Pizza Lunch: Rossopomodoro at Eataly

I ate at Rossopomodoro at Eataly on Wednesday with Sharon and Alisha Aridiana. Sharon is the chef-owner of Gialina and Ragazza in SF, and Alisha is Sharon’s wife and the one who set up the lunch meet-up while they were on a pizza recon mission in NYC. I can’t even tell you what’s on these pies, because the thing I remember most about that lunch is just how genuinely nice those two were. Meeting them was a highlight of my summer. I hope to see them in SF next time I visit my in-laws with my wife and daughter. Continue reading Pizza Lunch: Rossopomodoro at Eataly

Weekly Pizza Lunch: The Pistacchio e Salsiccia pie at Don Antonio by Starita

Given how close my office is to Don Antonio by Starita (a five-minute walk), I don’t know why I don’t eat here more often. The pizza is great. Like Kesté, its sister pizzeria in Greenwich Village, this place is über Neapolitan. (Though I will say that the topping choices are a lot more expansive than … Continue reading Weekly Pizza Lunch: The Pistacchio e Salsiccia pie at Don Antonio by Starita

Weekly Pizza Lunch: Vezzo and Tappo

I’m combining two Weekly Pizza Lunch outings into one here. That’s because they’re practically the same place. —The Mgmt.

Vezzo Meatball Classic Pizza
Vezzo’s Meatball Classic pizza: tomato sauce, mozzarella, house-made meatballs, red onion, and basil. Pictured: small, $9.

There’s a pizzeria mini chain in the heart of Manhattan that I think doesn’t get enough attention or praise.* Part of the blame may lie in its unusual naming convention. I mean, did you know that the pizzerias Gruppo, Posto, Spunto, Vezzo, and Tappo are all related and are pretty much the same thing? I know! You’d think they would have settled on one name and stuck with it. (Think of the efficiencies gained by maintaining one single website!)

Then again, avoiding the appearance of a chain has a certain advantage as well. Continue reading “Weekly Pizza Lunch: Vezzo and Tappo”

Weekly Pizza Lunch: The Calabrese pie at Nicoletta

Like most bar or Midwestern pizzas, this pie is extremely satisfying and wallops you with flavor. The crust is flavorful, though I still think it’s not going to satisfy fans of Neapolitan or New York–style pizza. The crust is almost a vehicle for molten cheese and, in Nicoletta’s case, high-quality toppings. It’s basically Midwestern gut-busting pizza as done by a hot-shit New York City chef (which, by all accounts White, the former Wisconsinite, is). Continue reading Weekly Pizza Lunch: The Calabrese pie at Nicoletta

Weekly Pizza Lunch: Coney Island’s Totonno’s rises from the floodwaters

Totonno's pizza plain pie
Totonno’s serves one of the better coal-oven pizzas in NYC. A plain pizza from just after the joint’s triumphant post-Sandy reopening.

You know, you’re not going to go wrong adding toppings to a Totonno’s pizza, but when the joint is firing on all cylinders, like it was when I visited yesterday, you only need a plain pie for a satisfying meal.

Of course that didn’t stop me and my dining companion from getting another pizza topped with sausage. Continue reading “Weekly Pizza Lunch: Coney Island’s Totonno’s rises from the floodwaters”