Restaurant Review: Capital Pizza

CAPITAL PIZZA STEAK HOUSE & LOUNGE

7640 144th Avenue | capitalpizza.ca Instagram: @capitalpizzalondondale

Co-Diners: The E.A.T Crew

We've been over this: Edmonton is a secret (not so secret?) pizza prodigy city. I only use the word "secret" because I feel that Edmonton is not widely recognized as a pizza city. But let's review the facts! Major Canadian pizza chain Boston Pizza began here in 1965 (they also have locations in USA and Mexico) and then there's the locally beloved Royal Pizza that opened in 1969 (now with locations all around Alberta and Saskatchewan). Famoso Neapolitan Pizzeria (now a country-wide chain) began in this city in 2007. You might not immediately think of pizza and Edmonton as a "thing" but there's a bit of a pizza chain legacy going on here. Capital Pizza is a part of this conversation, opening their location in the Kilkenny area in 1976. They specialize in a specific type of pizza that is very recognizable across the prairies - stacked high with meats and loaded with cheese. The food that people wanted to eat in the 60s and 70s! And let's face it, we still want it today. EDify Magazine named Capital Pizza as Best Pizza 2025 and it was time for me to venture to the north end to try it for myself! Entering the building on a Saturday evening, they have an expansive space with a full-scale dining room on one side and a lounge area hidden behind a closed door on the other. This setup is familiar because Boston Pizza used to do this as well. It seems to have fallen out of fashion but you can understand the benefit of operating a family restaurant on one side and a drinking establishment (with VLTs) on the other. In fact, I don't even think that you could order alcohol on the restaurant side because it was no where to be seen on the menu. Glancing around the room, it appeared to me that the restaurant had been re-modeled in the 90s and not touched since that time. Strong clues are the orangey wood sideboards and faux rock tiles. There are archways around the space and the exact same tchotchkes that your mom used to collect. It's a pretty fun time machine back into an era that I remember well. The clientele is largely silver-haired (your mom) and the servers are matter-of-fact but friendly. The vibe is kinda exactly what you want from a place like this - you can already taste the food in your imagination. With the absence of anything boozy on the menu I opted for a simple Soft Drink ($4.25) which only comes in large size. You can also take advantage of one free refill!

ONE refill on soft drinks FREE.

Capital Pizza carries Pepsi products so I had a Pepsi. It's been a long, long time since I sipped on a fridge cigarette but damn does it go well with pizza. The food menu is huge and extends far past pizza. They hit all of the Alberta favourites; from donairs to burgers to steaks. But also "Mexican Style?" There's a Capital Submarine that sounds pretty iconic and I would probably order that next time. There are a lot of similarities to the menu at Coliseum Steak & Pizza which also opened in 1976 (steak and spaghetti, anyone?). Coincidence? I was in the mood for a salad and Moe's Salad initially caught my eye because if it was named after a person it's probably special somehow. Who's Moe? So many unanswered questions. However, in the end I went with the classic Caesar Salad ($21.00) which accompanies pizza well.

Served with garlic toast.

This large salad was the perfect size to feed everyone at the table and our server was sure to make mention that the bacon bits used are real. I thought that this caesar was actually really solid. I loved the tangy-creamy-garlicky dressing that coated each piece of lettuce throughout. The bacon bits were indeed real and were abundantly dispersed. The crunchy croutons added texture. Plus I'm never upset about a garlic toast moment. Honestly, this is one of the better classic pizza joint caesar salads that you'll find. Steak is a highlight on the menu but I was at Capital for the pizza. The menu offers at least 28 different topping combinations but on this inaugural visit there was only one correct option: the Capital Special ($36.00 for medium size) listed right at the top of the page. Interestingly, it does not appear that building your own pizza is an option as the menu states "no substitutes". All of the pizzas are prepared with mozzarella cheese and their tasty tomato sauce.

Ham, mushrooms, pepperoni, shrimp, salami, green peppers, onions & olives.

The pizza did take some time to arrive and by the time that it did I was ravenous. It looked exactly as a prairie-style pizza should; a golden crust, stacked high with toppings, and loaded with cheese. I liked the crust on this pizza a lot. It was almost biscuit-like in texture and the way that the cheese caramelized around the edges was delicious. The crust also held up incredibly well to the absolute mountain of ingredients! There's a whole lot going on with this pie and it may not be for everyone. I loved the thick stack of ham, pepperoni, and salami. Salami is such an underrated pizza topping and I want more of it. The shrimp is likely the most divisive topping but I urge you to give it a chance. It adds a sweet seafoody taste that I am not opposed to in the slightest. As an olive fan, I can safely say that the sheer coverage of olives was unparalleled. I consider this the "correct amount" of olives. The pizza was sooo cheesy! It's a huge party of a pizza with a lot of different flavours and I could see that someone might want to choose something a bit more simple and classic but this pizza is the house special for a reason.

Lastly, I was interested in dessert however I knew that these would not be housemade. This is the kind of restaurant that orders those ready-made cakes from a supplier and that's fine. The Cookies 'n Cream Cake ($9.95) was the most enticing option to me.

Two chewy brownie layers with cream cheese and broken OREO cookies. Topped with a center mound of milk chocolate ganache, covered with cookie mousse, and edged with chocolate fudge. To finish, it's sprinkled with more OREO and chocolate drizzle.

I mean, for a chocolatey wedge of cake it was pretty good. What's not to love? Brownie-style cake, OREO throughout, various components of cream cheese, ganache, mousse, and fudge. I liked all of the different parts to this cake and found that it was nothing short of a good time. There's a time and a place for this dessert and this moment was both.

I can see how Capital Pizza has become an Edmonton institution for the past fifty years. That's a long time to remain a trusted and reliable standby. It's the kind of fixture that feels good to visit, kind of like having dinner at your parents' house. You know exactly what to expect and they'll always welcome you back.