Entries tagged with 'NYC'
The Two Boots location in Rockefeller Center (in the weird mall-like area belowground) is closing. But when a door closes, a (pizza) window opens. The mini chain will open a branch at Ninth Avenue and 45th Street. So sayeth Midtown Lunch.
Posted by Adam Kuban, November 15, 2008 at 4:15 PM
The Strong Buzz reports reports that there's breakfast pizza on the menu at Motorino.
The joint is now serving brunch on Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. All dishes are $10, with coffee or juice.
Says Strong, "Mathieu Palombino is turning pizza into the breakfast food of champions with pies topped with creamy fior di latte, fluffy farm eggs, smoky pancetta, and handfuls of basil and Parmiggiano."
If you're too much of a purist to go for a breakfast pizza, the "panetti" sandwiches there sound pretty good: "made from Motorino’s pizza dough stuffed with the likes of mortadella, taleggio, radicchio, and aceto." [via Kathryn Yu]
Motorino
319 Graham Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11211 (at Devoe Street; map)
718-599-8899
motorinopizza.com
Posted by Adam Kuban, November 11, 2008 at 3:30 PM
Seen in Times Square. Photograph by Nick "Beef Aficionado" Solares
"I quietly hang around and drink it all in. It's just got all sorts of fascinating cultural components and the best pizza I've ever had—Tony's on Bay Street."
—Lawrence O'Donnell, former West Wing writer and creator of upcoming FX cop show to be titled Staten Island
Tony's Brick Oven Pizza
1140 Bay Street, Staten Island NY 10305 (map)
718-816-6516
Posted by Adam Kuban, November 5, 2008 at 11:55 AM
OK. At first, all the stuff I've seen and heard about this Pizza Moto mobile pizza trailer at the Brookyln Flea? It all made me think "amateur hour." I mean, you look at the photo of that oven, and it looks more like a low-slung little heap of bricks than a serious wood-fired pizza oven.
But this nice profile in the New York Times today reveals that the owner, Dave Sclarow, has some serious pizza cred behind him: "Mr. Sclarow, 34, learned his pizza craft at Franny’s, in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, and by backpacking through Italy."
I still haven't made my way over to the Brooklyn Flea to try this pizza, though readers of Slice who have tried it have complained that it's expensive for what you get. That won't stop me for now, but I am sort of afraid of showing up with camera in tow: "Mr. Sclarow is wary of pizza fetishists. 'Pizza's one of those things that everybody knows, so everybody has an opinion,' he said."
Pizza Moto at Brooklyn Flea
Lafayette Avenue, between Clermont and Vanderbilt avenues (Fort Greene; map)
"[Sixpoint] beers are a staple at beer lovers’ haunts like Barcade in Williamsburg and Jimmy’s No. 43 in the East Village. Gramercy Tavern pours Sixpoint, and Lil’ Frankie’s in the East Village has a pale ale custom-made to suit its pizza." [New York Times] Lil' Frankie's: 21 First Avenue, New York NY 10003 (b/n 1st and 2nd streets; map); 212-420-4900; lilfrankies.com
Celeste is that rare bird: a true neighborhood restaurant. The atmosphere is convivial. The staff is pleasant and efficient. And the food is sublime. Start with a pizza, ideally the bracing and authentic Napoletana, which builds upon its crust with layers of flavor: sweet tomato, acidic caper, salty anchovy. 502 Amsterdam Avenue, New York NY 10024 (at 85th Street; map); 212-874-4559 [New York Times]
Eater reports that Grimaldi's is opening a Manhattan location in the Financial District. Owner Frank Ciolli has signed a 20-year lease on a space at 135 John Street, the site says, and that "construction is slated to begin in about a month." Menu and pizzeria layout will clone its famous sister store under the Brooklyn Bridge. Grimaldi's Manhattan: 135 John Street, New York NY (at Water Street; map)
Posted by Allison Hemler, October 28, 2008 at 9:45 AM
Some of the fresh ingredients and a peek at the pizza upskirt.
If you've ever made pizza from scratch, you'll realize the importance of working with your hands. From forming the dough, to kneading it after it rises, to stretching it out on a peel, and finally topping it with ingredients—there's no doubt that the hands make it happen. Maybe it's the Italian in me, but ever since making pizza from start to finish, I want to make everything with my hands. No mixers, whisks, spatulas.
This is the practice I (and about 15 others) learned at a Contemporary Italian Pizza recreational division class at the Institute of Culinary Education led by Gerri Sarnataro, chef-instructor at the school, pizza master, and founder of a cooking school for vacationers in Umbria, Italy.
During the five hours in a pastry kitchen with Sarnataro, we went through the motions of creating the perfect Neapolitan-style pizza at home. She provided us with a packet of recipes for entertaining friends and family later, but what we wanted to make was up to our creativity and taste buds.
