Pupatella - A Pizzeria with Spunk!

Last weekend I visited Pupatella, a relatively new pizzeria in Arlington, VA. They bill themselves as a Neapolitan pizzeria and friggitoria. I actually just saw that last part when I looked up their website. Um, yum! Friggitoria means they are serving up tasty fried treats like arancini di riso (rice balls) and crocche' di patate (mashed potato balls). They also had a fried calzone on their menu, but I got the impression it was going to be a pretty big, as in large, item, and not tiny like the ones you often find on the street in Naples.

I heard from a friend of a friend from Naples that this is THE place to go in the DC area for Neapolitan pizza, so I wasn't going to let much time to by before trying it. The inside of the place is really cute, and small, and funky. There are high tables and low tables and even a couch where people can sit and wait for their carryout orders.


















Bottom line - I recommend it. The pizza - I ordered the "real Margherita" - the one with fior di latte mozzarella instead of mozzarella di bufala (which is kind of just not the same AT ALL as it is in Salerno, and therefore a waste of money in my opinion) and it was very delicious. The pizzaiolo stands right there in front of you, stretching the dough and making the pizzas, letting you see all his doughy tricks and witness just how simple the ingredients of these pizzas are.

Beer and wine are cheap there, and I noticed a special deal where if you buy two pizzas you get $10 off a bottle of wine. I think these wines were about $30 so that really isn't bad, considering you pay $10 a glass in a lot of places around here.

I also noticed they were advertising sfogliatelle for dessert, and so I had to try one. One of my favorite treats when I go to Salerno (and Naples), this seashell-like pastry with a ricotta cream inside is amazing when it's good. The one at Pupatella - not so good. Don't get it. If you've ever had one in Naples or the surrounding cities, you will be disappointed. Some things are just meant to be made in their hometown and not elsewhere, especially not in other countries across an ocean. I heard that the sfogliata at Cafe' Milano is good, but I'm still skeptical. I'll try it next time I'm there if possible.

Pupatella also has gelato, and I tasted a few before settling on the old classic nocciola (hazelnut.) It's worth a taste :)

Believe it or not, I did not check out the bathroom there (see the subtitle of this blog.) Will have to save that part for my next trip.

Pizzaiolo Cafe - Where's the manager when you need one?

On a whim today I decided to join some friends at the Pizzaiolo Cafe on Fern in Alexandria, just off Quaker Lane where the Lindsay Cadillac used to be. In fact, if you're not careful, you might miss the Pizzaiolo sign altogether since the Cadillac sign is still there. I arrived to find 3 friends sitting in front of empty plates - 2 of them had enjoyed and eaten what was in front of them, and the other 1 had eaten the toast and eggs she had ordered, but was still waiting for the breakfast potatoes. I could talk about how this place needed to use Italian spellcheck before they printed their menus (including the coffee menu up above the kitchen). I could talk about how my pizza was served to me at the table in a box.

But what I really want to write about is the fact that this place desperately needs a good manager. Or as I suspect may be the case, just a manager. But seriously, you cannot open a restaurant and have no manager, or someone who knows nothing about managing a restaurant, and then expect that everything will run smoothly. It won't. And yes, Mr. or Ms. Manager - it is your job to monitor the staff working there, and to teach them if they don't know what they're doing. The restaurant is not going to run itself. Well, except maybe into the ground. The fact is, someone needs to be there - yes, all the time - to monitor what is going on and keep things well-oiled.

On the plus side: the pizza was pretty good - I ordered the Neapolitan - and the waiter, if a little on the casual side, both in appearance and manner, was darn cute, and very friendly.

Va Piano needs some aiuto!

After reading an enthusiastic review online, I was eager to try Va Piano, an international chain of German-owned Italian fast food restaurants that recently opened its doors at a few DC area locations. I visited the new Ballston locale. Sadly, I was disappointed with my visit last Saturday night. The fact is, the place is confusing. Even after reading all about the process online, and then having it explained to me by a friendly hostess, it still took me several minutes to figure it out. It's clearly easier for a repeat visitor, but with the first trip causing so much confusion, I could see how people would not make a second attempt.

