Comments on: Ballard pizza to be certified true Napoletana

By: motorrad

motorrad — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 11:03:36 +0000

best pizza: CHICAGO.

By: miriamk

miriamk — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 19:21:03 +0000

It is funny to read such diverse comments here. I must say, if the place is busy every night, it is not because of bad expensive food, or parking problems, I walk there. Congratulations in the certification, and looking forward to have dinner there again soon!

By: Jon Gross

Jon Gross — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 07:31:59 +0000

I just keep coming back to Veraci. It is my favorite pizza in Seattle so far.

By: ExiledBrit

ExiledBrit — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 11:10:20 +0000

Oooh, a fake Italian accent – that just makes we want to go for the entertainment!

Will he be my personal clown? Will he make me laugh? Will he?

By: ExiledBrit

ExiledBrit — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 11:06:06 +0000

This is why we can't have nice things…

By: Sam

Sam — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 23:03:22 +0000

Picolino's does 1 thing right: location.

Food is less than mediocre.

Service: tie and collared shirts at a neighborhood pizza joint? Ill-conceived.

Ambiance: forcefully tiresome.

Price: out of touch w/neighborhood.

Owner/management: showy, imposed/fake Italian accent, arrogantly entitled, and non-knowledgeable in relation to both food and wine.

By: SPG

SPG — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 20:40:26 +0000

Try Picora's up on 14th and Madison on Capitol Hill. Not perfect, but on their good days they're pretty close. At least the owners are from New York and know what the target they're shooting for tastes like.

By: SPG

SPG — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 20:35:46 +0000

I will agree with TEC on the general lack of good pizza here in the PNW. One of the things I love about being able to visit NYC/Brooklyn often is getting some good pizza and some good bagels (but not pizza bagels which are an abomination and make Moses weep).
I wouldn't give up everything else that the PNW offers, so I've learned to lower my expectations a bit and eat less pizza. In the meantime I still go across town to Picora's or call up Pagliacci for a delivery. Not the same, but at least it's not awful.
Zayda's? That is awful and should be banned.

By: SPG

SPG — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 20:29:32 +0000

I haven't been to Piccolino's but I am curious about your “crisp thin crust i'd hoped for” comment. Would your ideal pizza be closer to:
A) A matzoh cracker with ragu and few bits of cheese
B) Bread completely obscured by cheese with a hint of sauce in between

By: SPG

SPG — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 20:23:49 +0000

So that explains that scar.

By: PJ

PJ — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 11:15:43 +0000

Way to go Picolino's!! We enjoy eating in the neighborhood; we can have a little extra wine and walk home! Their hospitality is wonderful…excellent selection of wines….the goat cheese ravioli is fabulous. Let's support the local establishments we find personally enjoyable without disparaging the others or one another. Seriously.

By: Pizza freak

Pizza freak — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 02:54:03 +0000

Yes. Capri, Rome, and Tuscany. Capri's pizza was some of the best I've ever had. The pizza in Rome and Tuscany was average, which is not surprising given those regions are not known for their pizza.

By: angelatini

angelatini — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 02:19:28 +0000

Thank you, Lucy0117.

By: Lucy0117

Lucy0117 — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 01:54:49 +0000

You admit you are no expert, being from Seattle, yet you still find it necessary to make nasty remarks about pizza? I agree with “angelatini”…get over yourself.

Too many people act like just because they are interested in food makes them an expert or even a foodie! Everyone is entitled to an opinion regarding their taste in food, but for THIS many people to make nasty comments about this place (and some admit they've never even tried it?) is just sad.

Here's an idea…maybe instead of bashing every little person and place you can, try supporting your community, Ballard, and it's local business. Just a thought.

By: ninaf

ninaf — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 01:40:42 +0000

Just wondering, have you had pizza in Italy?

By: Trix

Trix — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 00:26:48 +0000

Thanks! Sounds worth a shot.

By: IntegralPoker

IntegralPoker — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 00:11:35 +0000

Yeah, I grew up in Brick and Howell… J & G is my favorite. http://www.bricktownlive.com/restaurant/Brick-N...

Man, I have to get home soon….