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IM + intel = "IMtel." Here's a bit of received wisdom.
[screennameredacted]: got a bit of slice intel for you: a) wouldn't worry yet about the slice curse on motorino; went there last night with 3 friends and all four of our pies were easily 9/10s. maybe a little too much charring on one of them but otherwise terrific. also, i think i recall you once saying the SE offices were near FIT; the margherita slice at rosa's on 27th and 7th is truly a hidden gem, well worth trying it out. trust me on this one. everything else there is garbage though.
NYCSlice: Yes, that's our office location. Will try Rosa's on Monday! Thanks, [screennameredacted]!
Posted by Ed Levine, October 24, 2008 at 12:00 PM
Pizza photograph by The Pizza Review
T&R, where I often get my delivery and take-out pies.
For the last year, whenever I've ordered a conventional-gas-oven, mediocre-ingredients-laden, decent-crusted plain pie from my local pizzeria of choice, T&R, I have been specifying that my pie be well-done.
Why? Because uncooked, gummy pizza dough may be my No. 1 pizza pet peeve (also known as my "PPP"). Nothing ruins a pizza like a bite filled with raw dough. And you know what? Ordering well-done really makes a difference. My last pie from T&R was most excellent.
Am I the only pizza lover who uses the well-done pizza gambit?
Posted by Adam Kuban, October 23, 2008 at 5:45 PM
Keith Wagstaff of the Feedbag blog has an interview with Mathieu Palombino, the Belgian-born chef-owner of Motorino in Williamsburg. We wrote about the pizza at Motorino on Tuesday, and the Feedbag's piece is a nice complement to the tasting intel. Snip:
What does it take to make good pizza? Pizza is always good, even when it’s bad. Its never something you will spit out of your mouth, even if it’s not done properly. What makes a pizza good is the quality of the ingredients. It’s a very simple thing. It’s just a piece of dough with just a few ingredients, so you have to choose your ingredients very carefully. It’s a simple thing, but it can become very complicated to make your pizza better than the guy next door.
Palombino also reveals that he makes the mozzarella for his pies himself each day and that he thinks Fornino is one of the city's best pizzerias—but declines to give the names of places he thinks are overrated.
I'm going to have to pull out the Truth Hammer, though, and give this Keith Wagstaff a knock on the noggin:
[Matthieu offers me some pizza; I tell him thanks but I have to get back to the office.] Do you offer pizza to go?
He didn't even try the pizza?
Posted by Adam Kuban, October 22, 2008 at 5:45 PM
"You're worried that of all the things you could be mugged for, they're going to take your pizza?"
It's been little things building. Hangovers after two beers, increasing instances of heartburn, a newfound appreciation for Billy Joel. But I think I officially became old on Monday when I admitted I was scared of teenagers.
But, so far, only when I'm carrying pizza on the subway.
Returning from Motorino on Monday with a Margherita pizza for the office, I was traveling by subway just as school let out. Boisterous clusters of teenagers roamed the streets and gathered on the subway platforms belowground.
And all I could think of was how one of these kids might start something with me—demanding a slice or simply knocking the box from below, lunch-tray-bully style.
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Posted by Adam Kuban, October 21, 2008 at 4:15 PM
Clockwise from top left: Motorino has a nice airy space on Graham Avenue and Devoe Street. The C.R.U.S.T.™ scan reveals the char quotient. A Margherita pie, boxed for take-out.
Motorino
319 Graham Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11211 (at Devoe Street; map); 718-599-8899; motorinopizza.com
Getting There: L train to Graham Avenue; walk 1 block south from train
Pizza Style: Neapolitan; 10-inch pies, enough for one person
Oven Type: Wood-burning
The Skinny: Based on what I've had so far, the only Neapolitan-style pizza in New York better than this one right now is Una Pizza Napoletana. Excellent bready crust with great hole structure. Typical Naples-style pies along with some more inventive pizzas. Affordable, too!
Price: Most pizzas here are in the $10 to $13 range, with cheapest being Marinara ($9) and priciest being Pugliese ($15). Visa/MC/AmEx, cash
OK, sit down, homeslices, because I've got news for you.
That new Motorino place in Williamsburg?
Awesome.
I got this email from my coworker Raphael Saturday night: "It's good. Possibly very good. What I had last night was Franny's-caliber. I've got some not-so-great pics (I'll write up a quick review if you like), but you should get out there and do a review ASAP."
Well, I was heading to the Yura Yura Teikoku show in Williamsburg Sunday night, so I figured I'd leave a little early and hit up Motorino beforehand. And then, I had to go back yesterday for lunch for a second take on what I thought I had tasted and felt the night before: Right now, at this moment, Motorino is spittin' some of the best new pizza in New York from of its wood-burning oven.
And it's totally affordable. Pizzas run from $9 (Marinara) to $15 (Pugliese, with sausage), with the majority between $11 and $13. No $21 pizzas here.