Here's how it works: upon entering, you are handed a menu and a credit-card like card. When you order your dish(es) at the different stations (pasta, salad, pizza and antipasti, dessert) you or the cook swipe the card and it records your order. At the end of the meal, you take your card up to the register, they scan it and see what you ordered, and you pay. There is no table service, although someone came by more than once just to see if everything was ok.

I think the main draw here is pizza, and if it's not, then it should be. They offer several pasta options. You can choose from about 12 types of pasta, made fresh on the premises, and there are probably about 15-20 different sauces you can choose for your pasta. I made the mistake of ordering pappardelle with a gorgonzola and walnut sauce, while my boyfriend ordered fusilli with fresh cherry tomatoes and basil. Probably any pasta dish will be a mistake until they make a few adjustments, so stick with the pizza.

The good (or bad) part is that you can watch them cook the food right in front of you. The sauces are cooked behind glass in what appears to be a wok. The guy had the heat so high that he immediately burned the garlic and onion in the pasta dish with tomatoes and basil. It was boiling! The "gorgonzola" sauce, a flavorless creamy mixture, was poured into another incredibly hot wok and left to boil away with some chopped walnuts thrown in. They take the fresh pasta (already portioned out in containers along the back wall) and drop it into the boiling water when the sauce is almost ready. They then mix it all together and my guess is that they offer parmesan cheese on top no matter what. My pasta was flavorless, except for the fresh parsley sprinkled on the top as a garnish, what's more, it was so stretchy that I could stretch one of my noodles to about twice its original length before it snapped.

Some thoughts:
- Garlic should be dorato, or "golden," not charred brown and black
- Onion with tomato and basil, garlic with tomato and oregano or parsley
- Parmesan (or hopefully parmigiano) cheese does not belong on all types of pasta sauces. I read a great article highlighting some of the rules, and if I find it, I will post its link here
- When pasta is too stretchy or elastic, it means the dough was worked too much

Some plusses: I tasted a pizza with ham and mushrooms which was pretty good. The crust was ok and if I ever do decide to go back to Va Piano, I will definitely get a pizza. (Careful on translations: on the menu, prosciutto means regular ham, and prosciutto crudo means prosciutto - these are correct since the word prosciutto by itself in Italian just means ham, and crudo means raw, or in this case, cured). I also tasted 2 desserts: the tiramisu', which was not bad although the savoiardi (lady fingers) could have soaked a little more in espresso because they were dry; and panna cotta with a strawberry syrup on top. I love the way the panna cotta was served - in a mason jar with a bail-wire clamp. They just pop the top open and serve it in the jar on a plate. The panna cotta was good, and the strawberry provided a fresh sweetness to each bite. The restaurant has a modern look, a very open layout, and many seating options, from lounge chairs and low tables on the bar side, to hightop tables and stools on the kitchen side, to picnic tables and benches outside. Fresh herbs abound in tiny pots on the tables and in the restaurant's very own (indoor) greenhouse.

I hope that Va Piano can make some improvements in the kitchen, because with the great location, great decor, and interesting menu, it could become a neighborhood hotspot.

N.B. The bathrooms were great - very modern and quite clean. Only downside: they're tricky to find because the door that leads to them looks like an exit.

Save the lost dogs!

