Bill Nyguen cooks at Boconncini Pizza on Nov. 3, 2017.
Bill Nyguen cooks at Boconncini Pizza on Nov. 3, 2017.
Bill Nyguen cooks at Boconncini Pizza on Nov. 3, 2017.
Bill Nyguen cooks at Boconncini Pizza on Nov. 3, 2017.
Bill Nyguen cooks at Boconncini Pizza on Nov. 3, 2017.
Bill Nyguen cooks at Boconncini Pizza on Nov. 3, 2017.
Bill Nyguen cooks at Boconncini Pizza on Nov. 3, 2017.
Bill Nyguen cooks at Boconncini Pizza on Nov. 3, 2017.
by Tait McGregor
Local pizzeria, Bocconcini Pizza, is a favourite amongst Ryerson students and Toronto locals thanks to its authentic atmosphere and personal customer experience.
Owners Bill and Huyen Nguyen opened their Gerrard Street East pizzeria in 2014 after owning a pizza chain franchise for years prior.
Taking their knowledge of the city’s pizza demand, they spent months cultivating a menu and ambiance that reflects the Torontonian taste.
“When you’re a franchise, everything is supplied to you, so we had to start from scratch. We were experimenting from one recipe to the other. We had some idea from our franchise but we just tried to perfect it,” said Huyen Nguyen.
Bocconcini Pizza uses fresh ingredients and pays particular attention to each customer’s order—a charm that the owners say draws the audience back and puts them ahead of their larger competitors.
“We listen to the customer. Every time they come in for food and when they don’t like it, we try to make it better,” Nguyen said.
With chains likes Pizza Pizza just around the corner, Nguyen believes it is important for their pizzeria to provide an experience that is tailored to their customers.
When the store went through a renovation in 2015, the owners enlisted the help of a Ryerson student to design their interior with students in mind.
“The designer who did this place, she said she wanted to make the students feel comfortable when they’re sitting here doing their homework,” said Nyguen, who is also a Ryerson finance alumni.
Regardless of the competition within blocks of their pizzeria, the Nyguyens are certain that their customers are going nowhere thanks to their local dining experience trumps that of any pizza chain.
Bocconcini Pizza: 96 Gerrard St E, Toronto, ON M5B 1G7
DAMN.