Pizzeria Toto in Ulloor, Thiruvananthapuram would be easy to miss while driving by, if not for the sign next to it featuring lighted-up cartoon pizza slices adorned with pepperoni. Fairy lights hang across the face of the eatery, which leads out to a rustic veranda, with wall lamps casting shadows on a textured white wall. Some wooden chairs and tables have been set up outside for dining.
Inside the pizzeria, facing customers, is a glass shelf filled with beverages, a sliced cheesecake and coffee creme brulee ramekins. On the other side of the shelf, a busy crew with hair nets and floured fingers, led by Maymuna KS, is kneading the dough. Cheese, meat and vegetables are placed on a stretchy pillowy dough before being baked in a brick oven at 800 degrees Fahrenheit for exactly two minutes. Soon, the room was filled with the aroma of freshly baked pizza, sliced and served hot.
Pizzeria Toto in Ulloor, Thiruvananthapuram Photo Courtesy: Nainu Oommen
“When I lived in Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, a few years ago, I used to make traditional rotis. My son Yan’s friends and his mother were from Spain and they inspired me to cook rotis. Soon, I also started reading books about it,” says Maymuna, who returned to Thiruvananthapuram in 2021. But when I made sourdough bread with starter at home, my family asked me why the bread was sour? jokes Maymuna, who soon saw a niche in town for pizza that focuses on crust.
Pizzeria Toto in Maymuna KS | Photo Courtesy: Nainu Oommen
In May 2022, Maymuna started a cloud kitchen on the top floor of her house in Chavadimukku. In January 2023, he started Pizzeria Toto, named after his son, affectionately called Toto.
The eatery displays a versatile menu with equal emphasis on vegetarian and non-vegetarian pizzas, made for Indian tastes at an affordable budget.
One of their signature dishes, the Buffalo Chicken Pizza, is cooked perfectly with in-house ranch sauce made from a blend of mayonnaise, yogurt and selected herbs. The name Buffalo was originally inspired by a sauce from the city of Buffalo, New York. It’s topped with cooked chicken pieces marinated in hot sauce and butter along with red onions. The pizza is not very cheesy and is lightly sprinkled with oregano. Small drops of Sriracha (a type of hot sauce) add heat and spiciness to the pizza, which compliments the creamy cheese. The thin layer is spread and wrapped evenly, resulting in a soft texture.
Buffalo Chicken Pizza from Pizzeria Toto Photo Courtesy: Nainu Oommen
The nine-inch pizza is cooked in a brick oven built by Chandigarh-based oven maker Marco Capiotti, who has also built the brick oven at Pizzeria Da Susi in Gurugram, considered one of the best pizzerias in the country. “Since I wanted to make pizza while highlighting the bread, we didn’t compromise on the oven. So we reached out to them and Marco assembled it and sent it over. We had to use a crane to install it in the kitchen,” says Maymuna.
The Mediterranean Love Pizza is a vegetarian pizza topped with feta cheese, tomatoes and red onion. Tomato sauce and fresh tomato pieces add rich flavor to it. The pizza is not very impressive in taste. Feta, tomatoes and onions complement the “salt bombs” of olives, which are generously spread on the pizza.
A slice of Mediterranean Love Pizza from Pizzeria Toto Photo Courtesy: Nainu Oommen
Other pizza varieties include Pepperoni, BBQ Beef, Kungpao Chicken, Marinara etc., with prices starting at ₹285.
sweet ending
Pizzeria Toto’s dessert menu features a burnt Basque cheesecake and coffee caramel creme brulee. These two extremely iconic European desserts leave very little room for error. Burnt Basque Cheesecake is light, airy, and smooth. This crustless cheesecake version is perfect for dessert lovers and those who like their desserts a little less sweet.
Charred Basque Cheesecakes from Pizzeria Toto Photo Courtesy: Nainu Oommen
Coffee Caramel Creme Brulee is another less sweet dessert. The sugary, hard coffee caramel shell on top cracks at the touch of a spoon, revealing a silky, golden custard inside. The dessert is a refined version of a steaming glass of coffee with subtle bitter notes.
Creme Brulee from Pizzeria Toto Photo Courtesy: Nainu Oommen
They serve a range of hot and cold beverages like hot chocolate, mojito and milkshakes.
Maymouna hopes to expand its pizzeria and dessert menu to include dishes like brioche donuts with filling and tiramisu. “I also want to offer pre-order brioche and sourdough bread,” she says, “and I want to employ more housewives.”
Price of two is ₹800. Open from 2.30 pm to 10 pm, except Mondays.