That this pizza is amazing seems unlikely. The guy behind it, Belgian Mathieu Palombino, comes from stints at the fancy-pants Manhattan restaurants BLT Fish, Bouley, Cafe Charbon, and Cello. That hardly says pizza pedigree. But he knows what he's doing. His Neapolitan-style pies have brilliant hole structure; great bready, salty flavor; and a crisp-chewy factor that's close to being off the charts.
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"Kensington favorite Joe and Joe Pizza, at 121 Church Avenue, bit the dust a couple of months back; the Sicilian focacceria had a Grandma pizza that was to die for." [Brownstoner]
Posted by Adam Kuban, October 16, 2008 at 3:30 PM
Villa Rustica, whose impending opening we mentioned in late August, is finally slinging slices.
I went by there Tuesday night around 9:30 p.m. and grabbed a slice.
The pizzeria has definitely been upgraded from its Pizza by the Park days. It's now a nicely appointed, clean space that does pay a nod to some sort of Italian villa, but it's still very much a slice joint—despite its fancy awning and super-Italian-sounding name.
They're using a Marsal & Sons gas-fired, brick-lined oven.
When I reveal to you the flavors I experienced and my reaction to them, you're probably going to storm the gates, demand my slice crown, and have my head at the hands of Ye Olde Giant Pizza Cutter.
On initial report, I liked. It's a mondo greasy thing, it's got more cheese than it rightly should, and the slices seemed smaller than is typical, but the slices I had ... maybe I was high or something, but it almost tasted cheddary and a bit spicy.
Normally, my purist self would be havin' a fit right now, but at that moment, this flavor combo hit the spot, and by the time I finished my first slice, I was totally happy I had ordered a second.
I just called Villa Rustica to ask them about this, and the gentleman on the other end of the line seemed perplexed. "We just use pure mozzarella," he said.
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Posted by Adam Kuban, October 15, 2008 at 5:30 PM
Best-of lists are opinions, and opinions are like assholes—everybody's got one. Am I right? But there's opinion and then there's fact.
Sometimes folks come down with some wack stuff that mixes opinion and so-called fact, getting us all to the point where we don't know what to believe. That's when Slice pulls out the truth hammer and gives someone a knock on the skull with it.
Witness Vice magazine's statement about Lee's Tavern from that pizza list we mentioned yesterday: "Their coal-oven pizzas surpass the vaunted Lombardi’s and just about every other place we’ve tried."
Let's break it down.
- Opinion: "... pizzas surpass the vaunted Lombardi’s and just about every other place we’ve tried"
- So-Called Fact: "Their coal-oven pizzas ... "
- Cold, Hard Fact: Lee's Tavern, for as awesome as it looks, has a standard gas-fired oven
To be gettin' Slice all excited about some coal-fired oven we thought we'd somehow overlooked all these years, only for us to call the pizzeria and find out it ain't so, that, my friends, is a serious DON'T.
Oh, and Two Boots? Seriously?
Lee's Tavern
60 Hancock Street, Staten Island NY 10305 (at Garretson Street; map)
718-667-9749
Posted by Adam Kuban, October 15, 2008 at 10:45 AM
Clicking in to the Slice inbox today, we've got a quick field report from one of our crispest homeslices, Mark H. (aka Famdoc in the comments).
My darling wife and I made our first visit to Park Slope's new wine bar, Bussaco. I was feeling pretty good, having just sat about 20 meters from the goddess Catherine Deneuve during a Q&A after a showing of her new film at the New York Film Festival.
While inspecting the menu outside, a hostess came out and offered us a menu and advertising card for the restaurant.
We told her we'd be glad to be seated inside. Seating choices include bar seating, "community seating," a sort of tenderless bar made of, apparently, a downed tree from Prospect Park, and normal restaurant seating.
Bussaco offers a bar menu or a dinner menu. Wines by the glass or bottle, including quite few choices from small producers in the U.S., France, Germany, and Italy.
Of interest to Slice readers is one pizza item: a Manila Clam Pizza ($10). We ordered one, along with sweet potato tortellini and grilled prawns.
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Posted by Adam Kuban, October 14, 2008 at 1:30 PM
Vice magazine released a New York City guide last week, and on it, they cover pizza. (You have to cover pizza if you're releasing any type of NYC food guide.) Here's what they say:
Local food bloggers bicker over whether this Midwood pizza parlor is clean or dirty (truth: it’s pretty dirty) or whether it is running on fumes nowadays or whether watching an old guy futz with their pizza is kind of patronizing. We, however, aren’t food bloggers and couldn’t give a shit. If you’re in this town to eat pizza, Di Fara should be on your list. 1424 Avenue J, Brooklyn NY (at East 15th Street; map); 718-258-1367; difara.com
Other pizzerias on the list: Artichoke Basille's
, Arturo's, Famous Ben's, Grimaldi's, Koronet, Lee's Tavern, Lombardi's, Otto, Totonno's, and Two Boots.
