Pizza is hands down one of my favorite foods to eat. There is something so incredibly satisfying about it to me. Plain cheese or margherita is always my go-to. I’ll get toppings once in a while, but for me, the simpler, the better.

Chef Michael White, from Marea and Osteria Morini, opened up Nicoletta in the East Village. It’s an affordable sit-down pizzeria that I was really excited to try out. 1) Because I love pizza. 2) Because I love Osteria Morini. You’d figure you put two good things together and get something just as good, but not so much the case here.

The lunch started off well, I ordered a Manhattan Special on tap. If you haven’t had one before, Manhattan  Specials are espresso sodas that I LOVE. It’s a New York thing. The company is based in Brooklyn and started all the way back in 1895. Usually when you leave New York City, you have problems finding it. Anyway, I’m pretty much happy during the duration I have a Manhattan Special in my hand.

Next up were the meatballs and focaccia. The focaccia bread was a bit too oily for me, but the meatballs were lovely. Light, saucy and cheesy. But of course, I forced myself to stop after just one because I was saving room for what was suppose to be the star of the meal, the pizza.

What’s interesting is that the tables have slots for the pizza stands. Pretty smart idea since it makes good use of space and prevents you from knocking your pizza over. They logoed the hell out of this place though between all the N’s on the tables and glassware. It seemed slightly weird, as if you were in a commercial, watching another commercial…and then another. Oh wait, or also like when you watch a movie and catch all the placement ads.

Am I blabbing on to much? You want to read about the pizza, don’t you? Sorry, I’m sleepy and waiting for my dough to rise (making bread), so I’m a bit distracted. But back to the pizza!

We ordered the Classica pizza which is simply: mozzarella, tomato and basil. At first bite, I thought, this is pretty good. At second bite, I thought, actually, it’s kind of thick, a bit too thick for me. At third bite, I thought, wait, why does this dough and crust feel so familiar. At fourth bite, I thought, Nicoletta pizza is just like Pizza Hut! And that made me sad. Not because I don’t like Pizza Hut pizza, but sad that my Nicolletta pizza was so reminiscent of it. I guess I just wasn’t expecting a chain pizza. I actually didn’t want to eat anymore after my first slice, which is weird because usually I can’t stop eating pizza. But I just didn’t feel satisfied by it enough to keep going. The more I ate it, the more I didn’t want it.

HOWEVER! The end to my meal was fantastic! You guys know I have a weird obsession with frozen yogurt, soft serve, gelato and ice cream. Well, Nicoletta’s soft serve gelato is so freaking good. Thick, creamy, rich and flavorful, they have great toppings if you choose to have any from salted caramel to pistachios. I got mine on side so that I could eat the gelato plain, or with one or both toppings. I have never had soft serve gelato before, but I would definitely head back to Nicoletta for this sweet treat.

6.5 out of 10

Nicoletta

160 Second Ave (between 10^th and 11^th str)

New York, NY 10003

212-432-1600

- Joyce Huang

Named the “Best Pizza in New York” by New York magazine, Don Antonio in midtown West is definitely a delicious find. This restaurant produces Neapolitan pizzas that are light, balanced and make you want to eat more and more. I would highly recommended going when you have a chance. The staff is incredibly friendly and makes you feel very welcome. Plus, they have a full bar which is always a plus.

What is Neapolitan pizza? It’s not your typical New York slice. Rather, they are served as pies, I’ve never seen them sold as slices. They are cooked in wood fire ovens at a high heat and have a lovely char on the bottom and through the crust. The dough is light and airy.

Pizze del Re – Truffle cream, homemade mozzarella, mushrooms, prosciutto di parma, basil. Decadent tasting and incredibly flavorful, if you love the smell and taste of truffles, you have to try this pie.

Pistacchio e Salsiccia – Fresh pistachio pesto, sausage, homemade mozzarella, pecorino romano, basil, extra virgin olive oil. A very hearty pie, it’s a good selection for meat lovers.

Materdei – filled and lightly fried pizza with fresh ricotta and Italian salami. It’s doughy and has such a nice crunch on the outside. This was amazing. Our neighboring table thanked us for recommending it to them.

Trasteverino – Cynar (artichoke liquor), limoncello and sweet vermouth in a pistachio-rimmed glass. Wanted to try it because it sounded interesting, but it was a bit too sweet for my tastes.

8 out of 10

Don Antonio

309 West 50th Street

New York, NY 10019

-Joyce Huang

While I prefer the usual oven baked pizza, I certainly won’t be throwing a fried pizza out of bed. Yes, we are allowed to eat in bed in Juice’s household.

I didn’t have room for much to eat when I stopped by Forcella, but had been dying to try one of their fried pizzas. I chose the Montanara, which is a margherita pizza. The special part of this tasty concoction is that the dough has been flash fried, and then they finish cooking it in the oven. For a fried dish, it’s wonderfully light, with just a touch of greasiness. You get the crunch and flakiness of say a well-made scallion pancake when you bite into it. The mozzarella and sauce were delicious. I was very happy that I finally got to try it.

