Michele and I were returning from an early trip to the Bronx Botanical Gardens to see the Alhambra exhibit. It was 1:30 and the Oyster Bar in Grand Central looked very inviting on a hot summer day, but we really wanted pizza. PizzArte, the new pizza place which combines pizza with modern Neapolitan art was not that far away, so off we went.
The decor at PizzArte is contemporary modern Italian like new restaurants I have seen in Rome and Milan. The second floor dining room is very comfortable, the art is amusing and the music was just right. We had two pizzas. I always order the Margarita and Michele had their special PizzArte pizza, topped with speck, zucchini flowers and burrata cheese. We also had a salad with croutons, pecorino and a creamy anchovy dressing.
My only complaint was that the pizzas were a little burned around the edges and underbaked in the center, but this could have been due to them getting used to the oven. Even with this, the pizza was very good. I think Pizzarte has the potential to be one of the best places in NYC for Neapolitan style pizza. Pasquale, who is from Naples, is the pizzaiolo, the tallest one I have ever seen.
