While many businesses closed during the pandemic, Roberto Ferrucci took a leap of faith and opened what fast became Sudbury’s favourite pizzeria.
Ferrucci, who opened Pizzeria Roma 1894 in 2020, has been awarded Sudbury’s favourite pizza two years running, and said pizza is his passion and in his blood.
“I live pizza, eat pizza and dream pizza, and for me I have that satisfaction of people enjoying the pizza, and if they do, I’m happy, I just want to make sure everyone enjoys pizza as much as I do,” he said.
Ferrucci’s passion for pizza started when he was 10, and every year he visited his uncle in New York, working alongside him in his pizzeria. It didn’t take long for him to love the art of pizza making.
“Watching my uncle stretch the dough and throwing it in the air, that’s how I do it here, I stretch the dough by hand, there’s no machinery or rolling pins, everything is done with your fingertips,” he said.
Once his uncle moved to Italy, Ferrucci worked alongside him there, and over several summers, he was making pizza in Ponza, Italy. Today, Ferrucci’s pizza style is a fusion of both those training experiences.
“Italy is one style and New York is another style and that’s where I kind of combine the two together, it really is an art form” he said.
The art form, he explains, is the multitude of factors that go into making the perfect pizza. For example, stretching the dough to ensure even thickness, getting a consistent temperature in the wood burning stove, and coming up with the best flavour combinations.
While the popular favourites include the Margarita, The Godfather, and The Mediterranean, a seafood pizza, Ferrucci’s menu can accommodate a variety of tastes, dietary preferences and restrictions, including vegan and gluten free options.
Currently, their vegan pumpkin ravioli and vegan pizza are customer favourites. Recently, Ferrucci added charcoal crust pizza to their menu, which he says is delicious and offers health benefits like less stomach bloat, and aiding in food digestion.
However, Ferrucci said what makes his pizza stand apart is the use of old school techniques, the quality ingredients, like imported Italian tomatoes and prosciutto, and the creative flavour combinations.
“I’m not the cheapest pizzeria in Sudbury, but I don’t look at price, I look at quality of the product, and as soon as you take your first bite, you’ll understand why,” he said.
Pizzeria ROMA 1894 offers customers more than just award-winning pizza
Stuart Raymond, a renowned chef for the past 46 years, started cooking in his homeland South Africa and from there, all over the world including Israel, throughout Europe and North America, including in Toronto, where he opened, and operated, several restaurants.
After moving to Sudbury 30 years ago, he opened his own restaurant and after a time, was forced to close. However, that would be a good thing for both Raymond and Ferrucci as it meant Raymond could use his culinary skills and passion at Pizzeria ROMA 1894.
“We had some ideas, and I said ‘Well I’ll do it as long as it’s quality, I don’t want to be the same as everyone else…” Raymond said. “We prepare everything from scratch, or by hand, we don’t buy cans, everything, even dips and sauces are made fresh, it’s all done as if we were in the culinary world.”
Fresh means quality, and from the homemade sausages, Raymond’s award winning wild mushroom soup, and the popular meatball and veal sandwiches, to the arancini’s, fresh risotto and his custom made amaretto flavoured chocolate cannoli’s, it’s all made fresh, in-house.
“The cannoli’s, I make all the custard here, the shells come from Sicily, the ganache is made fresh, people love them and we can’t make them fast enough,” he said, adding he loves to create a unique dish or dessert fusing together different ingredients that he knows will pair well together.
“I base everything on my 46 years of experience, I have a lot of books, I always read, I see what the trends are but I don’t like to copy, I like to twist things up a little,” he said. “I actually have a lot of fun with what I do because it’s like art and it’s what I’m passionate about and it keeps me young.”
And he’s equally responsible for their success, so much so that there will be a second location of Pizzeria ROMA 1894 opening up on Paris Street in the New Year.
If you have any questions about their menu, or want to try their award-winning pizza, call 1-705-222-ROMA (7662) or visit their Facebook page for all the latest news.