The Oven - Penticton

Delicious, high quality neapolitan style pizza cooked right in front if you in a stone oven. Very good options for wine pairing as well. Beautiful location in a vineyard with water misting on hot days in the restaurant area. There are also really cute dogs running around the vineyard.

We ordered the charcuterie board, which included apples, cherries, a couple of slices of bread, a red pepper jelly, and three small slices of cheese: blue cheese, brie, and something they called "gold" cheese. We were disappointed that there was no prosciutto on the board, especially since we had seen it featured on their Instagram. While we loved the gold cheese, the rest of the board was honestly underwhelming for $29, which was a letdown since that’s what brought us to Upper Bench in the first place. On the bright side, we took our server’s recommendation and ordered a Margherita pizza with added prosciutto, which was phenomenal! My boyfriend, who lived in Italy for a year, said it was the closest he’s had to authentic Italian pizza since he returned in 2017! He enjoyed the Merlot, while I had the Chardonnay, which was hands down the best I've ever tasted. I honestly regret not buying more than one bottle! The service was prompt; our server was friendly and checked in on us several times, offering great suggestions and making sure we were well taken care of. Overall, we would definitely go back, even if just for the pizza, the next time we’re in Penticton or passing through. However, I wouldn’t make the hour-long drive from Osoyoos just for the charcuterie! Lol.

I’ve had pizza in Naples, and this is even better than many places I tried there.

This year, however, we were determined to indulge in some Upper Bench pizza during our annual trip to Naramata from Edmonton. We faced numerous delays due to wildfires, a rockslide on Highway 97, and other issues, but we finally made it. We had planned our entire day around getting that pizza. It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon when we arrived, filled with excitement. When we approached the host stand, we were asked if we were there for a tasting. We eagerly replied that we were there for pizza, only to be met with the disappointing news that the girl who makes the pizza had called in sick. I found it hard to believe that only one person was responsible for making pizza, and that their absence would cause the entire operation to shut down, but that seemed to be the case. The level of disappointment was palpable. Please do better.

Awesomest pizza in the OK!!