). “Come back later and we’ll make you a pizza” said the owner, Bill McCaig. I’d been looking forward to trying Nicli since we broke the news last April that they’d be bringing authentic Neapolitan pizza to Vancouver, so after picking up my kids from school we ran back down, thrilled to have the chance to be the first Vancouverites to give it a shot (my boys know pizza). I even took along a camera, as you can see from the video above and the shots below.
It was the best pizza I’d ever had in Vancouver, which was exactly what I was expecting it to be. To most pizza nuts, that’s not saying much, as it’s the first local pizzeria (to my knowledge) that has actually tried to mimic Naples’ finest contribution to society since the six string guitar. The thin crust was slightly springy, eminently foldable and blistering around the edges. The peeled plum tomato sauce glistened with olive oil and tasted true. The torn globs of mozzarella had lost their firmness and the basil was fresh and decoratively arranged. The hardwood that they’re using in the Acunto oven is birch, and the temperature is so high that all my pie needed was a 60-70 second blast treatment. When it came out it exhaled zephyrs of smoke.
In short, it was a perfect margherita. It’s definitely on par with those sold at Prima Strada in Victoria and Pizzeria Libretto in Toronto, and better than the pies I remember at Terroni. To put that in a more local perspective, it makes Marcello’s look like Dominos. Take a look at the video of my pizza being made and try not to eat your computer monitor…
They are doing a dry run for friends and family over the weekend and then easing into their opening next week.
EARLIER PHOTOS
ALL ANTICIPATED OPENINGS
Gastown’s Long Overdue “Nicli Antica Pizzeria” Looks Sharpish
January 27, 2011
These shots came my way this evening…
Bill McCaig
Bill McCaig
Bill McCaig
The delay is driving me crazy. They’re looking to open within a week or so from what I hear. Never heard of Nicli Antica Pizzeria? Short story: it’s worth knowing about. Long story: I encapsulated a couple weeks ago:
If you’re a pizza wonk like me and have been patiently drooling for months waiting for the opening of Gastown’s Nicli Antica Pizzeria (which aims to be the first certified Neapolitan pizzeria in BC), then you’ll have noticed that their latest target date for opening (mid-December) came and went without any pizza in your mouth. Sigh. The good news is that owner Bill McCaig has hired his key staff, finished the floors, installed the neon signage, had his electrical and plumbing inspected, made an appointment with Intertek to test his Acunto wood-burning oven so that it meets ULC standards and released his menu (read it after the jump). The bad news is that work continues at 62 East Cordova, and we won’t – if all goes according to this new plan – be able to sup at the 40 seater until January (originally, he had hoped for early last summer). Double sigh. Oh well. Patience, right?
Right.
Salivating Over The Coming of Gastown’s Nicli Antica Pizzeria
December 23, 2010
If you’re a pizza wonk like me and have been patiently drooling for months waiting for the opening of Gastown’s Nicli Antica Pizzeria (which aims to be the first certified Neapolitan pizzeria in BC), then you’ll have noticed that their latest target date for opening (mid-December) came and went without any pizza in your mouth. Sigh. The good news is that owner Bill McCaig has hired his key staff, finished the floors, installed the neon signage, had his electrical and plumbing inspected, made an appointment with Intertek to test his Acunto wood-burning oven so that it meets ULC standards and released his menu (read it after the jump). The bad news is that work continues at 62 East Cordova, and we won’t – if all goes according to this new plan – be able to sup at the 40 seater until January (originally, he had hoped for early last summer). Double sigh. Oh well. Patience, right? Read more
Gastown’s Nicli Antica Pizzeria Hopeful For December Opening
November 17, 2010
I spoke with Bill McCaig (of the hotly anticipated Nicli Antica Pizzeria) this morning and learned that his pizzeria – which aims to bring the first certified Neapolitan-style pizza to Vancouver – is once again delayed (ouch – originally slated for a July opening). He says work has continued apace and that the imported, wood-burning Acunto oven is installed and will be fired up for the first time in the next week. He’s also hired a front of house manager, an Italian-Montrealer named Gino Didomenico, so it’s gotta be getting close! “Mid-December, I hope” he says. Check out some new photos after the jump… Read more
Phew! Gastown’s “Nicli Antica Pizzeria” Not Dead, Just Delayed
August 9, 2010
July has come and gone and local pizza aficionados have been cornering me plenty, wondering whatever became of the hotly anticipated Nicli Antica Pizzeria, the authentic Neapolitan-style pizzeria that was supposed to open last month at 62 East Cordova.
Fret not, amici. It’s been delayed is all. I spoke with owner Bill McCaig yesterday for a story I’m writing for next week’s paper, and he explained that they ran into some trouble with their engineering plans, which halted construction and set the rumour mill grinding. The new plans were submitted to the City some six weeks ago, and they’re hoping to get a green light to resume work this week. Let’s hope they do.
Best case scenario: the forty seat pizzeria – which is gunning for Vera Pizza Napoletana certification (a first for BC!) – will open in October.
ALL ANTICIPATED OPENINGS
Real Neapolitan Deal Coming At Last With “Nicli Antica Pizzeria”
April 21, 2010
Nicli Antica Pizza owner Bill McCaig outside the construction site at 62 E. Cordova in Gastown yesterday
Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God!
UPDATE: IT’S OPEN! TAKE A LOOK HERE
A few weeks ago I wrote an article for the paper about Vancouver’s rather underwhelming pizza scene, lamenting that after quite a bit of local research I’d found much better on a trip to Toronto (at Libretto) and even across the Strait in Victoria (at Prima Strata). The absence of quality, authentic pizza is one of the biggest complaints of local foodies, and they have good reason to bitch. It’s an embarrassing hole in the fabric of our otherwise excellent food city, one that should be filled a long time ago.
Well, I have good news and bad news. The good news is that we are finally getting an authentic Neapolitan pizzeria. The bad news is that it won’t arrive until July. Read more
Nicli Antica Pizzeria
October 5, 2008
Details
62 East Cordova, Vancouver, BC | V6A 1K2
Telephone: 604-669-6985
Web: www.nicli-antica-pizzeria.ca
Twitter | Facebook
Gallery
The People
Bill McCaig | Proprietor
David Tozer | Chef
Brianna Weins | Assistant Manager
William Johnson | Lead Bartender
About Nicli Antica Pizzeria
Finally open and properly filling the void in Vancouver’s pizza scene is Nicli Antica Pizzeria. Immediately considered the best pizza in Vancouver by many, owner Bill McCaig’s goal is to transport you to Italy in one bite.
Reviews & Accolades