Motorino, that new joint in Williamsburg we mentioned yesterday. The Eater blog has a picture of its oven. There are some other pictures, too—looks like interior and menu shots. Says the Eater: "That buzz, however, led to some opening night snafus, as the restaurant began turning away customers at 8:30 p.m. last night and told already-seated customers they were out of dough and about half of the remaining menu items."
If they are, says this Chowhounder, they better pick up their damn phone. Villagio Trattoria: 850 Nostrand Ave, Brooklyn NY 11225 (just south of Eastern Parkway; map); 718-363-8300
What's it like spending hundreds of thousands on a pizzeria reno only to open on the first day of the Dow crash? Pretty lousy. But the new owners of House of Pizza & Calzone are soldiering on: "'The bottom line is that we have to absorb these exorbitant cost increases [mozzarella, flour, etc.],' [co-owner Paul] DiAgostino said last week 'I can't pass it on to my customers. You can't charge people $6 for a slice of pizza.'"
Posted by Adam Kuban, October 13, 2008 at 12:45 PM
Photograph from Paulie Gee on Flickr
On Saturday Slice–Serious Eats sponsored a talk called The Pieman's Craft as part of the New York Wine & Food Festival. A crowd of about 35 people showed up for the event, including some familiar faces—and some new faces that we were able to put to Slice screen names (which is always fun!).
Noted pizza expert Ed Levine talked to Anthony Mangieri, drawing out his piemaking history and, eventually, his philosophy.
Photograph from Paulie Gee on Flickr
The session was also a bit of a juxtaposition of styles, with Ed bringing some Vinny Vincenz plain pies to illustrate a very good New York slice and some Totonno's pies (Second Avenue) to rep the coal-oven school.
After about a half hour of talking and eating the first two examples of NYC pizza, Mangieri went to town making the pies everyone had no doubt been salivating for. After the jump, the UPN process.
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Posted by Adam Kuban, October 13, 2008 at 12:34 PM
Just got this email from a shill:
Mathieu Palombino (BLT Fish, Bouley, Cafe Charbon, Cello) opens a new pizzeria called Motorino in Williamsburg today. The menu includes a focused selection of local Brooklyn salumi, salads, antipasti, and cheeses in addition to 10 pizzas made to order in the wood-fired oven. Pizzas will include the neopolitan classics margherita, marinara and three varieties of pizza bianca, in addition to several others that will change seasonally. For dessert, Motorino will feature over 10 flavors of house-made gelato and sorbetto to be served on house-baked brioche. The restaurant will seat 55. Beer and wine service only.
Motorino
319 Graham Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11211 (at Devoe Street; map)
Joey Chestnut, the reigning hot-dog-eating champ, handily crossed over to pizza earlier today in Times Square, eating 45 slices in 10 minutes. That's roughly 1.7 pizzas a minute. According to the New York Daily News, "He folded the slices—very quickly—and shoved them into his mouth. He jumped around some, to help them go down the hatch, or knocked back water from paper cups. He never appeared to chew. The slices were the typical cheese and tomato sauce variety, dished from a 16-inch pie carved into eight wedges."
Posted by Adam Kuban, October 10, 2008 at 4:50 PM
Eater is reporting sorta big news happening in Midwood, Brooklyn. Di Fara has SORTA, FINALLY gotten its act together and now has a list for taking orders and for sorta calling people's names when their pizza was ready:
"There is a list whenever I am working," says Dom's daughter, Margaret. "I think my brothers are starting following suit, but I'm not sure. I know the chaos and I really feel for everyone."
We've long advocated for something like this, even offering to take up a collection to buy Dom and family a "Take-a-Ticket" system. There's nothing more frustrating than waiting a half an hour just to order, then waiting and waiting, only to have Dom ask you what it was you ordered an hour earlier.
Posted by Adam Kuban, October 10, 2008 at 11:30 AM
Above: Before and ... after some progress. Click me bigger » Progress photographs courtesy of Anselmo's Pizzeria
What would be New York City's latest coal-oven pizzeria, Anselmo's Pizzeria Restaurant, looks like it's making some progress after failing to meet its previously stated July 4 opening target.
Says the Red Hook pizzeria's Roger Fischer, "I'm 90 percent done. The oven is taking a long time to build."
From everything I've ever read or heard about custom oven jobs, they always take longer than expected. A couple more pix, after the jump.
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Posted by Adam Kuban, October 8, 2008 at 4:45 PM
Nick Beef Aficionado Solares just emailed these photos, saying, "Vinny Vincenz pizza truck sighted in Union Square."
