No no and no, Lebanese Memes guy… Nonna does not mean “nun” are you kidding me right now?, it’s the Italian word for grandmother… and yes… it is derived from the Latin word: Nonnus, but god why are we talking etymology, origins and meanings while we just came in to eat some pizza…
Actually, no, not just “some Pizza” Nonna’s pizza has a great reputation in Beirut, and Lebanese Memes Guy (my newly acquired friend that yet need to be named – voir previous reviews) has been trying to get me to try them for weeks now… I was busy… today I’m not and here we are in a small, yet welcoming pizza place that smells Florence, Venice, Napoli… (yet very Roman in style) depending on the pizza you look at or smelled…
We were welcomed by a lady who seemed to be the manager (loved her tattoo) She got us seated in no time with a smile that hid a lot of professionalism in public relations…
A cool waiter with great hairstyle and pink shoes served us toasted bread with olive oil and dried oregano… Lebanese Memes guy was too busy over the phone to notice that the bread was not cut evenly which made its toasting uneven as well, some pieces were very hard, while other were “cuit a point” and delicious…
Wait… what did we order again? Ah yesss… A Napolitana pizza, A Pollo Pizza, a side of French fries and Rocket Salad
“What’s anchovy?” asked Lebanese Memes guy (help me name him already!!!) to which I replied with a grin: “Enchois” – he kept looking at me with a rounded eyes poker face… Ok ok, it’s a small, common salt-water fish that usually is… very very salty, I explained.
The reason I chose the Napolitana is specifically because it contains that anchovy fish… used in the right quantities, it can make a dish taste real great… overuse it, and your dish become inedible…
The Rocket Salad is very simple, the dressing is delicious and the Rocca leaves are fresh, I would’ve maybe added some walnut crumbs? But don’t listen to me, I loved it the way it is…
The fries were perfectly… well… fried… loved the basket presentation, the portion is way too small though… small enough to be criticized, yummy (Lebanon) enough to be forgiven… but really… try to make your portion bigger.
I appreciated a lot… like really A LOT the waiter who warned me about the Napolitana being a little too salty… thank you… some people really don’t know that anchovy taste can be overwhelming… but I knew that already and that’s exactly want I wanted to try…
Chef… you do not disappoint… Your Napolitana was delicious, yet you were maybe a little too cautious there? Let me explain, you were very careful in not overloading the pizza with that tiny salty fish… but honestly it could’ve handled a bit more… see… the pizza that comes to the table is cut in slices… some slices had anchovy… some didn’t… the ones that did were amazing, crispy crust, perfect amount of tomato sauce, mozzarella, oregano and basil … the slices that didn’t were at best an enhanced Margueritta…
The Pollo on the other hand was a perfect mix, with the onions really enhancing and complimenting the chicken, not my favorite… but a definite star in your menu’s sky…
Now that my stomach is all full, I took the time to look around and appreciate the simple yet very Italian decoration around us, the tables, the surprisingly comfortable chairs, the wooden utensils that are hanging on a wall (along with a maybe misplaced ma3moul mold)… loved the logs stacked on top of each other… it really had put us in the mood without us even noticing it did… but then my thoughts were interrupted by our pink shoes waiter who professionally proposed a dessert, suggesting the Nutella Pizza… YES, we both said simultaneously…
It took a bit more time than normal to get to our table, enough to make us notice, but not enough to makes us bothered by it, we were enjoying the place… And oh my god that Nutella pizza looks great…
The waiter announced it as complimentary to our (pleasant) surprise, was it because it was a little late? Or because I was taking a lot of pictures? When asked, the waiter simply replied with a smile: “because we care”… ok then… I accept… thank you… (With a smile)
Beautifully presented, moon crest shaped, rolled, filled with melted Nutella… crispy and golden… “Saupoudrée” with sugar powder… I almost didn’t notice the vanilla ice cream… It’s honestly out of this world… in looks and in taste… although here… it could’ve tasted even better… because, probably it was rolled, and because of the moist chocolate… the dough that was inside the roll was a little undercooked and was a little chewy under our teeth… maybe the chocolate temperature has a little to do with it? Maybe it was a little too cold and prevented the dough from being properly cooked? It’s possible… however, please don’t let that remark take ANYTHING away from the greatness of this dish… a must try over and over and over again… it’s that kind of dessert that makes ladies think chocolate is better than sex… (Don’t agree though)
Nonna Pizza, I have to be honest with you and myself, my review does not give you justice, and I will write another one once I have tasted more… I can tell you are not an ordinary pizza place… just keep in check those smaller portions…
Gaston Le Nonno
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