PEMBROKE, ONT. – Joe Ward has been perfecting his pizza art for decades.
Now Joe’s Family Pizzeria in Pembroke, Ontario. is recognized outside the Ottawa Valley.
“In fact, we won the second best pizza place in Canada by Canadian Pizza Magazine, so shout out to them, we appreciate it,” said Ward, president and CEO of the local pizza place. The restaurant received this award in May, but that’s only the end of the line.
This month, Joe’s was named for Canada’s Best Takeout Pizza Kit by Canadian Pizza Magazine.
“There are other products and we created our own, and this is our product,” says Natacha, Ward’s wife, owner of Joe’s Family Pizzeria. “It’s something that we put our heart and soul into.”
The restaurant has been making the pizza kits for years, but popularity took off during the pandemic, with the kits now available in 30 different grocery stores in eastern Ontario and Quebec.
“A lot of pizza kit products, you have to make your own dough,” says Joe. “That, the dough is ready to go. You can throw it in the air and stretch it out and have fun with the kids. Especially during the pandemic, it was a family experience.”
The owners say there’s no secret to the ingredients behind the award-winning pizza kits, just the homemade dough, sauce, cheese, and pepperoni. They say it’s the love and the extra care that makes the difference.
“I like to say it starts from the heart. It’s the service, it’s the family, it’s the house, and it starts from there, ”says Natacha. “Then of course it must be the dough and a lot of cheese and everything.”
“Everyone loves pizza, everyone locally loves pizza, but now we can share that love with people outside of Pembroke and Petawawa,” adds Joe.
In addition to the aforementioned accolades, Joe’s also boasts of having the best pizza in the whole valley.
With the best pizza place named by Canadian Pizza Magazine located in Slave Lake, AB, Ward says they can confidently say that makes this the best pizza around.
Ward assigns the personal touch that is always available to those who stop by the restaurant to pick up their order.
“People want to know the people who cook their food, they want to know the owners,” says the longtime pizza chef. “They don’t want to come in and hear ‘6-43!’. They want to chat with you; they don’t want to just hear an order number.”
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