Posted by Carey Jones, October 7, 2008 at 4:15 PM
New York. Pizza. An eternally happy couple. It's about time, then, that New York got a serious pizza-eating competition on par with Nathan's Hot Dogs or the Wing Bowl. This Sunday, October 12, the first-ever World Pizza Eating Championship will be held in Times Square. It's the newest official event of the International Federation of Competitive Eating, sponsored by Famous Famiglia.
Reigning hot dog champion Joey Chestnut and burger master Patrick Bertoletti (not to mention the current burrito and sweet corn champs) will be at the competitors' table. My bet is on Chestnut. If you fold a slice in half, it's almost hot-dog shaped, and he's clearly got that technique down. Who do you think will take the pizza prize?
Posted by Adam Kuban, October 7, 2008 at 4:00 PM
Clicking in to the Slice inbox today, we've got ...
Dear Slice,
Did any Slice readers get a photo of Lunetta's portable brick oven at the Atlantic Antic on Sunday? They built a brick oven on top of a small trailer and were baking small pizzas. The line was too long so I didn't get to try it, and when I came back to photograph it, they had packed up and left. Any info?
—Andrew M.
P.S. I though at first it was Lucali's, but I swear they had a Lunetta sign up.
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Posted by Adam Kuban, October 6, 2008 at 5:45 PM
Photograph from "Boppadopoulos" on Flickr
New York magazine gives a rundown on where to get clam pizza in New York City:
- Franny's: 295 Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11217 (b/n Prospect and St. Marks; map); 718-230-0221; frannysbrooklyn.com
- Bussaco: 833 Union Street, Brooklyn NY 11217 (near Seventh Avenue; map); 718-857-8828
- Lombardi's: 32 Spring Street, New York NY 10012 (near Mott Street; map); 212-941-7994; firstpizza.com
- Otto: 1 Fifth Avenue, New York NY 10003 (corner of 8th Street; map); 212-995-9559; ottopizzeria.com
- Fornino: 187 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11211 (at North 7th Street; map); 718-384-6004
- South Brooklyn Pizza: 451 Court Street, Brooklyn NY 11231 (near 4th Place; map); 718-852-6018
I can't vouch for all of these. I like Lombardi's clam pie and Franny's (uh-may-zing). I'm not big on Otto's or Fornino's because they do that annoying still-in-the-shell-while-topping-your-pie thing. (That's Otto's pie above.) Based on what I've had at South Brooklyn, I'd skip the clam pie—when I've had it, their regular pie has had a tough, too-crunchy crust.
Amy Langfield of NewYorkology tells us that La Pizzetta, a new brick-oven joint on Atlantic Avenue is open and should be starting delivery tonight. 145 Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn NY 11201 (b/n Clinton and Henry streets; map)
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 30, 2008 at 2:00 PM
Clicking in to the Slice inbox today, we've got some criticism of UPN.
Just had dinner there Sunday evening for the first time. Is that really supposed to be some of the best pizza in New York? Because all three of us were just totally underwhelmed. The crust was tasteless and soggy where it wasn't unpleasantly burned, and except for some nice cherry tomatoes, the toppings were nothing special. My friends were visiting from D.C. and wanted some really great pizza, so we trekked over there at my suggestion. I must admit I was mortified. Yuck!
Thanks for listening,
Cybercita
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 30, 2008 at 11:00 AM
If you're not into the habit of picking up the Onion satirical newspaper, here's a reason next week. From an email we just got from the folks at L'Asso:
The L'asso Pizza Guide—the definitive guide to pizza—will be carried as a NYC Onion insert (10/9/2008). The guide is a humorous and informational guide to pizza—from its humble beginnings in ancient times to its current incarnation as one of the world's favorite foods. It's been a year in the making!
The one-of-a-kind guide chews on the anthropological aspects of pizza (Are you a dutiful dabber, a hi-fi folder, or a spicy sprinkler?), pizza's storied history (like its link to Rome's leader of women's lib), and the ABC's of all things pizza (from the world's furthest pizza delivery to the most popular toppings in Japan). Plus, just like the slices it pays homage to, this hand-held reference is easy to digest and carry.
Silly us, and we thought that Slice was the definitive guide to pizza.
It'll be interesting to see what's in the L'Asso guide and how much of it Slice readers have already digested in the five years that Slice has been chewing on the anthropological aspects of pizza—from the "fold hold" to "tip sag" to the "pizza upskirt." Hmmph.
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 29, 2008 at 12:30 PM
Clicking in to the Slice inbox today, we've got some intel from Scott Wiener of Scott's New York Pizza Tours...
Adam,
I was helping a friend move this weekend and nearly drove onto the sidewalk when I saw a familiar carved-wood sign on the facade of a 96th Street building on the Upper East Side. Little Luzzo's opened about two weeks ago, serving quality slices, salads, and panini in a small storefront.