By: Zelda

Zelda — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 23:36:26 +0000

Pete & Elda's in Neptune New Jersey!

http://www.peteandeldas.com/

By: Pizza freak

Pizza freak — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 22:45:31 +0000

The Napoletana certification means nothing. Tutta Bella has it and IMO their pizza is garbage. Every pizza I've had from them (only a few before we stopped going back) was thrown together like slop and undercooked, not to mention overpriced. I once ordered prosciutto on one of the pizzas and it was so bad I had to pick it off the pizza before eating it.

Pagliacci's margherita pizza, when done right … it varies, is one of the best pizzas you can get in Seattle…again IMO. Via Trib in Capitol Hill and Queen Anne are also very good. The Fremont location sucks.

By: Julian

Julian — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 22:33:05 +0000

Let's not forget New Haven, CT “apizza”, from Sally's and Pepe's. Amazing pizza from coal-fired brick ovens with thin crispy crust. Dear god I wish we had some pie like that out here.

By: Good Eats

Good Eats — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 21:40:06 +0000

SPG, I think we were separated at birth!

By: Edog

Edog — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 21:29:34 +0000

I'll give you there is a wealth of bitching and moaning, but their is no grey east coast growl!

By: angelatini

angelatini — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 21:19:09 +0000

You're right, I am Miss Italia…at least I actually am Italian. And I never once said it was “authentic” did I? Reading comprehension much? I said it was his PREFERRED pizza in Seattle. Get over yourself.

By: chopper_74

chopper_74 — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 21:15:59 +0000

Truth is it's neither thick or thin, I'd call it 'medium'. The local ingredients, and the bicycle delivery, both are compelling reasons for my support.
I'm really not a pizza expert, but when I have a hankering for it, I'm always pleased with theirs.
Via Verde also has good pizza, wood fired, etc., but I found the crust to be a bit thicker, on the doughy side.
For what it's worth, there's my take on it.

By: IntegralPoker

IntegralPoker — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 11:16:57 +0000

First of all... if Picolino's wanted this certification, then I applaud them for getting it. I know that they don't just give this one away, and that a restaurant haa to meet some fairly consistent standards to get it. And now we know that if we want something that looks like authentic Neapolitan pizza, we have it in our neighborhood.

The problem is that American pizza is just different from Italian pizza, or more specifically Neapolitan pizza, and so I really don't want Neapolitan pizza very often. I do want American forms of pizza, and the truth is that there are only three well-known authentic forms of it: New York-style thin crust, Chicago-style deep-dish, and a rarer crispy crust version as found in Providence at Al Forno (perhaps there are other than these three, but they're the most famous).

I'm from New Jersey, and as far as I'm concerned, if you can't fold it, it's not pizza, and there's nothing in Seattle that even comes close to being as good as any strip-mall pizza joint in New Jersey. And Brooklyn pizza.... fuhgeddaboutit. The best there is. You know that pizza place that John Travolta walked up to at the beginning of "Saturday Night Fever"? It's on 86th St, it's still there, and it's still awesome.

In the meantime, if I'm in the mood for simple Neapolitan, I'm honestly glad that we've got Picolino's. If I'm in the mood for good American pizza... we're just out-of-luck here in the Pacific Northwest. I'd trade all the (way too many) Thai restaurants in Seattle for one good New Jersey pizza joint....

By: Trix

Trix — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 09:31:25 +0000

Hey, Chopper, does Snoose Junction have thin crust? I've wanted to try it but so many of the pizza places around here are 'New York' style.

By: gooner

gooner — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 09:06:14 +0000

great use of “it reeks of douche”

when i read that, i knew that we had a constructive, smart, and well put together critique that i wanted to pay attention to.

i will forever agree with everything you say…

By: Trix

Trix — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:57:50 +0000

I've never tried Picolinos, and as I'm a thick crust fan I probably never will. However, this is a real honor for this restaurant. So, I congratulate you, Picolinos. Though, I'll still order from Zeke's.

By: LBB

LBB — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 07:09:02 +0000

Veraci rocks!

By: LBB

LBB — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 07:07:13 +0000

I think leavinglasballard was referring to the Napoletana list – not your Snoose mention (although I have to say Snoose has some of the worst pizza I've ever had). But (as is apparent from these comments) pizza is subjective.