Actually Pretty Awesome

Actually Pretty Awesome: The Meatball Gigante and the Honey Pie at Tony’s Pizza

The meatball gigante.
The meatball gigante. Photo: Grub Street

Were you aware that they were doing a whole lot more than Neapolitan pizza at Tony’s Pizza Napoletana these days? Neither were we. The menu is now divided, in fact, into seven pizza types, including the classic, wood-fired Neapolitan; the thicker-crust Californian; coal-fired New York-style; rectangular, top-sauced Detroit-style; cracker-thin St. Louis-style; by-the-meter Roman pies; and classically doughy Sicilian. They’re also doing some new starters including a pretty awesome, giant meatball that’s dressed with both tomato sauce and a topping of robiola cream, pancetta, and wild mushrooms.

It’s not exactly a diet dish, but man … really good. The meat mixture has pork and beef in it, and we’re pretty sure there’s some mortadella mixed in there too. And the cream sauce is light enough that it doesn’t seem like too much, especially when paired with this gargantuan ball of juicy, well seasoned meat.

And since you’re not going to leave there without ordering pizza, might we recommend the new Honey Pie, which is a savory, non-dessert pizza made with a drizzle of honey from Tony’s own rooftop hives. It’s also topped with Calabrese peppers, scallions, mozzarella, shaved piave cheese, serrano chiles, and crispy fried caramelized onions. Do we need to say more? It’s a great combination, well balanced with the honey, and really satisfying without an ounce of meat, leaving room for that gigante first course. Find it under the “California-style” section of the menu.


Earlier on Actually Pretty Awesome:
Three New Gins from St. George Spirits
Duck Pastrami at Murray Circle
The Date Night at Sneaky’s BBQ
Crab and Dumplings at Pican
The Fried-Chicken Sliders at The Lookout
Uncle’s Chicken Curry Tacos at Juhu Beach Club
Buttermilk Panna Cotta at SPQR
The Egg Sandwich at Blue Fig
Lolo’s Mexican- and Turkish-Influenced Small Plates
The Tripe and the Pickles at Bar Tartine
A Dinner of Small Plates at Frances
The Fondue Service at Fondue Cowboy
Brunch at Barndiva
Fried Chicken and Cornmeal Doughnuts at Beast & the Hare
Aaron London’s Take on Vichyssoise at Ubuntu

Actually Pretty Awesome: The Meatball Gigante and the Honey Pie at Tony’s