Mont Calzone Pizza & Pasta

Far East Square has a spankingly new, reasonably priced pizzeria – a 30-seater venue with marble tabletops, spiffy leather dining chairs and a cosy, laid-back atmosphere with an open kitchen at the rear. At this simple pizzeria, thin-crust pizzas are made to order in two sizes: medium (eight-inch $12.90) and large (12-inch $15.90). The home-made dough could use a little salt, but that’s a small quibble. Try the spicy salami with thin pepperoni and red chilli for a little zing. And if you want to shake things up, ask for your pizza to be made into an impressive puffy calzone. In short, this is a filled pizza folded in half to resemble a half-moon – although this does take an extra 15 minutes to prepare. The margherita calzone, with fresh spinach leaves and a side of home-made tomato sauce for dipping, is excellent and defi - nitely worth the wait. The mozzarella and ricotta cheese combined with the spinach and crispy dough is simple yet effective. Noodle lovers, nine pastas ($10.90-$12.90) are available with a choice of penne or spaghetti. There’s also lasagne or eggplant parmesan for those hungrier bellies, both reasonably priced at $11.90.

But Mont Calzone is way more than just a pizza joint. The fried calamari ($8.90) is a winner, with the light batter greaseless and crispy. And do ask for lemon wedges – it comes without – as the acidity further enhances the flavour of the squid. Otherwise, slather on home-made marinara sauce that comes with your order. Other options are prosciutto di parma and rock melon ($8.90), mussels baked with shredded mozzarella and garlic ($7.90), and antipasti misto ($7.90) comprising eggplant, zucchini, artichokes, capsicum, mushrooms, tomatoes and fresh mozzarella. Lighter eaters may want to try one of the nine salads ($6.90-$8.90), that range from a simple caprese (tomato and fresh buffalo mozzarella) to pesto chicken. Steer clear of the Caesar salad, though – it has too many anchovies and flavourless packaged croutons.

Overall, the service at Mont Calzone is very good. Staff are super-friendly and eager to please, and the retro tunes humming softly in the background add to the casual ambience. Even though the restaurant has only been open a short time, it’s rapidly drawing a crowd, with people booking tables in advance, happy to pop in for lunch or a quick dinner because the food is not too expensive and there’s plenty to choose from

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