I visited The Lost Dog Cafe last night in Arlington, VA. The original plan was to go to The Stray Cat Cafe (just a few doors down) but they were closed. So Lost Dog it was! And yes, you probably guessed that both places are owned by the same people. They help lost animals by helping them find homes. (See websites for details). When you enter the Lost Dog, the first room is full of beer and wine that you can purchase on the go, as well as a counter for party platters. Lost Dog is definitely more casual than its feline sister, but sometimes aren't you just in the mood for pizza or a sandwich? The "pizza-deli" serves basically just that - pizzas and sandwiches, and the menu is huge. There are many pre-designed pizzas and sandwiches, or of course you can design your own using their extensive list of ingredients. The beer selection is also HUGE, but they have other homemade drinks worth trying, like milkshakes, malts, root beer, and the delicious Clemson Tiger Tea (aka an Arnold Palmer). I had a Coke and we shared a basket of Dog Collars (tabasco onion rings) which were tasty but not as crispy as I would have liked. I did not order a pizza - OK I have to be honest, the pizzas did not look that good - but instead the San Diego sandwich: chicken salad (you can also get tuna salad) on a sub roll with guacamole, bacon, lettuce, tomato, and mayo. Now why you would need mayo on a sandwich with chicken salad (aka chicken with mayo) and guacamole is beyond me, but they held the mayo, no questions asked. It was ok - too much chicken salad, and way too many (red) onions in it, not enough guacamole for the guac lover that I am, but the bacon was crispy and the lettuce and tomatoes fresh. I tasted their banana fudge milkshake for dessert, yummy, full of bananas, but described by the bf as "an upscale Frosty from Wendy's" - it wasn't that banana-ey even with all the banana.
My overall impression: The service was fast and friendly, they do great work helping dogs (I am a dog lover), and the sandwiches are fresh. I would go elsewhere for pizza since the crust reminded me of bisquick crusts from yesteryear (see my post on 2 Amys for good pizza!) and the floors could have been cleaner, although in their defense, it was the very end of the night. Prices are reasonable, however, and for a quick bite in the neighborhood, especially with kids, it seems like a fun place to go.

N.B. One bathroom for men, one for women; women's was clean, had soap, towels (in the wonderful motion-sensor dispenser,) a step-on garbage can, and you could push your way out of the door, although it's hard to open the door with a paper towel and then reach with your foot to step on the can to throw it away while holding the door open :) I prefer garbage cans with no lid, which are much easier to toss the towel into as you ease out the door.

http://www.lostdogcafe.com/ and http://www.thestraycatcafe.com/

D.O.C. Pizza in DC

If you are in D.C. and looking for some good pizza, go straight to 2 Amys pizzeria on Macomb St., just north of the National Cathedral. I went there a few nights ago and had a pretty nice time. There was a wait, as usual, but as my boyfriend had just reminded me that there was outside seating, I asked if we might be seated more quickly on the patio. I had actually never sat outside there before, and I soon realized that it's better to wait for a table inside then to sit outside. It's quite dark ~ and I don't like eating in the dark ~ with only a few dim lights hanging over some of the tables, and just past the fence around the patio I could see two dumpsters. Needless to say, I quickly went in and asked the hostess if we could be put on the waiting list again for an inside table, and she was more than happy to oblige. It turns out we didn't have to wait at all, and we were quickly seated at a 2-top next to the wall. The bf ordered his usual appetizer, the suppli' al telefono, small rice balls filled with cheese, then fried. In my house we call them arancini. They bring 5 suppli' on a white plate, and they just kind of roll around on the plate in their own oil. This is not the first time that I've noticed that the plate could use a sprig of parsley or basil or something to create a nice presentation. I know the place is somewhat rustic, but would a little green be that difficult to place on the side? Anyhow, we both ordered the Margherita Extra - the traditional Neapolitan pizza but with halved cherry tomatoes (the "extra") in addition to the tomato sauce. The pizza was quite good, my only complaint being that the crust was slightly too salty. Also, on recent visits it seemed that the pizzas were getting smaller and smaller, but I'm happy to report that my pizza last weekend was of a healthy size. All in all I don't know another place in the area that does Neapolitan-style pizza better than 2 Amys. One last piece of advice: if you order the dried, cured meat plate (salame, coppa, etc.), ask them to slice it for you fresh. I ordered it once and the meat was so dried out it was unrecognizable. But in general, the service is good, the food is better, and the atmosphere is really fun and sometimes boisterous.

N.B. There are two single-person restrooms, one for men and one for women. The women's is always clean, has nice soap, and paper towels. Haven't seen the men's but haven't heard any complaints.

http://www.2amyspizza.com/