Nadia A.

Visited on a Saturday close to 5pm. This is my first time having wood oven pizza so I can't compare it to any other. I will say I did enjoy it and the topping tasted friesh. I ordered mine to go and the staff offered me water while I waited that was nice of them.

Ashley G.

After reminiscing about the lovely thin crust margherita pizza's that I so enjoyed while in Paris last year I was excited to get my hands on a margherita pizza in Ottawa and finally check out Tennessy Willems. This restaurant definitely has that European flare, from the cozy-ness of the restaurant itself, to the thin crust pizzas, and interesting toppings such as boar and duck (btw, why are restaurants still serving duck?). Our group of four made reservations for 6:30, and I am SO glad that we did because it was a packed house, and unfortunately they turned some groups away. FYI, there is seating at the bar. We got a nice booth table which was very accommodating for our group of four. This restaurant can get pretty loud, and noisy, which can be irritating when trying to have a conversation, so be prepared to yell! None the less, we had a great time! We all ordered the margherita pizza's and when it arrived to the table, it looked just as good as the pizzas in Paris, France and the taste was very similar. Loved the fresh basil leaves, and the bubbly cheese. The chili oil was a fantastic addition to spice up the pizza. The crust was nice and pretty light, a bit hard to cut, but I am not sure if it is because I lack basic knife skills, the knife was dull, or if it was the crust? Almost everyone who dined in left with a take out box. I ended up taking a slice home, and noticed the delicious charcoal flavor on the crust after it cooled down. I noticed just as yelper Barry. Z. noted in his review, that the wait staff do box up the pizzas at the bar, which I thought would have bugged me more, but it didn't bug me as much because they used utensils to place the pizza in their take out box and not physically touch it with their hands. But, I do agree, this should be done in the kitchen and not behind a bar, especially where clients are eating (who knows what can end up on your pizza in the process). Service was pretty quick, there were two waiters working the bar and the restaurant, and they did a pretty good job handling the rush. But, because it was so busy, they were not very sociable with the tables, and left no wow factor regarding the service. Lastly, going back to the atmosphere, the restaurant was boiling hot in there, maybe it was from the wood burning oven, and all the clients packed in one little dinning area?...They do have ceiling fans, but that did not seem to help. Definitely a must try!

Jennifer P.

I've been meaning to go to Tennessy Willems ever since they opened, like what 5 years ago? Haha. Well, I finally did it! Tonight some Yelp friends and I got together here and ate some 'za. It was pretty good. The pizzas here are all one size. They are bigger than most places that sell personal size pizzas (e.g. the Grand, Anthony's, and Fiazza). I finished three-quarters of a pizza. The pizzas are thin crust and wood oven baked here, but they are not Neapolitan-style. I had the Emdale ($15) which had roasted red peppers, mushrooms and Genoa salami (you can chose mild or spicy - I choose spicy - it wasn't too spicy, just a bit of a kick). On the most part, I liked my pizza. The amount of toppings was generous, there was a good amount of cheese and it wasn't overly saucy. My one compliant was that I found the salami somewhat gamy. However, this may just be personal preference, because I brought my leftover 1/4 of a pizza home and my husband ate it and loved it (but he likes gamy meats). The crust was nice and thin, but because it was so thin, the weight and moisture from the toppings made it somewhat limp, so it was difficult to hold a slice in your hand and eat it. Amy B. let me try some of her pizza (thanks Amy!), and it was really good - better than mine. I should have ordered that pizza. She had the Feature Pizza (which I guess changes daily? or at least once in a while). It was an olive oil base (no tomato sauce) with goat cheese, shrimps, figs and spinach. I think it was $20. I've never had figs on a pizza before, but I think I'm going to be trying this at home now. They were so soft and slightly sweet. So delicious. The shrimp were big and succulent. The goat cheese was creamy. The flavours blended well together. I really think they should consider putting this pizza on their permanent menu. Service was excellent. I had made reservations for 10 (the person on the phone was very pleasant btw). By the time I arrived, only 7 of us were going to make it, so I let the staff know, and they were very appreciative of that. They were able to remove one of our tables (since they put several tables together) and offer it to someone else. We ended up being only a party of 6 but were taking up 8 spots. They never pressured us to give up another table and squeeze in, but as the restaurant was filling up, we offered up another one of our tables and the staff were so grateful about it. The staff were always so nice and courteous. It's not a big place. There is some seating outdoors (I think just 1 small round table). Like most places in Wellington West, there is no parking lot, so street parking only. If you like thin crust pizza, give Tennessy Willems a try!

Norm D.

Second time here Much better experience The Greek pizza was very good We had reservations so we were seated as soon as we arrived Although it was packed we had good and efficient service Staff was friendly and patient Now that we are familiar with the routine we know what to expect when we return Very good place to enjoy pizza Wife had spaghetti bolognese and raved about it So now we must come back

Jeff F.

