Sometimes a neighbourhood spot comes along that's so good, we're hesitant to share the address. But we just can't keep Via Tevere to ourselves.

This quaint east side restaurant is Neapolitan pizza heaven, from the top-notch flour to the proper wood-burning stove, which takes centre stage. (And it should - this blue-tiled wonder heats to 900 degrees and churns out perfectly-cooked pizzas in 90 seconds.) The menu is tight, but that doesn't make choosing a dish any easier. The antipasto misto for two ($16) was overflowing with deliciously salted cured meat, fresh Italian cheese, pickled veggies and olives. Choose from the daily pasta (on our night, a hearty smoked salmon penne, $14) or go for the main event, a pizza. The Capricciosa (tomato, fior di latte, prosciutto cotto, salami, artichokes mushrooms and olives, $18) was  crispy around the edges, soft and easy to cut in the middle, and insanely delicious to the last bite.

So now the secret's out. Why should food bloggers have all the fun? —Maria Tallarico

1190 Victoria Dr., Vancouver, 604-336-1803, www.viateverepizzeria.com

It’s not bad from the freezer or the phone book but nothing’s better than pizza made the way it was supposed to be.

Famoso Pizza, which crafts its pies according to the standards set by the Associazone Verace Pizza Napoletana, has just opened up across the street from Commercial Drive’s other pizza mecca: Marcello’s. We tried the funghi tartufo topped with roasted mushrooms, reggiano parmesan and truffle oil ($14.50) and sipped a classic Italian soda made of sparkling water and peach syrup ($2.50). Come summer, you’ll find us savouring a scoop of artisan-style salted caramel gelato ($3.50) on the sunny patio. Sure beats delivery. —Kelsey Dundon

Famoso Pizza, 1380 Commercial Dr., Vancouver, 604-251-2292, www.famoso.ca

Well, it’s official: 2011 is the year of the pizza, and there is another charming new addition to our city’s pizza scene.

Settled on Main Street in the booming Strathcona neighborhood, Pizzeria Farina is a tiny gem no bigger than your favourite hole-in-the-wall. Its stark white brick interior is warmed with wood tables and shelves filled with canned anchovies and bottles of olive oil. On their large paper scroll menu: seven outstanding thin- crust pizzas, including the Margherita ($12)—the holy grail of all pizzas—and the delicious sopressatta ham topped Calabrese ($14). Extra love for the pie? Top it all off with some delicious anchovies ($2). —Anya Georgijevic

Open Wednesday to Sunday, 5pm until the dough runs out. Pizzeria Farina, 915 Main St., Vancouver, 604-681-9334, www.pizzeriafarina.com

Vancouverites have been waiting a long time for a casual Italian restaurant like this: Five reasons to book at The BiBo.

1. Lively owners Lorenzo and Andrea (a former shipping magnate and actor/lawyer, respectively) who give the dining room lots of personality.

2. Wood-fired pizza with simple ingredients (cooked expertly by a young Neapolitan chef) that arrives hot, chewy and uncut at the table

3. Bottles, not glasses, of red wine being heartily consumed (try the 2006 Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, just $38) by multi-generational families.

4. Classic Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni films (La Dolce Vita, 8 1/2) flickering on the flatscreen.

5. Top-quality Italian ingredients that come with the D.O.P. distinction (translation: Protected Destination of Origin), like the melt-in-your mouth Burrata cheese.

Now that's what we call an Italian job. —SB

The BiBo, 1835 W. Fourth Ave., Vancouver, 604-568-617, www.thebibo.com

Both you and your mate are having a mad day, so sneak out of the office early and rendezvous at Ferguson Point. Not to make out, but to chow down.

Take a Strait-view patio seat at The Teahouse and treat each other to Pizza in the Park, where ten dollars gets you a generous personal-sized pizza and a cold pint of Stanley Park 1897 Amber. Choose from Smoked Salmon Flatbread topped with crème fraîche, capers and fresh arugula (our fave), Peperonata with spicy Italian sausage and olives, or Margherita made with basil from the resto’s own herb patch.

In between chugs and chews, you can also sneak in a smooch or two.

Available weekdays 3 p.m.-5 p.m. until late September at The Teahouse, Ferguson Point, Stanley Park Dr., Vancouver, 604-669-3281, www.vancouverdine.com

To justify splurging on those extremely high Louboutins, you wear them everywhere. But when your pals want to go for pizza, you feel a little too Posh.

No need to de-Loub for Charlie’s. The new Yaletown resto-lounge serves up gourmet slices in a slick setting. Seat your posse at the long communal table with deliberately mismatched chairs and order three 14-inch pizzas to share: the short rib topped with horseradish cream, smoked salmon sprinkled with goat cheese, and duck drizzled with truffle oil (all $25).

Major slices and major shoes—that’s amore.

Charlie's, 1265 Hamilton St., Vancouver, 604-568-6685, www.charlielovespizza.com

Get thee to Nook!

That is, if fresh, savoury Italian fare and small, stylish dining rooms leave you all shook up.

Dressed in red, white and wood, the 30-seat spot at the north end of Denman keeps its menu simple and gets it right with antipastos like olives ($4) and handmade meatballs ($6), thin crust pizzas topped with the likes of Yukon gold potatoes and rosemary or Italian sausage and sweet pepper ($14), and pastas done puttanesca or bolognese ($14).

Pair your plate with a cold glass of Prosecco and no nook or cranny of your own will be left unquenched.

Nook, 781 Denman St., Vancouver, 604-568-4554.

We headed to the new location of Sciue Italian bakery in Yaletown, where the cobblestone courtyard seating resembles a piazza and the brown and orange ’70s rec room décor has you thinking Brady Bunch revival.

But the fare is far from retro: Order a house-made Italian doughnut (soft and not too sweet) to share, then move on to fresh, sunny brunches served on Italian buns, like the proscuitto cotto benny (with melon and crispy Yukon gold potato wedges, $10.95) or the scrambled eggs and Italian sausage on bruscetta ($8.95).

Grab a banquette and catch a cooking show on Italian satellite TV, listen to the wake-me-up Italian soundtrack, or better yet, catch up on the vagaries of everyone’s Friday night. This is a story, about a lovely lady….

Sciue Yaletown, 126 Davie St, 604-689-7263, www.sciue.ca