I love Japan. Cars, electronic gadgets, food, design aesthetic, even their minimalist flag is the height of modern cool. When Beard Papa opened in Aberdeen Centre my family looked for almost any reason to stop by and grab a dozen, lines be damned. We were especially excited to hear that the same spirit of innovation that arguably improved french pastry would focus their eyes on pizza. Hell, ramen is just re-imagined (and improved) Chinese noodle soup. Strawberry Cones Pizza was the most anticipated opening of the season in my house, at least among the members under nine.
Last week we went. If your dream is a fast food spot with all the flavour of a Subway but with wacky Asian toppings too, you are in luck. In a word, it was terrible. It bore the same resemblance to pizza that I guess takeout sushi at Safeway does to the original. (Please note, previous sentence is 100% conjecture, I’ve never eaten Safeway sushi, it could be superb for all I know, it may make you wonder why Tojo wastes his time turning out inferior product, but I somehow doubt it.) Bland puffy crust, flavorless toppings and expensive to boot. We sampled the Mochi Balls Teriyaki Chicken and Onion, (about as good as it sounds, one question; Mochi, why?) American Meat Lovers, (again quite bad, all the charm of DiGiono from the freezer of your local supermarket.) And last the Potato Salad and Chorizo, (actually a hell of alot better than it sounds, the only one I’d voluntarily eat again not as part of a Fear Factor contest.) All pizzas come with little packets of nori to sprinkle on top, which actually do help the flavour. Not enough to actually make it good…but better.
If you pine for the days when you could get McPizza, complete with a matress Boboli crust, you will be in heaven. 
And Vancouver’s quest for great pizza continues…Why is this the town that pizza has foresaken?
