This Opinion article is part of a Narcity Media series. The views expressed are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Narcity Media.
Frozen pizza is a staple in many homes because it's quick, easy and delicious, but one popular brand has recently left Canadian grocery stores: Delissio.
Back in February, Nestle Canada announced that the beloved frozen pie would no longer be available leading to plenty of heartbreak for those who considered it to be one of the best frozen pizzas available in the country.
To fill the Delissio-sized hole in our hearts and stomachs, I decided to taste five brands of pepperoni pizza that were available at Metro to see if any of them could come close.
For those who aren't familiar with Delissio, the brand's tagline for their frozen pizzas is, "It's not delivery, it's Delissio," and indeed, one time in university I legitimately said to my roommate, "This tastes like delivery," after eating a slice of the pie.
So with that in mind, I'll be rating these pizzas out of 5 in terms of how much they taste like the brand. Some of them I won't be scoring too favourably, but I do want to clarify that all of these pizzas were damn delicious and I'd happily buy and eat any of them again — they just don't necessarily taste like Delissio!
Casa di Mama Pepperoni Pizza
It didn't initially occur to me that thin crust pizza inherently doesn't taste like Delissio or most types of take-out pizza due to the fact that those pies have thicker crusts, but nonetheless, I continued with the items I had purchased.
Casa di Mama Pepperoni Pizza is yummy, but as noted, because of the thin crust, it was quite crunchy (which I enjoyed) and therefore not like the more pillowy dough of Delissio.
Overall, it had a pleasant bit of spice to it and is just a solid pizza.
Rating: 2/5
Price: $7.49 for 395 grams
Price per 100 grams: $1.90
Ristorante Pepperoni Pizza
Again, due to the fact that Ristorante Pepperoni Pizza is a thin crust, it once again scored lowly because it was nice and crispy instead of being more on the doughy side like takeout.
I really, really liked this marinara sauce — I could taste the herbs shining through and it looked like the top of the pizza had a little extra sprinkling of what appears to be either basil or oregano.
Rating: 2/5
Price: $7.49 for 320 grams
Price per 100 grams: $2.34
Mikes Pepperoni Pizza
Okay, let me start by saying that the appearance of the pizza is my bad as I was supposed to bake it on a perforated pizza pan, but since I don't have one of those, I cooked it on an oven tray, which is why it turned into a bit of a gloopy disaster.
When I first opened this box of pizza, I was confused at first as I couldn't see the pepperoni, but that's because the cheese is on top of it, which I thought was interesting.
The flavour of this pizza is nice, but it's lacking some oomph in terms of seasoning, and while it is much more doughy than the thin crust pizzas, I found the crust to be a little too soft — again, this could be because of the baking experience, but how was I supposed to know I'd need special equipment for this pie?
Rating: 2.5/5
Price: $10.99 for 805 grams
Price per 100 grams: $1.37
Giuseppe Thin Crust Pepperoni Pizza
Not only does Giuseppe Thin Crust Pepperoni Pizza visually look like Delissio, it also has a pretty solid flavour.
However, the pork flavour of the pepperoni is very strong on this pizza for some reason and kind of overtook all of the other flavours, so the taste of the marina isn't really there, which is a shame since a good sauce is one of the best parts of a pie.
It's a good pizza — it just doesn't have the balance of flavours that Delissio has!
Rating: 3.5/5
Price: $7.99 for 480 grams
Price per 100 grams: $1.66
Rustica Pizzeria Solo Pepperoni Pizza
For first place, I'm giving the honour to a brand I'd never seen before: Rustica Pizzeria Solo Pepperoni Pizza.
It 100% looks like a slice of takeout both in terms of how much it rose in the oven and the colour it got in the crust, which is crunchy on the outside and soft and airy on the inside. The pepperoni had a slight cup shape that you see at some pizza restaurants to hold delicious bits of greasy goodness, and the marina sauce is pleasantly oregano-forward in flavour.
This frozen pizza is super delicious, and it's the one I'll be stocking in my freezer to replace the spot that used to be filled by Delissio because it's just as good as their pie — and maybe is actually better!
I'm impressed, and even after eating all of this pizza, I'd still happily eat another slice of Rustica's pepperoni pie.
Rating: 5/5
Price: $8.99 for 570 grams
Price per 100 grams: $1.58
Again, all of these pizzas are pretty good in their own way, and in terms of how much I enjoyed them, I'd say Ristorante Pepperoni Pizza comes in second place despite me scoring it lowly in terms of how close it is to Delissio.
If you're more interested in picking up a hot slice of pie from a chain restaurant, I recently tried out some of the popular spots that offer individual take out slices.
The difference between slices from Pizzaiolo, Pizza Pizza, Gino's Pizza, Pizza Nova and Little Caesar's is pretty big, and I left the comparison with a new favourite that I hadn't tasted in years.
But as the saying does — all pizza is good pizza!
These prices are confirmed at the time of publishing, but they can change at any time. Taxes and fees may not be included.
I Tried 5 Delissio Pizza Alternatives From Grocery Stores & One Legit Tastes Like Delivery
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