When Nicli Antica Pizzeria opened in Gastown in 2011, it was the first restaurant to be certified as Verace Pizza Napoletana (VPN), meaning the pie is made according to tradition, using specific processes and products. 

Now, it's the first to serve that authentic thin-crust pizza in North Van's Edgemont Village (3142 Highland Boulevard).

According to the True Neapolitan Pizza Association (Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana), those strict international regulations include, among other, the following rules:

- The pizza must be roundish, with a diameter of 30 to 35 centimetres.

- The flour used must be type 0 or 00. 

- The pizza must be garnished with ingredients from Campania regions, including extra virgin olive oil and mozzarella or fiordilatte DOP.

- The cooking must be done exclusively in a wood-fired oven at a temperature between 430 and 480° C. It takes 60 to 90 seconds.

Located in Edgemont Village next to Caffe Artigiano, the North Vancouver Nicli offers 10 types of Neapolitan pizza, including marinara, prosciutto e rucola (arugla); pesto, with house-smoked bacon; cavolo nero e funghi (black kale with mixed mushrooms); and Il Bastardo, with grana padano, mozzarella di bufala,bacon jam, soppressata piccante, Calabrian chili honey, and basil.

The menu also features calzones, salads, and antipasti (including beef-and-pork meatballs, roasted olives, and, what's already become a locals' fave, burrata with endive and roasted beets and carrots). 

If vino isn't your thing, there are eight types of grappa. 

Nicli Edgemont is open daily from 11:30 a.m. till late. Happy Hour runs daily from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. to close. It does DoorDash delivery, too. 

See below for photos of the new space.