Unlike Luzzo's in the East Village, which uses an old coal-fired brick oven (211 First Avenue was once the home of the Palermo Bakery, followed by Zito's East), this location uses a brick-lined gas-fueled deck oven (Bakers Pride).
The result is a completely different slice, much thicker and sturdier with a sourdough flavor. The char on the underside is lovely, and they use beautiful fresh mozzarella on the Margherita. I'll get the exact address for you as soon as I get back home, where I filed the menu.
Not the same pizza you'll get at Luzzo's, but there are several variables, including the eatery's goal, which prevent such a duplication.
Have a slice day,
Scott
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Posted by Adam Kuban, September 26, 2008 at 4:00 PM
The Brooklyn Flea, the Sunday hipster flea market in Fort Greene, will be home to a new food vendor this weekend. The blog Brownstoner, whose proprietor helps run the market, reports that a chef named "Dave" has built a mobile wood-fired pizza oven and will debut it this weekend at one of the food stalls there.
"Dave" built the brick oven on a small trailer not unlike the mobile pizza ovens I've seen online and IRL in other parts of the country. There's a fleet of them in the Pacific Northwest, an outfit upstate in Ithaca, and Ed Levine here at the office says he's seen one at the farmers' market in Chicago.
I was wondering when this pizza trendlet would hit New York City and whether it would even be possible, given what I'd imagine would be tough restrictions on wood fires. The thing about the other mobile, trailer-based pizza ovens in other cities, though, is that they operate at farmers' markets, where they can take advantage of the bounty within easy reach. Maybe once "Dave" pioneers the trailer-based pizza oven field here in Gotham, other pizza ovens will invade the city's various Greenmarkets. [via Eater]
Pizza Moto at Brooklyn Flea
Lafayette Avenue, between Clermont and Vanderbilt avenues (Fort Greene; map)
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 23, 2008 at 1:30 PM
Michael Angelo's II
29-11 23rd Avenue, Astoria NY 11105 (b/n 29th and 31st streets; map); 718-932-2096
Pizza Style: Ultra-thin crust New York–style
Oven Type: Conventional steel-deck gas oven
The Skinny: Make sure to order the "thin-crust pizza." There's a regular crust, but the thin is seriously the way to go
I spent a large part of the weekend in Astoria and had a nice couple a slices while there. I had some squares from Rose & Joe's Italian Bakery, which were good (and which Slice has covered here), but what I really want to focus on are the slices at Michael Angelo's II, just around the corner from the more widely heralded Rose & Joe's.
I've slept long and hard on Michael Angelo's II. My friends Dan and Katie, who just moved out of the neighborhood, told me about MAII so long ago, and it hasn't been until this year that I've really given it much of a chance.
I think that may be because it's on the other side of the LIRR overpass, and when I get off the train at Ditmars to visit friends, I have no need to go south toward 23rd Avenue—and because like I said, I typically go to Rose & Joe's.
Anyway, I've had Michael Angelo's II about four times now. Twice as cooked-to-order whole pies and a couple times slice-only.
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Posted by Kerry Saretsky, September 22, 2008 at 4:15 PM
These boots are made for walking, and that’s just what they would do—if I didn’t live on the Upper East Side. As it stands now, I have to take a $15 cab for food that’s popular, trendy, or otherwise “cool.” So when I saw the windows of late-night, across-the-street-from-Dorrian's pizza place Mimma’s all whitewashed, I was sad—for a minute.
Until I noticed what would fill its shoes: Two Boots, so named because the “Cajun-Italian” pizza combines flavors of Louisiana and Italy (the two boots).
As an Upper East Sider, I usually feel left out, but the neighborhood is finally experiencing a comeback. The sign on the 84th Street and Second Avenue entrance proclaims it wants us, the “friends and neighbors,” to contribute photos to be eternally resin-ed into the pizzeria’s counters, and ingratiate themselves with the community. Two Boots was made for walking (it is a “neighborhood” pizza place, after all), and soon we on the Upper East Side, can walk there.
Posted by DJ Bubbles, September 19, 2008 at 11:00 AM
Bubbles Bradshaw here. While my sister, Carrie, and her floozie friends made a killing at the box office this summer in the lame-ass rom-com Sex and the City, I've been keeping tabs on my favorite gal pals, the (pizza) Margheritas of New York. Suffice it to say, they've been putting out like Carrie's best friend, Samantha. Luckily, I’m not a jealous guy. So allow me to take a moment and update you on where the hottest Margheritas have been kicking it. Which is where I inevitably end up, as well. Yeah, that's right, we've got a hit show of our own here on America's Favorite Pizza Weblog, and it's called Slice and the City.
