CombatCritic's TravelValue™: Napolitana

Showing posts with label Napolitana. Show all posts

Sunday, July 2, 2023

Seville, Spain: Very Good Pizza, But A Bit Pricey ... Nearly A TravelValue!

Il Ristorantino Dell' Avvocato

Calle Regina 6 Las Setas De Sevilla

41003 Sevilla, Spain

IlRistorantinoDellAvvocato

Prices: €€€€

Vera pizza Napolitana (real neapolitan pizza)? Piu o meno, si, buonissimo!

I do not offer praise easily, but this place was almost the BOMB! The service was excellent and the starter, pizza, and tiramisu delicious, but prices were high and servings a bit small.

The Chianti Classico was decent and the price (€14), cheapest on the menu, was fair. A small bottle of San Pellegrino (frizzante - €3) was about the same price as I would expect from a liter bottle.

The arancini and other mixed, fried starters (€7) were different than I have ever had in Napoli, but, top-notch, even though we only got one of each, six in all.

Salcsiccia é Friariielli pizza (€14)

My Salcsiccia é Friariielli pizza (€14 - €6 more than in Napoli) was as good as any I have had in Naples, but the outer crust was a bit too thick, limiting the amount of ingredients on the pizza itself (mozzarella, sausage, and friarielli (broccoli rabe sauteed in olive oil and garlic). Not the best value ... BUMMER!

Esagerata pizza (€22)

My wife's 'special' Esagerata pizza (€22) with mozzarella, peppers, sliced potatoes, onion and sausage came covered with an infusion of smoke that was quite an extravaganza. She is Sicilian, raised in Napoli, so she knows good pizza and was extremely pleased with her selection. However, we were not told the price and €22 for an individual pizza is quite extreme, so they lose a bomb there, and, I am being generous. Was it €8 better than my pizza? No, it was not.

The Tiramisu (€6) came deconstructed in a cup as our server poured a bicchieri of espresso napolitana on top ... YUMMY! The only downside, beside the price, was that the serving was a bit smaller than we had hoped, so my wife and I had to battle over the last bite, she won (happy wife, happy life!)

Tiramisu (€6)

We were offered limoncello after the meal, but it was not clear if it was offered, free of charge, like many Italian restaurants. They brought us a digestivo, amaro, in the end, so it was a decent conclusion to our meal, but I would have preferred the limoncello.

We would have paid far less than €40 for a similar meal in Napoli,, so the €66 price tag was a bit extreme, but we enjoyed the meal nonetheless, after all, we were in Seville, not Naples.

CombatCritic Gives Il Ristorantino dell' Avvocato 8 Bombs Out Of 10 With Little Room For Improvement ... More Bombs Are Better!

Eight Bombs Equates To:

Translation for Civilians: "What-The-Fuck ... Over!"

Thursday, June 15, 2023

Another Review of the Day (ROTD) ... HOOAH!

Wednesday, December 26, 2018

Lyon, France: Want Pizza Napolitana In Lyon? Do Not Bother With This Place

Le Napolitain

69 Rue Ney

69006 Lyon, France

Pizza

Metro: Brotteaux - 6ème Arrondissement

Phone number: +33 9 73 66 17 68

Website: le-napolitain.fr

Prices: €€€€

Not far from our Airbnb, Le Napolitain advertises “authentic Neapolitan pizza”, but it was not anywhere as good as any pizza I have ever had in Naples and that has been many.

The place is small and dimly lit, making it a challenge to read the menu. We were seated in the much less frantic and noisy rear dining room. The pizzaiuolo (pizza maker) practiced her craft, and I use that term loosely, in the entryway.

My wife had a pizza with goat cheese and honey (€13) and I ordered the Pizza Romano (ham, mushrooms and bleu cheese - €14). Having lived in Naples most of her life, my wife knows pizza napolitana as well if not better than anyone, having enjoyed this pizza very much. Mine tasted absolutely terrible, a bit bland, but with an unsettling sweet taste that had no business being on my pizza. I sent it back telling the server that it was inedible.

For the replacement, I decided on something much simpler and less easy to screw up, a pizza with fiore di latte and prosciutto cotto (cow’s milk mozzarella and cooked ham).The edges and bottom of the pizza that was brought to me were burnt and it was also much too thin. The toppings were also too runny, so the pizza became soggy and difficult to eat by hand, but even with a fork, it was a challenge to eat.

Overpriced and extremely underwhelming, what more can you expect from a pizzeria in Lyon? The service was good I have to say and they were compensated appropriately, but I shall not be returning any time soon and recommend that you do not bother.

CombatCritic Gives Le Napolitain 3 Bombs Out Of 10 … More Bombs Are Better!

Three Bombs Equates To:

Translation for Civilians: "Situation Normal, All Fucked Up"

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Saturday, September 30, 2017

Favorite Recipes: CombatCritic's World Famous Stuffed Artichokes Napolitana

This is my Grandma Sorrentino's stuffed artichoke recipe. My mom and Aunt Mary used to make these for me on special occasions because they were my favorite dish.

