On my ever growing list of favorite cities, Napoli is always near the top. Being that this city is one of the oldest continually inhabited in the world, it is no surprise the wealth of history and tradition held here. Energy levels run high, no doubt fueled by the delightfully intense espresso being brewed at every turn. With it's frenetic, scooter riding population flying around, it can feel a bit overwhelming upon entering the maze of cobbled streets in the old quarter. Never fear, though, as Napoli is a traveler's dream and a budget oriented, food traveler's fantasy. Certainly, from a culinary standpoint, there is more to offer in beautiful Napoli than pizza. After a few weeks on the road and funding dwindling, you'd be hard pressed to find me eating anything but perfect, simple, tasty and cheap pizza napoletana. If you don't like pizza, what's wrong with you? Just kidding. But seriously, go to Napoli and eat a thousand pizzas, OK?
Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (AVPN) is an accredidation and the presence of the above sign will indicate pizzas are prepared using only natural, unprocessed ingredients and baked in a wood-fired oven. However, this is a certification you pay for and many pizzerias without this plaque still follow the same standards and use the approved ingredients: '00' flour, san marzano tomatoes (only to be crushed by hand), bufala or fior di latte mozzarella from Campania, natural yeast, sea salt and fresh basil. The dough may not be mechanically manipulated in any way (no rolling pins!) and the pizzas themselves should bake in the wood oven for 90 seconds. Vera sign or not, this will be the best margherita pizza of your life!
Of the many, many pizzerias in town, and after much exhaustive research (you're welcome!) I still am partial to Pizzeria Di Matteo. Turning out delicious pizzas since 1936, this pizzeria made the most memorable pizza of my last trip to Napoli. On this trip, too, it was love at first bite! Especially if your first bite is of one of the insanely delicious arancino they sell out front on the street. So great, in fact, I had to devote my entire next post to fried friggitoria goodies. For now, we are talking pizza, and what could be better than that? Nothing really except maybe Falanghina and pizza together.
Now, I am not going to say that this particular bottle is going to blow you away, but for me there is no better combination than cold Falanghina and pizza. The price tag here is 4€, so buy a bottle and thank me later. I first heard of this Calabrian grape while studying at the Culinary Institute of America, where one of my wine instructors referred to it as a 'patio pounder'. Indeed. Light and crisp with lovely fruit and floral notes, I chose this budget bottle here as it is local and a great value. When the pizzas only take 90 seconds to cook, you can try your best at the 'patio pounding'.
To me, there are few foods which bring me as much joy as a perfect Margherita pizza with bufala mozzarella. Tangy sauce, milky cheese, fresh basil and olive oil top this feather light dough which has just enough chew and char to keep things interesting. This classic pizza is one I order time and time again and sets the barometer for the kind of pizza being made. In Napoli, and throughout Italy, it is customary to order one pizza per person which will be presented whole and uncut with a knife and fork. Ordinarily, this cheap gal would balk at such extravagance, but at around 3€ for a basic margarita and maxing out around 6€ for a more elaborate pie, this is certainly a good time to splurge.
Ah, the wonderful ripieno al forno. Meaning 'stuffed', the ripieno al forno is what we might call a baked calzone. This particular one is stuffed with 'lasagne' fillings: super fresh and creamy ricotta, provolone, mozzarella and proscuitto cotto (cooked ham) and topped a thin layer of tomato sauce and a bit of fresh basil. Bursting with flavor, and fillings, this is an easy combination to love. Again, the dough here is impossible soft and a bit chewy plus perfectly blistered and charred.
Needless to say, I really love Di Matteo. The only thing not to like is the fact that they are closed on Sunday evenings, along with most of the other highly desirable pizzerias in the area. Pizzeria i Decumani is open Sunday nights and is a solid choice in the historic quarter, if not a bit ordinary. Luckily, 'ordinary' in Napoli would be considered insanely delicious most other places, so no big deal, you know?
This Aglianico is another pizza (and wallet) friendly wine with full body and nice tannins. This bottle was 6€ which is a good deal for the bottle even if it was served a bit too cold. Like Falanghina grapes, Aglianico vines are grown in Campania (the region where Napoli is located) and are thought to have originated in Greece.
This was my second time at this pizzeria and I was happy to see they still top each pizza with a little ball of fresh mozzarella. Vowing to branch out on this particular evening, I went for the Diavola (devil) variety which is a basic margherita topped with spicy salame. This pizza was quite good and really my only complaint would be the amount (tons!) and thickness (too thick!) of the salame. The salame had a great depth of flavor and nice spice, but it overwhelmed the subtle sweetness of the fior di latte (flower of the milk) mozzarella and tomato sauce and was a bit chewy. I would have liked a little bit more char on the crust, too, but that is really only a matter of personal preference and the fact that I am spoiled.