Il Brigante
So where does a guy go in Manhattan to meet up with a hot Margherita for some delicious Slice action? For starters, I wanted to kick things off at a place that some posers think is the city's best Neapolitan pie, Il Brigante. Il Brigante's pizza Margherita? She's cute, not hot. I remember someone saying that Il Brigante's Margherita would overtake Una Pizza Napoletana as the city's best when it first opened. Who was that? The dude from the Village Voice? Robert Seltzerbuns or something? Didn't Frank Bruni check his ass for coming so weak? I love it.
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Posted by Raphael, September 18, 2008 at 10:30 AM
I'd buy that for a dollar.
Walking down the street, if you see a sign advertising pizza for one measly dollar, I don't care who you are, you stop in and get a slice. It's a moral duty to be this thrifty, to take advantage of a deal like that. Keep your expectations low, and you might be surprised.
Looks like pizza.
I guess the 2 Bros. people have figured out how to eke a profit using the strategy of premade components, finding a high-traffic area, and doing some serious volume.
A new branch of 2 Bros. Pizza (at 32 St. Marks Place) has opened on 6th Avenue (bet 17th and 18th), this time calling itself St. Marks 2 Bros. Pizza Plus. The new location offers the same deals, but under the rubric of a "grand opening special." A slice for $1, or two slices and a can of soda for $2.75.
The price is right, but how does it taste? The verdict, after the jump.
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Midtown Lunch has some great photos of the new Lazzara's Pizza location in Hell's Kitchen. As the Eater blog would say, "CERTIFIED OPEN."
Lost City says: "The new facade will be all glass, with a glass door to the left, and a sliding glass unit, four panels wide, to the right.... The new counter remains to the right as you walk in, the customer alley to the left.... And a red brick arch in the back leads to a new dining area that reaches into the former backyard of the property." [via Eater] House of Pizza & Calzone: 132 Union Street, Brooklyn NY 11231 (near Hicks Street; map); 718-624-9107
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 15, 2008 at 4:00 PM
Clicking in to the Slice inbox today, we've got ...
I want to get pizza for lunch for Jaime B.'s going-away party.
Is Waldy's any good? How many people can I feed w/one of his large pies? (Any guesses? I know I can call and ask.)
What about Pizza Suprema—how many can I feed with one of their larges?
I still have horrible memories of my attempt to treat Adam w/pizza from Lazzara’s on his bday at Blueprint, and not having nearly enough food.
Is there anyone else you’d suggest? (Am I too far away from Lazzara’s to ask them to deliver?)
What about "Co.," Adam—any indication that it has actually opened? (I can walk past on my way home, I suppose.)
—Talley
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Q: So, Una Pizza reopens tomorrow after its vacation, and I'm supposed to go to dinner with my brother (from out of town) that night. Is it gonna be a madhouse? A: I'd imagine it'll be no more a madhouse than it usually is—but maybe more so with the blogz blathering about it. Get there early, friend! 349 East 12th Street, New York NY 10003
Says Eater, the new spot will be at 30 West Street, New York NY 10006 (map)
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 3, 2008 at 1:15 AM
The New York Times has a nice interview with Jim Lahey, of Co., the pizzeria he just might open later this month. It's "Pizza Hut," in that it will be reasonably priced and welcoming, he says, and "Blue Hill," in that it'll be ingredient-driven.
So the menu is still a draft. "We'll have six to eight annual pizzas — no, let's say five pizzas we'll do annually, then three seasonal pizzas," Mr. Lahey said, sounding like a student caught off-guard by a pop quiz. "But I'm sure that one of the seasonal pizzas will be topped with freshly shaved summer truffle."
The Times lets slip that the oven will be a "gas-fired refractory pizza oven."
Co.
230 Ninth Avenue, New York NY 10001 (at West 24th Street; map)
Related
Update on Jim Lahey's Pizzeria, Co.
Blue Hill at Stone Barns Is the Most Important Restaurant in America
Posted by Adam Kuban, September 2, 2008 at 10:30 AM
Clicking in to the Slice inbox we got this bit of intel from Slice reader and frequent commenter Brian Preston-Campbell.
Not sure if anyone else has given you any intel on this, but I was driving back into the city last night and came down Worth Street to turn left onto the Bowery. While I was waiting for my light to change, I noticed that there's a sign in the restaurant window at the corner of Worth and Bowery (in the very heart of Chinatown, mind you) that says, "Coming soon, brick oven pizzeria." I don't have any further details since I was in the car and it was raining heavily at the time. Might be something, who knows.
Regards,
Brian
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Posted by Adam Kuban, August 30, 2008 at 11:15 PM
View larger map<»/a>
Just got word from Scott Wiener on a new Lazzara's Pizza location in Hell's Kitchen (or Midtown West, if you're feeling generous):
I just walked by some construction the other day and noticed that Lazzara's is opening a new spot on Ninth Avenue just south of 44th Street on the west side of the street. Not sure if they're leaving their other spot or just opening a second one. Permits were issued in July so it looks like we may have to wait a bit.