Place was practically empty at 445p (1 table) as I would expect. Hostess looked confused and said something like "let me see what's available!". Looked like a lot to me...... then said I can put you there but someone has it for 6pm.... I hope it won't take 75 minutes to eat a pizza... questionable start to this eating adventure. I guess if coming later on a Saturday, you better make reservations or hostess may have a brain freeze. It is rather small, not sure if tables in back. Now on to the main prize their pizza. Be forewarned they have set pizzas on the menu and IF you order a custom, another brain freeze (hostess was also bartender and waitress) "well you can but "THEY" charge $4 per meat and $2 per veggie. " Ok, so I splurge and order custom, since I'm in Canada and enjoying a strong exchange rate, not sure why they discourage making pizzas CUSTOMERS, just like another place in Baltimore, MD that does this same non-sense. It's like they have fabulous creations and a custom pie is like calling the chefs baby ugly. I've been eating pizza long enough I don't need help with designing MY perfect pie. Pizza here, now for the good stuff to write.... I hope. Well The pizza crust was classic Neapolitan crust, thin but cook perfectly with a slight crunch and char, best in a loooooooong time. Ordered cheese pizza with sausage, roasted peppers, and mushrooms. Perfect amount of toppings, not too much that it overpowers the pizza and makes crust soggy- they have it down pat for solid crust. I'm happy to report the " non-sense" was worth it. Customers started rolling in and had reservations. You have been warned...Overall, a top 10 pizzeria for me, if not top 5. Will be back again.......with a reservation.

Drew K.

Pizza is better than good but I find it's a bit inconsistent. Sometimes it's fantastic but other times it's just good. I like the Elmdale and the basic pizzas with meat and veg. The fancy pizzas are good but VERY rich and I'm usually only good for one slice, while the former pizzas I can crush a whole plate. The spicy oil is the bomb. Salads are pretty weak and every time I ask them to pour me a glass of their house red, they should just pour it down the sink cuz it usually sucks. Still one of Ottawa's better artisan pizza joints. Small place so make rezzers.

Tina T.

The pizza was good, but minimal topping. Ordered the house salad; it was very plain, would never order it again.

Karim L.

Great pizza, must try :) casual environment, great service. Small place with dimmed light that makes it cozy

Hak T.

When you're coming here you're stepping out of the normal realm of what should be on a pizza. At least for me I was coming here to try the pizzza. This little place is on the corner of Wellington St and Melrose Ave in the heart of Mechanicsville. The restaurant itself is small with limited tables due to the physical size of the restaurant. Although I mention pizza they do serve other things on the menu so they aren't just serving pizza alone. Entering we were greeted by a nice smile and hello from staff. We were quickly seated due to it not being that busy. For reference we arrived around 11:30AM on a Wednesday. We came for the pizza as someone had mentioned to us it was good. It also helped that we were here with gift cards in pocket. Looking at the menu choices for Pizza you will see that they are not your normal pizza toppings. Choices include Duck, and Wild Boar. In fact I didn't even know what some of the ingredients were because of the fancy wording LOL. I decided on the one with Spicy Salami (the exact name escapes me right now) while my wife decided on the one with Duck. The food came out relatively quick. What you'll find with the pizza is that the crust and dough is super thin. I tried many times to eat it with hand but ended up resorting to my knife and fork. My salami had a nice spicy kick to it. The pizza is topped similar to how Pizza Pizza does theres. Size wise you'll see from my picture the pizza is cut into 4 large slices. Overall the pizza I selected was delicious and filling. I am not a big fan of Duck but from my wife she enjoyed hers as well. As far as service our server was great. She took initiative to offer a top up of coffee without prompting and made sure that we got our cups filled with water as soon as we sat down. Parking will be street parking. Melrose Ave would be your second best bet if you can't get parking along Wellington St close by. Keep in mind Melrose is a one way heading north so you'll only be able to access Melrose from Gladstone Ave. If someone is coming here for the pizza they are adventurous and sick of the "classic" pizza and wants something absolutely different from the norm with regards to pizzas then YES come here and do so often cause this is a place for you! I'll be back but I think next time I'll want to try something other then the pizza. Rating has me torn this one's a toughy... although 4 stars I really want it to be 3 1/2 simply because I'm not sure just yet that it was that great of a place that if I was looking for a place to eat that I'd include it as a consideration to eat at.

Michelle I.

Definitely worth going back to try everything on the menu. Was there with my daughter on March 19th and we were able to get a table. The place is very small with only about a 15 or so tables. Best to make a reservation!! They do NOT have a full bar, but carry wines and beers so find something that goes with pizza. TW makes their own very thin crust pizza with a plethora of great toppings. The place smells wonderful with the wood fired oven constantly going churning out mouth watering delights. I had the special pizza of the day which was grape tomatoes, green olives, double smoked bacon (YUM) and Monterey Jack cheese. The pizza did NOT have a tomato base and was incredibly yummy. It was definitely hand made in a rustic kind of oval, sort of round. It was cut into four pieces which was more than enough for me to share with my daughter and still take some home. My daughter had the spaghetti Bolognese with a really nice meat sauce. You can tell from the smell, the colour, and definitely the taste, that the sauce is worked on and made fresh. We started off with the cheese board appetizer. So delightful. Freshly made sourdough bread with a great chutney - sweet and spicy/tangy, along with their own spiced candied almonds (I could taste the star anise and the cardamom). The three cheeses were incredible. A two year old aged cheddar (could have been a 10 + year old cheddar for my liking) which was good, a triple cream (come here heart attack) brie from Quebec (oh so sinful) and I think that the last one was a cross between aged cheddar and parmesan. It was hard and tangy and really flavourful. Water is served in bottles and as the sun went down, the tables were adorned with candles in a little bucket. So romantic (not with my daughter)! LOL We will DEFINTELY be returning as a family (the hubster and both daughters). They have a wide variety of pastas and pizzas with many vegetarian options. While there are desserts, we didn't try any but opted to wait until we come back as a family to taste test every one of them. Parking is only on the street and it's sometimes hard to get, so get there earlier.

Christine L.

My favourite pizza in Ottawa. Great selection of toppings on a thin but soft and chewy crust. The Elmdale, the Chorizo and the Pulled Pork are my favourite. I found the Wild Boar a bit bland. We tried the Mac n Cheese this last time and it is also a winner.