Recipe:

2 Large Artichokes

4 Cups Bread Crumbs

4 Extra Large Eggs

1/2 Cup Chopped Parsley

1/2 Cup Diced Italian Salami

1 Tbsp Salt

1 Tsp Pepper

2 Cloves Chopped Garlic

1 Tsp Dried Oregano

1 Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1/2 Cup Grated Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese (parmesan will also work)

Mix the breadcrumbs, parsley, salami, salt, pepper, garlic, oregano and Parmigiano Reggiano in a large bowl, mixing thoroughly. Add the eggs (dont forget to crack them first) and 1/2 cup of the EVO, then stir until the entire mixture is moist (add extra egg, EVO or a little water if necessary).

Cut off the sharp tips of artichoke leaves and wash the artichokes. Stuff every leaf, filling the center (heart) as well.

Place a vegetable steamer in a large pot with just enough water so that it's just above the steamer bottom, bringing the water to a boil. Place the stuffed artichokes in the pot, drizzle with EVO, cover and steam for an hour and a half or until you can pull the leaves out easily.

Place the artichoke in a large dish (one each) and serve. Pull the leaves off with the stuffing attached, hold the leaf, place in your mouth and pull with teeth closed so that the stuffing and artichoke stay in your mouth, leaving only the outer part of the leaf. Toss the spent leaves in a large bowl.

Mangia e stati zitto ... Shut up and eat!

CombatCritic

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Title: Favorite Recipes: CombatCritic's World Famous Stuffed Artichokes Napolitana

Key Words: CombatCritic, TravelValue, travel, value, restaurant, recipe, recipes, favorite, world, famous, artichoke, Napolitana, stuffed, artichokes, salami, breadcrumbs, salame, menu, Yelp, Zomato

Monday, May 30, 2016

Brooklyn, NY: Superb Pizza Napoletana, Overpriced Beer And Wine ... We're Not In Kansas Anymore Dorothy!

Dellarocco’s Brick Oven Pizza

214 Hicks Street
Brooklyn, NY 11201
Between Montague Street and Remsen Street
Brooklyn Heights
Phone: (718) 858-1010
Website: dellaroccospizza.com

BEST NEAPOLITAN PIZZA I HAVE HAD OUTSIDE OF NAPLES (ITALY), but most expensive beer I have seen in my life. I am torn on my rating for Dellarocco's because the pizza was wonderful with a thin, soft, yet firm dough, perfectly baked with just the right amount of burnt spots from the 800+ degree brick oven.

The service was excellent. Sabastion, our server, was attentive enough without hovering or interrupting our conversation and the pizzas arrived post haste as they should from an 800 degree oven. The decor is rather modern, sterile, and boring, not what I would expect in a Brooklyn pizzeria.

I ordered a pint of IPA, but am glad I specified a pint because Sabastion, our server, was nice enough to tell me the $6 IPA was closer to a 1/2 pint than a pint. Where we come from a pint of craft draft ale runs $4-$6, so paying the equivalent of $12 a pint is a non-starter in my book. No beer is worth $12 a pint no matter how good it is or where you are ... "We're not in Kansas anymore Dorothy!" Wine is equally overpriced by the glass, although there were several bottles in the $30 range, a more reasonable investment.

The toppings on the "Dellarocco" ($16), smoked Buffalo mozzarella, broccoli rabe, sliced sweet Italian sausage, red pepper, garlic, and basil were reminiscent of pizza Napoletana, not too much, not too little. They even had olio picante (EVO infused with red pepper), the perfect accompaniment to my salsiccia e friarielli pizza ... buonissimo. This is my go-to pizza when in Naples, so my expectations were not high, however, the Dellarocco was THE BOMB folks!

My wife had the "Zucchini" (also $16) with the same superb dough topped with a wonderful zucchini cream, mozzarella, thinly sliced smoked prosciutto, and extra virgin olive oil. It was also delicious, light and flavorful with just the right amount of ingredients so you could taste each individually.

The pizzas are even the right size for pizza Napoletana (about 13 inches), unusual in the States where most places serve a 12 inch individual pie. An inch makes all the difference folks (I'll leave it at that). Their prices are nearly three times what you would pay for a similar pizza in Naples, but this is NYC (Brooklyn actually) and I have seen prices for an individual pizza ranging from $20 to almost $30, so I do not consider Dellarocco's pizza a bad value. The beer is a different story because I found another place in Brooklyn with several excellent craft draft "pints" in the $6 to $7 range, so stop gouging your customers and lower your beer and wine prices.

CombatCritic Gives Dellarocco's Brick Oven Pizza 8 Bombs Out Of 10 With Deductions For Ridiculously High Beer And Wine Prices ... More Bombs Are Better!

Eight Bombs Equates To:

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Title: Brooklyn, NY: Superb Pizza Napoletana, Overpriced Beer And Wine ... We're Not In Kansas Anymore Dorothy!

Key Words: Dellarocco's Brick Oven Pizza, Dellarocco, Dellarocco's, brick, oven, wood, pizza, pizzeria, Brooklyn, NY, CombatCritic, Napolitana, Neapolitan, value, restaurant, menu, review, Yelp, TripAdvisor, Zomato

Translation for Civilians: WTFO! = "What-The-Fuck ... Over!"

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