Da Bocciana Pizzeria

Da Bocciana Pizzeria off the Okaido arcade in central Matsuyama has a reputation as a cut above the rest, and at popular eating times, you might have to wait a long a time for a seat. So one Sunday, I employed tactical cunning and turned up at 11:30. I was seated immediately, although the seat I was offered at the counter had so little table space that I protested and moved to a seat with a few more inches of horizontal space.

The menu comes in several volumes, with about thirty varieties of pizza alone, and a wide choice of pasta. I chose the pizza lunch for 1,280 yen with a plate of starters, a choice of eleven different pizzas, and a drink of your choice. For the pizza I picked the margherita alla romana, which is topped with tomato sauce, mozzarella, oil, anchovy, cheese, and basil.

The starter arrived promptly. It comprised a green salad, various marinated vegetables, a slice of omelette and some potato salad, all of which were OK, but not special.

There was a rather long interval between the arrival of the starter and the pizza, and unfortunately, the counter afforded a good view of the kitchen where I could see a couple of chaps working like devils to prepare some pasta dishes. Behind me was the pizza oven, where a young man was working very slowly at making some pizzas. I was also entertained by the spectacle of the waitress talking constantly into her wireless mic with all the busyness of an air traffic controller. When other customers entered, she asked them if they wanted smoking or non-smoking, a choice which she hadn’t offered me. I began to suspect that by default I was in smoking, which was later confirmed to my considerable discomfort. None of this activity did anything to put me at my ease.

When the pizza finally arrived, I was dismayed to find that the topping occupied a small area in the middle. Da Bocciana Pizzeria claims that its pizzas have received some seal of authenticity from Italy, specifically the Pizza World Cup 2011. I tried to pick up a slice to convey to my mouth, but it was so floppy that I had to saw each slice in half, and roll the inside half up with a fork. To my mind, this indicates a defective pizza. Munching the large ‘bones’ with no topping on them also grew tiresome.

The espresso that arrived at the end was very good, but by then I was quite tired of Da Bocciana Pizzeria and keen to leave. The interior is very pizzeria-y with lots of bottles and Italian posters, but I’ve had far better pizza and service at less pretentious places in Matsuyama.

Name in Japanese
ダ・ボッチャーノ — Da Bocciana