Pizza Nova Take Out Ltd., doing business as Pizza Nova, is a Canadian franchise chain of

pizza Pizza is an Italian cuisine, Italian, specifically Neapolitan cuisine, Neapolitan, dish typically consisting of a flat base of Leavening agent, leavened wheat-based dough topped with tomato, cheese, and other ingredients, baked at a high t ...

restaurants headquartered in

Scarborough, Ontario Scarborough (; 2021 Canadian census, 2021 Census 629,941) is a district of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is situated in the eastern part of the City of Toronto. Its borders are Victoria Park Avenue to the west, Steeles Avenue (Toronto), Steele ...

. The chain was founded on May 12, 1963, by a family of Italian immigrants. The first restaurant was located in the eastern

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

suburb of

, on Kennedy Road near Lawrence Avenue, which currently operates under the name Nova Ristorante. There are more than 150 locations in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. There is a knockoff Pizza Nova in

Varadero, Cuba Varadero (), also referred to as ''Playa Azul'' (Blue Beach), is a resort town in the province of Matanzas, Cuba, and one of the largest resort areas in the Caribbean. Varadero Beach is rated one of the world's best beaches in TripAdvisor's Travel ...

that uses phased out signage.

History

The chain was founded by a young family of Italian immigrants — consisting of Sam Primucci, and his brothers Mike, Vince, and Joe — originating from

Palazzo San Gervasio Palazzo San Gervasio ( Lucano: ) is a small agricultural town and ''comune'' in the province of Potenza, in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata. It is bounded by the comuni (Municipalities) of Acerenza, Banzi, Forenza, Genzano di Luc ...

Basilicata Basilicata (, ; ), also known by its ancient name Lucania (, , ), is an administrative region in Southern Italy, bordering on Campania to the west, Apulia to the north and east, and Calabria to the south. It has two coastlines: a 30-kilometr ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. Their first location opened on May 12, 1963, at the corner of

Lawrence Avenue East Lawrence Avenue is a major east–west thoroughfare in Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is divided into east and west portions (Lawrence Avenue East and Lawrence Avenue West) by Yonge Street, the dividing line of east–west streets in Toront ...

, just west of Kennedy Road. Following many years of success in both their delivery and walk-in services, the restaurant opened their first franchised store in 1969. Upon celebrating the company's 50th anniversary, the pizza chain also announced their partnership with the

Toronto Blue Jays The Toronto Blue Jays are a Canadian professional baseball team based in Toronto. The Blue Jays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Since 1989, the team has p ...

and the

Rogers Centre Rogers Centre (originally SkyDome) is a retractable roof stadium in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated at the base of the CN Tower near the northern shore of Lake Ontario. Opened in 1989 on the former Railway Lands, it is home to t ...

as their official pizza supplier, starting in January 2014, and continuing for a three-year agreement. In 2013, Pizza Nova was featured on the Canadian version of the show ''

Undercover Boss ''Undercover Boss'' is a reality television series franchise created by Stephen Lambert and produced in many countries. It originated in 2009 on the British Channel 4. The show’s format features the experiences of senior executives working u ...

'', in the ninth episode of season three, titled "Pizza Nova."

Jingle

In 1985, jingle writer

Syd Kessler Syd Kessler (1949–2021) was a Canadian businessperson and writer. Career In 1970-71, Hatus/Hall–the producers of the legendary game show ''Let's Make a Deal'' – hired him to develop a game show ('' The Crosswits'') styled after a crosswor ...

, advertising agency Montana Steele, and Pizza Nova President Sam Primucci produced an advertisement featuring the singing of the phone number and vocalising the quadruple zero as "4-3-9, Oh-Oh Oh-Oh Pizza Nova!" Sung by Canadian musician

Zappacosta Alfredo Peter "Alfie" Zappacosta (born July 5, 1953), also known by just his surname, is an Italian-born Canadian musician. Career Zappacosta's first band was Surrender, a five-piece group that recorded three albums in the late 1970s and earl ...

, edits of the original can still be heard on Ontario radio and TV today, with new voiceover by company President Domenic Primucci, son of founder Sam Primucci.

Products

Some of Pizza Nova's signature products include:

Signature pizzas

*Banquet Cheddar *Calabrese *Deluxe *Napoletana *Primavera *Pizza Pollo *Porco Pazzo *Roasted Parma *Meat Supreme *Pepperoni *The All-Star *Quattro Stagioni *Mediterranean *Portabellissimo *Super Gourmet *Super Hawaiian *Veggie *Cheddar Supreme

Pesto pizzas

*Chicken Florentine *Tuscan Pesto

White pizzas

*Bruschetta Pizza *Basilcata *California *Chicken Alla Bianca *Greek Bruschetta *Il Giardino *Porchetta and Hot Peppers *Spicy Porchetta *Nonna's favourite The beverages that Pizza Nova sells are Coca-Cola products. Pizza Nova has also started to cater to vegans as it offers dairy-free cheese, and as of 2021, plant based pepperoni.

References

External links

Official website
{{Pizza chains Pizza chains of Canada Regional restaurant chains in Canada Companies based in Scarborough, Ontario Restaurants in Toronto Pizza franchises