It's nice now and again to head off the beaten paths of our fair city and enjoy the culinary delights offered on the side streets (or even back alleys in the case of Bijou). The Annex Room is one of these side-street delights. Located on Albert st. it offers stone-oven flame-fired pizzas among other things.
If you haven't been, I recommend strolling in if only to see the incredible oven used to bake the pizzas. It is gigantic and looks as if at any moment it could come to life, like some enchanted kitchen appliance from a fairytale and make its way onto the Festival stage.
The service is warm and friendly; I am promptly offered a cocktail and I accept, my comrades decline. The martini arrives, perfectly shaken (by owner Christine), of generous quantity and served with plump olives.
The server directs us toward the Thai Crunch Salad to start and we select some pizzas to share. The salad delivers nicely and though it isn't particularly original its elements are in perfect harmony and the peanut sauce tempts me to lick the plate.
One of our pizzas is a 'Chicken Caesar' topped with fresh romaine and drizzled with a garlicky Caesar aioli. The crust is a great balance of chewy/crunchy/soft and here the originality shines! Our second pizza has a somewhat soggy centre but all is forgiven when we reach dessert; with the first mouthful of Peanut Butter Cheesecake we are transported! Such decadence is certainly share-able.
What a great tucked-away spot to settle in with some great friends. We look forward to joining you again!
I love the Annex too - it's our go to restaurant for our anniversary. The staff there are fantatstic as well.
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