Our other pizza was a basic margherita, too, only this one had the addition of anchovies. I hate to discourage generosity here, folks, but this, too, was heavy handed in the topping department. Perhaps, these guys are purists and resentful of extra toppings. At any rate, this is a fine spot to go on a Sunday when pizza pickings are slim, but perhaps this is a great place to stick to the 3,50€ margherita. Also, service is a bit gruff here and they want to turn your table quickly. Typically I might be annoyed when rushed to leave with a full glass in front of me, but I was rewarded with this gem of a crabby waiter quote, the simple and effective, "Miss. It's time." Fair enough.
When I asked my Neopolitan host where his favorite pizzeria was, he didn't hesitate to recommend Starita a Materdei. This surprised me as Starita is no secret and they have a few locations stateside. He was confident in this choice as he was certain after eating their pizza one would not wake from thirst in the middle of the night. It is said that properly prepared dough which has had ample time to rise is easily digestible where as a rushed dough makes one have the thirst. Makes sense to me so we trekked on and I am so glad we did. I only wish I had gotten the advice a day earlier as this place is open on Sundays, too, and I would no doubt make a preferable Sunday dinner choice.
It was advised we try an order of the Angioletti fritti (angel wings) appetizer. As the name suggests these fried pieces of crispy dough were wonderfully light and the topping of spicy arugula and tons of sweet little halved and salted cherry tomatoes was lovely. And, let's be honest, this was as close as we were going to get to a salad. This antipasti is justly popular and a nice change from all the other fried things we had been eating, plus offered us our first taste of the amazing pizza dough here.
This perfect pie was a bit salad-like, too, I suppose, but I couldn't let that turn me away. Miss Italia, as she likes to be called, was comprised of Starita's flavorful and tender dough topped with mozzarella, proscuitto crudo, arugula and shavings of grana padano (parmesan's crumblier, but similarly rich, cousin). This pizza was sauceless, but we didn't miss it with the creamy fior di latte covering he base and a nice drizzle of olive oil. This pizza certainly lived up to her name.
Let's get serious, though, and order up a Margherita di Bufala. Made with the remarkable Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP, this is the real deal. This style of water buffalo milk mozzarella must be produced in the traditional way in order to maintain the DOP status and is wonderful on pizzas due to the higher fat and lower moisture compared to regular mozzarella. I love the way the milkiness of the barely heated cheese mixes with the sweet/tart tomato sauce and gives you something amazing to mop up with your crust. The dough here might have been my favorite of the three with a deep yeast flavor, perfect texture and charred just the way I like. We washed all this down with a liter of the house red which was a little fizzy and tasty but a bit too sweet. Call me old fashioned (boring!) but I still prefer the energy of the pizzeria's in the centro storico and would probably always go Di Matteo as a first choice and happily eat a Sunday night pie here at Starita.
Along those lines, there is certainly the temptation and desire when traveling, exploring and dining to try, see and do as many things as possible. When will you ever be here again! Placing great importance on each event, place and choice only works in your favor when everything goes just the way you'd like. So seldom is this the case anywhere and less so when traveling in a foreign country dealing with different languages and customs. Trying to become my best traveler is a work in progress for me and I mention this not just because I am one who places vast importance (pressure!) on each choice made, but in hopes to make the most of each moment and not be (too) disappointed when things inevitably go awry. It may seem like that unappealing, expensive pasta lunch could be your last and all is wasted! You could have had a pizza! Fear not, you shall dine again. If you are lucky, like me, and have a charming, handsome travel partner with you, they might even eat all of that pasta you are hating (it wasn't bad!) and then tromp across town for a save the day pizza to get that bad (it really wasn't that bad!) pasta taste out of your mouth.
What I am saying is, disappointment may undoubtably be a part of travel, but shouldn't be a big part of travel. What was I talking about? Oh yeah, eat your bad pasta and be happy. Or, go get a pizza and just shut up about it. Moving past disappointing moments can be tricky but is the only cure for the bad choice blues.
What I am saying is, disappointment may undoubtably be a part of travel, but shouldn't be a big part of travel. What was I talking about? Oh yeah, eat your bad pasta and be happy. Or, go get a pizza and just shut up about it. Moving past disappointing moments can be tricky but is the only cure for the bad choice blues.
When you find a place you love, you should never feel bad about wanting to eat there over and over again. But do branch out from time to time. You'll either be reminded of why you like your favorite place the most or you might actually find a new number one. In Napoli, pizza is good. Go there and eat some.