Okay, a quick word before I get started. I'm a bit uneasy writing this for a couple of reasons. One, I'm about to do a PIZZA review just scant few inches on the front page from resident pizza-pundit Bruce Aleaxander. Two, the meal I'm putting pen to paper about was attended by no less than three other members of the ScowlZine Staff(So I better have my facts straight !) and Three, the establishment in question is owned by a neighbor of everyone's favorite editor, Avery Glasser. But I'm stuck for a column, and so I soldier on
The occasion A ScowlZine Editorial get-together. The location Vito's on the Park in Hartford. The mission sum up this experience in a few pithy paragraphs. First, a few words on the decor. Typical, artsy-fartsy, Euro-trash stuff. Definitely gives it the aura of thinking its better than it is. The clientele(excluding our party of course) only adds to this atmosphere. The style is definitely Business Casual the sort of thing you see in a law firm on a typical Casual Friday. And the waiters well, I can't speak for all of them, but ours DEFINITELY had his nose in the air, a chip on his shoulder, and an accent that I couldn't help but wonder whether its authentic. After taking our drink orders (a couple of Long Trails, two Farmington Valley Nut Brown Ales, and a gin and tonic) we were left to peruse the menus.
As I had said, the whole purpose of this evening was to eat pizza, so it was the back page of the menu that caught our attention. When the waiter (I'm REALLY fighting the compulsion to call him Serge) returned with our drinks & a basket of bread, we ordered a stuffed meat pizza, and a seasoned romano pie with sliced tomatoes. After he had disappeared with our menus, we nibbled on the warm, dense, dinner rolls & steaming garlic sticks. The basket was accompanied with a bowl of dipping sauce that I still can't describe. It was sort of an Italian version of hummus. But it was loaded with garlic and very tasty.
After a respectable lapse of time, our pies arrived. The stuffed meat was a heady combination of sausage, pepperoni, cheese, and sauce, enclosed in a double crust, topped off with more cheese & bacon. Although it was not very large, divided up into 8 moderate sized, slices; it was more than enough to fill three of us. And it was quite good! The only other stuffed pizza I have to compare it to is Lena's, but I think this might be better. The other two members of the party put away the Romano offering. I didn't have any of this, but they seemed to be quite happy. It featured a very light, and perfectly cooked, crust topped with a thick layer of romano. This in turn was garnished with the added sliced tomatoes, and then a blanket of mozzarella. And after all was said and done, there was still one slice of stuffed meat pizza left. Considering the prodigious appetites involved, this was a statement in itself.
Okay, one final word the price. Beholding the check is definitely NOT for the faint of heart. The stuffed pizza came in at about 25 dollars, and the romano was not far behind that (mostly due to the added tomatoes.) As one of my dining companions (the esteemed Chris Ravlin) put it, "When you go to Vito's you basically have to bend over, grab your ankles, and take your bill like a man!" I might be paraphrasing a bit, but you get the gist. Anyway the pie WAS good. I'm just not sure I could afford making a habit of it.