Latest From a Great Greek Pizza Clan DebutsNew York has rarely seen a pizzeria that looks anything like Dean’s Pizza, which opened four weeks ago on the Upper West Side. Built into the refurbished grand ballroom of an old hotel, it has high ceilings and ornate moldings that elevate the act of ingesting cheese and sausage. But the pizza itself is no surprise: Co-owned by Mirene Angelis and Nick Tsoulos, the place is the latest effort from the city’s most productive pizza-making family, the extended Angelis-Tsoulos clan.
The Other Critics
Insieme Just Misses; One Big Up and One ‘Eh’ for P*ONGInsieme’s bid for a third star went about the same way as Anthos’: two stars from Platt, then two stars from Bruni. [NYT]
Related: Italian, Old and New [NYM]
Randall Lane gives five of Time Out New York’s six stars to P*ONG. It’s the first major review the place has gotten, and more than enough to make up for getting dissed by the Sun. [TONY]
Paul Adams, in the Sun, finds Pichet Ong’s creations irritatingly twee and precious, except for the desserts upon which the chef’s reputation is built. Adams puts his finger on the problem: “The same creativity that in the earlier courses gives rise to confusing, unsatisfying combinations is more successful when the unifying power of sugar is involved.” [NYS]
User’s Guide
Bloggers to NYC Slices: Drop Dead
The state of the New York slice is dire — or is it? Ed Levine, a semi-acknowledged local pizza authority, launched a full-scale investigation earlier this week. Our pies, Ed maintains, are “going to hell in a hand basket filled with … canned pizza sauce.” Slice’s Adam Kuban, another semi-acknowledged pizza authority, agrees. Even Gourmet had a bit of sport at our expense, inviting several big-shot Italian chefs to scoff at Rosario’s cheeseburger pizza.
And yet, five great slice joints have opened up here in the last couple of years, just counting the ones in Manhattan. Ed mentioned a few he likes. But here are our picks.