Joe B.
Yelp
This was by far my favorite meal in Phoenix/Scottsdale.
I came here and sat at the bar on a Wednesday at 5pm. I was entertained by the kitchen staff making pizza in front of me, and Tyler the bartender. He wasn't just a bartender, he was continual conversation and engagement, and he did an excellent job helping me along my food journey. So much so that I came back the next night for a second meal.
Tyler's professionalism wasn't the only draw, it was the ambiance and more importantly, the food.
The space was intimate, rustic, and sophisticated. It had a large pizza oven at the center, and made me feel at home as if I were in Italy. I would love to sit at the patio during my next visit.
The food. OMG, the food.
Accompanied by a well-executed cosmo each night, I also enjoyed the Insalata, an arugula salad with EVOO and lemon, tomatoes, and sliced parmigiano reggiano. With a touch of kosher salt on top, this simple salad truly delivered just what I needed after several days of carbs and heavy food. The perfect balance in the dressing, with the sweet tomatoes and salty, scrumptious cheese, made for a memorable start. And it was so good I had it two nights in a row.
The first night I had a margarita pizza, which came quickly and hot, and was very good. It blew Pizzeria Bianco's famous pizza out of the water. I would go back here in an instant if I had to compare.
However, my meal the second night, as suggested by Tyler, was a pasta dish called the Pastasciutta, with a side of one meatball (so it wasn't a whole meatball appetizer yet enough food to fill me up). The pasta was a simple tomato sauce with lots of garlic on house-made thick spaghetti, topped with shaved parmigiano (see a trend here?). I make my own fresh pasta at home and this competed with it, which is a huge compliment (if I do say so myself). But really, it was the meatball I will remember, if that's possible. I believe it was a sausage-based meatball, but it was packed with flavor. I just wish I had more than one (next time).
This was an amazing meal, and the best I had (which is saying something). I might go back to Scottsdale just to have more of this food.