Would I eat it again? Yes. Then why do I prefer a non-fried pizza? Because the slight touch of grease does make the crust feel a bit heavy, compared to traditional pizzas that are only baked. If you haven’t tried a fried pizza before, definitely stop by Forcella. It’s worth the calories and the staff there was very friendly.

Also, did I mention that the owner, Giulo Adriani, is a 4 time Pizza World Champion? If that doesn’t sway you, I don’t know what will.

8 out of 10

Forcella

334 Bowery at Bond street

New York, NY 10012

(212) 466-3300

-Joyce Huang

Todd English is without a doubt a powerhouse in the food industry. Good looking and talented, everyone who knows chefs or watches television knows his name. I’ve frequented some of his New York City locations for drinks and/or food, with positive results for décor and product. However, when it came to his Boston location, Fig, I’m sad to say that I was disappointed. It kills me to say that because I admire him so much.

Fig is a cozy and casual dining experience, people do complain about having to wait for a table, but luckily I managed to snag one without a wait during lunch time on a Saturday. When I say cozy, I really mean it was a tight squeeze, but I would prefer that they have more tables than less. I was really looking forward to this experience because not only am I a Todd English fan, but I heart pizza. Pizza is one of my favorite things to eat. And the menu at Fig looked amazing, with fun named pizzas like the Bronx Bomber or the Red Sox pies.

The waitress brought over bread and olive oil to start. Tasty and simple. But then our real food came.

I started with :

Boston bibb & watercress salad with toasted walnut dressing and maytag blue cheese. I have to say, that other than this salad being a tad bit overdressed, it was really tasty. I can’t really figure out how to use the word ‘umami’ without sounding like an ass or pretentious, but this salad immediately brought to mind ‘umami.’ The flavors were immensely satisfying and I really enjoyed the walnut dressing.

Pizza, half Oliver’s, which is a traditional margherita, and the other half was Spicy Chicken Sausage that also had herbed ricotta, balsamic onions and a light tomato sauce. Mr. Juice put it best, all the ingredients were fantastic, but the pizza just was not that good. I have a feeling that it was made wrong. The dough was rolled out unevenly so 3/4 was extremely thin (see picture) and the rest was actually they way I had assumed the entire pie should have been. Can you see how thin the Oliver slice is in the picture? It tasted like pizza that was made on a pizza cracker. I should have made a video for you to see, but I was actually able to pick up the slices and twack them on the pan and it was so hard that the pizza slice didn’t bend at all.

I’ll probably give Fig another try, but I think next time I’ll try one of their yummy sounding pasta dishes. I’m going to need a break from ordering their pizza till this experience wanes from my memory.

6.5 out of 10

Fig

42 Charles St

(between Chestnut St & Mount Vernon St)

Boston, MA 02114

-Joyce Huang

Rigatoni alla bolognese

The whole Patsy’s chain in New York City is decent. Not amazing Italian, but satisfying. Here’s a look at my latest trip to the Upper East Side location. I left warm and in a food coma. Normally people go for the brick oven pizza (which I again think is OK, but nothing great), but that night we wanted a calzone and some pasta.

Calzone with proscuitto

Cannoli...a disappointing one

Black and white chocolate mousse, surprisingly it was very light

Patsyspizzeriany.com

Check their site for locations as there are multiple ones.

5 out of 10

-Joyce Huang

courtesy of nymag.com; photographed by Ben Rosenzweig

New York City is full of fantastic pizza and maybe because it reminds me of my teenage years, but whenever I stroll by PIE in the East Village, I have to go in. PIE sells pizza by the pound and all you do is just tell them how much you want them to cut off, whenever it’s an inch wide or 5 inches wide and it’s yours. The other day I stopped in on my way to buy potting soil and thought that the guy in front of me had the right idea. He bought an inch of what seemed like every pizza they had. Sadly, since I was running errands, I could only purchase whatever would easily fit on a plate and not be too messy. Walk and eat, walk and eat. I went with old time favorites, margherita and white, but they really do have a plethora of choices from eggplant to salad or spinach and caprese. PIE also carries a selection of beer and dessert pizzas (which, even to my surprise I still haven’t tried, I think simply because I love savory pizzas). In the summer time they have $4 sangrias. Oh! And even though I go for the food and not the alcohol, they have a really cheap happy hour of beers and wines! Think alcohol for under $5.

I’m a huge fan of PIE because thin crust pizza is one of my favorite types and also feels very snackable, so I don’t feel too full after I finish my plate. One of my main problems though, is that it can get pricey. For my margherita and white slices that were about 2 inches in width and 8 inches in length, I payed a little over $4, even though it was still smaller than a New York style slice. Was it worth it? Yes, I just wish the price per pound were cheaper. However, I understand that that’s the price that must be payed since I am able to choose as many other styles that you want, without having to pay for a whole slice.

If you love thin crust pizza, then this really is an oldie and a goodie for you to try out.

7 out of 10

PIE

1542 2nd Avenue

New York, NY 10028

-Joyce Huang