Fritti Back on the Scene

It’s been well reported (including here) that Fritti has recently hired a new pizzaolo, Enrico Liberato. This doesn’t just mean it’s a new person working the oven, but the actual pizza style and the dough have changed, relatively significantly.

Bliss posted on it today, and I pretty much agree with her on all counts (so read her post).

I tried the Margherita and the Sorrentina, the latter having smoked mozzarella and cherry tomatoes.

The pies are more visibly appealing, the sauce is stellar, and the cheese was “real” and flavorful. The smoked mozzarella flavor was a nice touch, it wasn’t too strong, and was a welcome change from the classic Margherita pie.

The dough is soft, with better texture and much better flavor then before, but it doesn’t quite have that end crust texture or char you will see on Varasano’s pie. I like a bit more crunch. Also, the endcrust still had a fairly thick layer of flour on it, which dried my mouth and masks the flavor of the dough a bit.

I’ve yet to eat at Varasano’s actual restaurant, so I can’t wait to see how they measure up. Regardless, the reemergence of Fritti is quite welcome…there’s nothing like good old fashioned competition to get someone to step up their game, while we reap the benefits.