Novanta — Restaurant in Madison

My family wanted pizza for dinner as were we driving through Middleton on our way home after a vacation. My wife found this little spot, and we’re so glad we stopped.

The restaurant sits among a string of other little shops and restaurants. When we pulled into the parking lot, we saw a four tables outside with some people at a couple of them.

The inside isn’t large, with eleven tables throughout the narrow building. You order at the counter and then they give you a number. They bring the food out to you.

My wife had read they had different kinds of mozzarella. Sure enough, they had four varieties: a house-made mozzarella and a water buffalo mozzarella, both of which you could also get smoked.

The man at the cash register was super friendly and walked us through the cheeses and his recommendations.

The pizzas come in only one size, and they’re designed to be eaten by one person. So we each picked our pizza and then customized it a bit. And for the most part, additional toppings are just $1, a great deal for a place like this. Some specialty items were $3, though.

A sign in the restaurant explains that the pizzas are cooked for 90 seconds (Novanta means 90) at 900 degrees in their wood-fired oven, so it doesn’t take long to make them.

The crust on the pizza was perfect. It wasn’t too crisp but just had that right amount of chewiness. The tomato sauce was wonderful with just the right amount. I had tried the Regina pizza and asked that the water buffalo mozzarella be added to one side and then added their house mozzarella to the other half. Both were good, but I’d get the water buffalo cheese again for certain.

I don’t normally order a dessert, but we had been sitting a while just visiting, and I decided we should try their lemon sorbet. They serve it in the lemon peel itself. It was smooth without being overly tart. The four of us devoured it quickly.

I’d highly recommend this little restaurant. The food was great and the service was...

The Food: I had half Margherita / half Salsiccia pizza (mozzarella, roasted peppers, olives, mushrooms, basil); Unshackled red wine; and Chocolate truffle gelato.

Salsiccia was best and was very tasty. The sauce is wonderful! There was only one small piece of basil on each slice of the margherita half. But after I mentioned my disappointment to my server, I was told that next time I can order extra basil at no extra charge. (Another reviewer said she paid for extra basil and didn't get it. But her photo shows multiple pieces of basil on each slice, which means they provided what they consider extra basil.)

Other pizzas sound quite good, too. Lots of unique options. I've had better Neapolitan pizza, but this was very good and a good value.

The gelato was delicious and a relatively light dessert.

The wine was recommended by wait staff and was a wonderful complement to my pizza. Nice and slightly peppery in taste.

Service: You order at the counter; you're given a number for your table; and the food is brought to you. This is reflected in the price, which is very reasonable for the quality of food. My pizza was served very quickly, which would make this a great place for lunch on a workday.

Atmosphere: It's a bustling place, especially for a Monday night. This is not a fine dining experience--more like you'd find in a solid sandwich shop. The kitchen is very open style and quite visible from the seating area. The staff have a very friendly, casual vibe but are very diligent.

If you're looking for a relaxing dinner, this is not the place. But if you want something out of the ordinary served quickly that won't exhaust your expense account, it's just the place for a traveling...

I love this place. This is my favorite pizza.

I usually order the Novanta (off menu) which has a seasoned crust topped with arugula and cherry tomatoes and a large, fresh, house-made mozzarella ball filles with a softer, creamy mozzarella all of which is drizzled with balsamic vinaigrette. It's definitely not a "normal" pizza by any means, and I love it that way. It's fresh and I can eat the whole thing without feeling bad (ever, except maybe for the price ~$11 or more if I add smoked buffalo mozzarella).

I also strongly recommend the chocolate truffle gelato. It's pricey, but good if you're willing to splurge. I enjoy that it's covered in cocoa powder. 😋

You order at the counter, receive a number and they bring the pizza out to you. Expect to pay about $9-10 for your personal pizza. In the summer, they have basil plants outside that the owner offers you to use to enjoy your pizza with.

Lastly, the owner is really passionate about what he does (making pizza and mozzarella, meeting people and serving them). This...