About Acme Pizza & Pasta Co. | Calgary Restaurant in Sunnyside

Acme Pizza Co. How It Started

Acme Pizza Co. was founded in 2022 by Dean Symonds and Jason Wankel as a fun, quality-driven quick-service pizza concept. It was originally created to support the food program of a brewery taproom in Sunalta, after a friend involved in opening the brewery gave them a call.

The concept was met with early enthusiasm from the community, and Acme quickly gained a loyal following of amazing pizza people. Thanks to that support, a second location opened in Renfrew in late 2023, followed by the launch of Acme Pizza & Pasta Co. in Sunnyside in 2025. Huge thanks to all the incredible pizza lovers who made it possible — this town truly shows up.

Acme’s pizza is a modern take on traditional Roman-style dough, which, among other things, includes incorporating olive oil directly into the dough. That sets it apart from other styles like Neapolitan pizza, which traditionally uses only flour, water, salt, and yeast.

The Next Chapter of Acme Pizza & Pasta Co.

Acme Pizza & Pasta Co. is a carb-forward, Italian-leaning neighbourhood restaurant located in the heart of Sunnyside. (Gluten-aware options are always available.) We’re proud to call the beautiful and historic Vendome Block Building our home.

Building on the original Acme Pizza Co. concept, Acme Pizza & Pasta Co. expands into a full-service restaurant with a multifaceted menu — all while keeping the same signature pizza program that started it all. As both the sister and flagship restaurant of Acme Pizza Co., it marks the next exciting step in the evolution of the Acme brand.

ABOUT THE VENDOME BLOCK BUILDING

Calgary’s rapid growth prior to the First World War led to the development of new subdivisions north of the Bow River, including the community of Sunnyside. In 1912, building contractor George W. Rae constructed what was then a typical commercial structure of the time — now known as the Vendome Block.

The upper-level apartment suites provided much-needed housing for working-class men and their families. Among the children who grew up in the Vendome Block were Sid Finney, who went on to play professional hockey for the Chicago Black Hawks in the early 1950s, and Liberal Senator Jack Austin. The building was restored to its historic appearance in 1989.

The ground-floor retail space originally housed the North Star Grocery, which served the neighbourhood for over seventy years. Over the decades, other tenants have included a candy store, a meat market, and a shoe repair shop. More recently, the building was home to the much-loved Vendome Café — a cherished part of the Sunnyside community for 15 years.

The Vendome Block is designated a Heritage Building by the City of Calgary’s Heritage Advisory Board.