Pizza Banfi Ltd

Pizza Banfi, named for famous Italian actor Lino Banfi, is famous in Forest Hill Village. The cozy down-home restaurant, owned by Giovanni Turano — known to all as Nino — has been a neighbourhood staple since 1988, and almost always has a line-up snaking out the door.

The popularity of this place is unparalleled in the area, evidenced by the number of guests sipping wine and nibbling on bruschetta as they wait for a table. “We don’t accept reservations but that doesn’t turn our customers away. On weekends, we serve between 150 and 200 people a day,” Nino says.

Why so packed?

It’s almost impossible to resist Pizza Banfi’s signature gourmet thin crust pizza that emerges from the open kitchen crispy and hot and even has customers rushing in for takeout. For those who stay to enjoy the food, there are comfortable cushioned chairs, stone tables and custom-made fresco paintings on the walls. Nino’s warm personality, as he moves through the crowd greeting customers by name, is also a big draw.