Some easy checking on the Lazzara's website reveals that the Hell's Kitchen location is slated to open in September and will be open 24/7. Very cool.
Lazzara's original location is well-known by the pizza cognoscenti but sometimes flies under the radar with bantamweight pizza lovers. It's basically a thin-crust Sicilian-style pie, and the place is often noted for the way it juliennes its pepperoni instead of cutting the sticks into traditional rounds. (Lazzara's is often also noted for its sort of speakeasyesque quality, up some stairs and in the second-floor parlor of an old townhouse in the Garment District.
Lazzara's Midtown
617 Ninth Avenue, New York NY 10036 (b/n 43rd and 44th streets; map)
Posted by Ed Levine, August 29, 2008 at 10:00 AM
Photographs by Robyn Lee
As far as I'm concerned, every neighborhood in the U.S. should have at least one serious pizzeria. How do I define serious? The oven (be it gas, wood, coal, or electric) has to get hot enough (800°F, at least) to slightly char the pie and cook the crust all the way through in a few minutes. The cheese has to be fresh mozzarella, and high-quality canned tomatoes must be used for sauce.
Covo has brought serious pizza to West Harlem, just off the West Side Highway at 135th Street. My Margherita was more than respectable, as you can see from the pictures. The crust was chewy and pliable, the mozzarella was creamy and tangy, and the tomatoes and fresh basil were up to snuff. The other food we ordered (fried calamari, beet-and-walnut salad) was less successful, so I would stick with the pizza for now.
Covo
701 West 135th Street, New York, NY 10031 (at West Side Highway; map)
212-234-9573
covony.com
Says Irene Sax: "The pizzas are hand-rolled disks of dough with charred, blistered edges and thin but flexible crusts. The rich, pure tomato sauce on the Calabria is topped with melted fior di latte, or cow's milk mozzarella, slices of spicy sopressata, briny black olives and onions ($13). The Brigante starts with the same rich sauce and cheese and adds thin prosciutto, arugula and Parmesan ($16). Meant for one, they are easily big enough for two to share and are definitely worth the voyage." 214 Front Street, New York NY 10038 (near South Street Seaport; map); 212-285-0222
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 22, 2008 at 5:15 PM
Slicester Jeff gave me the tip off on something going on in my own hood, almost right under my own nose. I guess I haven't ventured past 3rd Street in a while. Looks like Pizza by the Park, which as been closed for some time, is being transformed into some sort of brick-oven place.
Fingers crossed.
Though, often, as Serious Eats overlord Ed Levine points out, "brick oven" simply means "there's a brick somewhere in the vicinity of the oven." But like I said, fingers crossed. Let's hope it's a genuine improvement.
Villa Rustica
357 3rd Street, Brooklyn NY 11215 (off Fifth Avenue; map)
718-832-2700
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 20, 2008 at 10:50 AM
Clicking in to the Slice inbox today, we've got a report from the field regarding the Patsy's 60¢ pizza event yesterday.
Blondie and Brownie
Hey, Adam,
Hope you are doing well! We went to check out the Patsy's Pizza anniversary last night and when we go there a little after 7 p.m., they had already cut off the line and weren't serving anymore—the angry mob must have broken up shortly before we got there. Eater has a full account of the line cut-off situation. It was a bummer not to get the anniversary deal, especially after treking uptown, but I figure, it was a goodwill promotion and it's not like Patsty's owes me anything. Now, if I had been waiting for three hours in the heat, expecting to be able to order pizza, I probably would have been seriously steamed (and hungry). There are a bunch of pictures from our Patsy's trip in our Flickr.
What did strike me was that the management acted like the promotion had always been set until just 7 p.m., but everything I read said 10 p.m. Some people in line said that previously they had signs up that said until 10 p.m. Were you able to get the promotional pizza?
Take care,
Brownie
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Posted by Adam Kuban, August 18, 2008 at 11:30 PM
Check out the line at 99¢ Fresh Pizza. Zach Brooks of Midtown Lunch (and Serious Eats New York editor) captured this scene last Wednesday. That line's on par with Di Fara, though I doubt the place is as good.
99¢ Fresh Pizza
151 East 43rd Street, New York NY 10017 (b/n Third and Lexington avenues; map); 212-922-0257
Just a reminder that tomorrow is the big 60¢ pizza price rollback at Patsy's in East Harlem. To celebrate its 75th anniversary, the coal-oven legend is going nuts. You can grab an entire pizza for 60¢ tomorrow (Tuesday, August 19) from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. 2287 First Avenue, New York NY 10035 (b/n 117th and 118th streets; map)
Posted by Adam Kuban, August 18, 2008 at 10:00 AM
Every so often, I like to hit the old coal-oven giants in the city to see if they're up or down. For the most part, the old boys do killer pizza, the kind of pies serious sliceheads would be perfectly happy with if they weren't so spoiled by the amazing corn
